First of all, on behalf of the clergy and staff of Incarnate Word, I want to wish you a very holy and happy Easter! To our parishioners, I hope this time of rejoicing in Christ’s victory offers you countless graces and renewed hope. And to all of our visitors who are here with family and friends…welcome! We are truly glad you are here. Whether it’s here or back home when your visit is over, we hope you will always feel at home in the Catholic church where we strive to make God’s love, joy, and victory visible.
Now, in comparison to what Jesus has done for us, everything else fades; but there is still a tremendous amount of work that goes into celebrating these Easter liturgies. Our musicians and choir spend long hours preparing. Our lectors practice and pray over the readings. Our servers navigate the unique rhythms of the Triduum. And then there’s our decorating team, who in less than 24 hours transform a bare church into something vibrant and alive, filled with flowers and color.
It might seem simple; just get a bunch of flowers and spread them around, but working with florists doesn’t always go as planned.
I heard about a real estate agent who sent flowers to a client who had just closed on a new home. Instead of a thank-you call, the client called, confused, asking what message the flowers were supposed to convey. The agent asked for a picture…and sure enough, it was a funeral arrangement, with a ribbon that read, “Rest in Peace.” After apologizing, the agent called the florist to complain. The florist responded, “It could be worse… just imagine, today someone was buried with flowers that said, ‘Congratulations on your new home!’”
It’s good to laugh a little on Easter. Because in a sense, that’s exactly what’s happened. Death and the devil are the ones standing there looking foolish. Because the tomb is empty. Because Jesus Christ is risen. And everything has changed.
At the heart of our celebration today is not just the idea that Jesus went from “rest in peace” to “congratulations on your new home.” Through His Resurrection, He has changed the meaning of life and death for all of us.
Before Christ, death was the end. The final word: the unbreakable barrier. But now it becomes a doorway. It becomes the passage into eternal life. Now it becomes, for those who belong to Him, the beginning instead of the end.
Today’s celebration connects back to what we reflected on just days ago with Good Friday. We stood at the foot of the cross and remembered that Jesus took our place. Like St. Maximilian Kolbe stepping forward for another prisoner, Christ stepped forward for us…taking upon Himself the weight of our sins, offering His life so that we might live.
Today we celebrate the revelation of the whole story of salvation; the cross was not the end. The Resurrection is the plot twist. The proof that His sacrifice was not in vain. The proof that sin has been defeated. The proof that death does not and cannot win. It also shows that self-giving, sacrificial love, united with faith, has the final word.
I came across an example of this resurrection faith recently in the story of of a local sports figure. Some of you may have heard of Eduard Löwen, a player for St. Louis City SC. Recently, his wife Ilona passed away at just 28 years old, after a long battle with cancer. By any measure, it is a devastating loss; the kind of suffering that shakes a person to the core and causes some to question God.
And yet, in interviews and in the words he shared at her funeral, what stood out was not despair, but faith. Not hopelessness, but hope. He said, “My world has been shattered. And still I can say with confidence that God is enough.” He acknowledged the depth of his grief, calling her “the most precious thing” in his life…and yet he also said, “As much as I loved her, there is someone I love more, and that is Jesus.” And perhaps most strikingly, he spoke of the future…not with uncertainty, but with conviction: “I will meet her one day.”
That is not denial. That is not pretending the pain isn’t real. That is resurrection faith. That is what it looks like when Easter is not just something we celebrate but something we live. The Resurrection doesn’t take away the cross but it transforms it. It tells us that even the worst thing is never the last thing. It tells us that nothing is wasted: not our joys, not our struggles, not even our losses. God, in His power and love, can take all of it and use it to lead us to Himself and eternal life.
Which leads to a few reflection questions before we head off to our celebrations. Do we live as people who truly believe that life is a gift? Do we live with gratitude for what Christ has done? Do we live with the kind of faith that changes how we face suffering, loss, and even death? Or do we slip back into living as though this world is all there is?
Easter is not just a day to celebrate…it is a way to live. It is an invitation to see everything differently. To recognize that Christ has gone ahead of us and opened the way but we must follow. That death is no longer has the power to rule over us. That love is not destroyed. And that one day, for those who belong to Him, reunion is not just a wish but a promise.
So during this easter season, as we celebrate that Christ is risen, may it not just be words we say but a truth we live. An unshakeable truth that gives us hope in suffering, strength in hardship, and confidence in the face of death. Because the tomb is empty…and that changes everything. Amen. Alleluia.
