Easter [c]: Acts 10:34, 38-42; Colo 3:1-4; Jn 20:1-18

Easter [c]: Acts 10:34, 38-42; Colo 3:1-4; Jn 20:1-18

Happy Easter! In some parts of the world, people give this greeting. "Christ is risen!" and the response is, "Yes, he is truly risen!" Croatian language says, "Krist uskrsnu!" And the response, "Uistinu uskrsnu!" You do not need to learn Croatian, but I hope you will join me in saying, "Yes, he is truly risen!"

Once upon a time there was a terrible fight in a certain family. The father and the mother had slipped into the habit of low level nastiness with one another and were drifting apart. The children (teenagers) were routinely snarling at one another and at their parents. Sometimes they joined in the mean-spirited exchanges between the parents. No one left the house, there was no divorce or even the talk of divorce -–but there were lots of thoughts about it.

What was once a happy and loving family, as families go, had turned into a battleground in which four armies were fighting, and not taking any prisoners.

Then, the girl teen was in an auto accident in which her car was totaled by a drunken driver. The other three rushed to the hospital and found her in bed, covered with bandages, but able to smile softly. I had one of those near death experiences, she informed them (what self-respecting teen in an auto accident doesn’t have one of them) and God told me we’re a bunch of geeks and we should stop fighting with each other. Now, so they all hugged one another and cried and promised they’d start over again. Now the family had new life and it was Easter.

This is how the disaster on Good Friday turns into Easter.  My prayer is that whatever is happening in your life, whatever is going on in your family - that today you will feel the joy of Christ's resurrection. As we said in the Psalm, "This is the day that Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad."

That joy brings power. We see that strength of joy in Pope Francis. He has captivated people throughout the word because he radiates simplicity and joy. No just Catholics, but other Christians, Jewish people, Muslims and even those with no belief in God sense the strength that come from joy.

Diphtheria once was common in the United States. A tale speaks of a couple having the horror of seeing three of their children die from the foul disease. The parents were the directors of the Sunday school. It fell to them on Easter Sunday to read the Gospel of the Resurrection shortly after their children's death.

There were many tears in the congregation from those knowing of their loss. But the parents never lost their composure. After the Liturgy, a boy said to his father, "Dad, they must really believe in the Resurrection." The father said, "Son, every Christian does." And the boy responded, "But not the way they do, Dad."

We don’t need or let a disaster to happen in our life to become in joy and peace.  God wants us to have joy. He gave us a world that is good and beautiful. And when we made a mess of his creation - war, disease, death - he gave us a new creation - in Christ. We have every reason to rejoice.

Joke:  1) Little Tim was in the garden filling in a hole when his neighbor peered over the fence.
Interested in what the cheeky-faced youngster was up to, he politely asked, "What are you up to there, Tim?"

"My goldfish died," replied Tim tearfully, without looking up, "and I've just buried him."

The neighbor was concerned, "That's an awfully big hole for a goldfish, isn't it?"

Tim patted down the last heap of earth then replied, "That's because he's inside your stupid cat."

Practical Applications: Bloom where you are planted.  Disasters are part of life.  Accept it.  Quarrels in family life are only opinion differences and emotional let outs.  They should not make us separate but make our relationships stronger, if we can have a mind of understanding.  Wherever there is Good Friday, expect an Easter thereafter.