In his “Urbi et Orbi” address for Easter Sunday, Pope Francis proclaimed to the whole world the joy of Easter with the verse, “Jesus Christ is risen!” – “He is truly risen!”.
The Holy Father further continued to speak: “Like a new flame, this Good News springs up in the night: the night of a world already faced with epochal challenges and now oppressed by a pandemic severely testing our whole human family. In this night, the Church’s voice rings out: ‘Christ, my hope, is risen!’ ” (Easter Sequence).
The hope brought forth by the risen Christ should, in fact, be the antidote to this pandemic, which spreads from heart to heart like a contagion that would instill trust in the Lord’s goodness. “There is no room for indifference, self-centeredness, division and forgetfulness”, said the Pope.
On that note, Point # 3 of The Way precisely points out the importance of maturity. A trait of character that speaks of being able to control the longings of the self.
Point # 3 Maturity. Stop making faces and acting up like a child! Your bearing ought to reflect the peace and order in your soul.
As the pandemic continues with its onslaught of unabated contamination across the globe, the greatest temptation is to close in on oneself; and, allow the deluge of negative information to overwhelm us.
Instead of allowing fear and terror to destroy the psyche of society, St. Josemaria is counseling us to be calm and not lose our composure. Faced with uncertainty of what lies ahead, we turn to the Lord of Hope for He is the master of the universe.
Let the words of Pope Francis in his homily during the Easter Vigil Mass inspire and console us, as follows:
“Tonight we acquire a fundamental right that can never be taken away from us: the right to hope. It is a new and living hope that comes from God. It is not mere optimism; it is not a pat on the back or an empty word of encouragement, with a passing smile. No. It is a gift from heaven, which we could not have earned on our own. Over these weeks, we have kept repeating, “All will be well”, clinging to the beauty of our humanity and allowing words of encouragement to rise up from our hearts. But as the days go by and fears grow, even the boldest hope can dissipate. Jesus’ hope is different. He plants in our hearts the conviction that God is able to make everything work unto good, because even from the grave he brings life.”
TalinMan