1.      Christ is risen! Let us rejoice.

The believer rejoices when he meditates on what happened here, in this place. Here the Lord Jesus Christ was submitted to humiliation and death. Here he was put in this tomb. And from this tomb, he is risen in glory. The apostles were the witnesses of what happened. The third reading of today, from the Gospel of Saint John, reminds us the events: “On the first day of the week, Maria of Magdala came early to the tomb. She saw that the stone had been moved away from the tomb.  She run to the Apostles. Peter and John came to see. Peter entered first in the tomb: he found it empty, and he saw the linen cloths lying on the ground, and also the cloth that had been over his head. Then came the other disciple, John. The Gospel says: he saw and he believed” (cf. Jn, 20: 1-9).

Peter said also in the first reading, from the book of Acts: “We are witnesses of what happened…we who have eaten and drunk with him after his resurrection from the dead” (Acts 10: 41).

       Today, our faith is based on the faith of the Apostles and on the Revelation of God who has manifested Himself to us, here in our land, in his Eternal Word, Jesus Christ, true God and true man. He came to offer reparation for our sins, and to introduce us to His glory. Infusing the power of his divinity in our human weakness, he made us capable, we too, to experience his glory in our life. Therefore he filled us with joy and ardor and gave us the power to remain in love and to share in the building of our society, in all circumstances, whatever may be the difficulties.

       The apostles were the witnesses of the glorious Resurrection of the Lord. Today we are the witnesses, We still hear the words of Jesus to his disciples before his Ascension to heaven, as if they were addressed to us today in a particular way: ”The Holy Spirit will come on you, and then you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem” (cf Acts 1:8). We are the witnesses of the Resurrection. As such we look to this tomb, and we look above, as says Saint Paul: “Since you have been raised up to be with Christ, you must look to the things that are above” (Col 3,1). We look above in order to have our feet firmer on earth. We look above in order to contemplate the glory of God, in order to better know His will, and so to witness to the Resurrection, by strengthening in ourselves and in those with whom we live the hope and joy of the Resurrection. We look above where “Christ is sitting at God’s right hand” (Col 3,1), in order to increase our knowledge of Jesus-Christ, and to increase our power to proclaim that He is our guide, we and all those who want to believe in him, towards the glory of the Resurrection.

2. The resurrection of Jesus confirms us today in our faith and strengthens it in order to know still better in whom we have believed and why we have believed, and in order to know how to be Christians, courageous and faithful to our Church and to our society, in the present times.

 The glorious Resurrection of the Lord is for all of us, different Churches, a reminding of unity. It is a sign that we celebrate together Easter, on the same date, this year, the first year of the third millenium. It is a sign that reminds us the will of God who wants us to walk together towards unity, confident that we can overcome all kinds of obstacles. We thank God for the fraternal love among our Churches in these days, here in Jerusalem. Nevertheless, God asks us for more. And we can do everything in Our Lord Jesus-Christ who strengthens us. Nothing is impossible, especially when we act to obey the will of God, not the will of men. We ask God that this Easter be a source of graces and more unity for all our Churches.

The Resurrection today is an appeal to us believers, and different religions, for more dialogue, for more respect and mutual knowledge, an appeal to understand the deep meaning of our faith in God, so that faith may become a factor which brings us all together nearer to justice and peace. Religious leaders believe in God to announce the word of God, to free it from every racism and all kind of discrimination. They announce the word of God in order to resist all kinds of oppression, humiliation of human beings or negation of their rights.

The Resurrection is, for us, who live within our bodies and souls, the struggle of our two peoples in this land, a reminder of the dignity of every human being, of the image of God in all of us, the true basis of all rights and duties. Resurrection is the source of our unending hope. Military force or any other kind of physical force will never cancel these rights neither can it cancel the image of God. Although many put the emphasis today on the right of the stronger, and on the force which can impose itself, through sieges, bombardments or killings. All these are means which can destroy houses, kill human persons, but cannot kill the soul of a people, neither wipe off the image of God in any person nor can it kill our hope. It is time for the political leaders to listen and to obey to the words of the Psalmist: “You, earthly rulers, learn your lesson. In fear be submissive to God… lest he be angry and your way come to nothing” (Ps 2:10).

The Resurrection is at last a comprehensive vision in which we see that our life is a way of the cross which will end with the glory of the Resurrection. So was the life of Our Lord Jesus Christ, so will be our life. Because “the disciple is not better than the Master”. Saint Paul tells us: “As God’s dear children, then take him as your pattern, and follow Christ by loving as he loved you, giving himself up for us” (Eph 5:1-2). Therefore, first of all, our life should be an imitation of God, and so doing, we will be able to reach His glory in our life, despite all difficulties with which we are confronted. Amen.

 Christ is risen. Indeed he is risen. Amen. Alleluia.

                                                                    + Michel Sabbah

                                                                    Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem