From the gospel of the great Vigil of Easter: "Then the angel said to the women in reply, 'Do not be afraid! I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified. He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, 'He has been raised from the dead, and he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him.'"
From Lasallian Reflection 5 (2019-2020): "Lasallians do not close their doors to dreaming and believing. We want to think big, to get rid of old dreams and give God the opportunity to shape His dream for humanity through us. We expect great things from God and undertake great things for Him."
Perhaps it does not feel like Easter. No gathering in Church, minimal family gatherings, no students at school on Tuesday, COVID-19 news surrounding us everywhere. Perhaps this year, we truly feel what the women in the gospel experienced at the tomb, what the disciples must have felt in hiding: What has happened? Our joy has been taken from us!
It is not so. We need to seek joy beyond our normal expectations. The disciples were instructed to meet Jesus in Galilee. As Pope Francis said last night, "Galilee was the farthest region from where they were . . . Jesus sends them there and asks them to start again from there. What does this tell us? That the message of hope should not be confined to our sacred places, but should be brought to everyone." The Brothers' General Council tells us to work with God's dreams for us, shedding the old and seizing the new life of Christ. We are certainly, as a school, in a new place, much different than where we started. How, then, will we work to spread the good news of new life and new dreams through a human and a Christian education, in ways, in places, and to people, who are in need of Easter joy? How will we see Jesus, who promised to meet us, in those new places?
Jesus is risen, He is risen indeed! May we work together to bring new life to our school community, undertaking great things for Christ in response to his resurrection.
Live, Jesus, in our hearts!