Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Happy Easter to you all! I am so joyful to celebrate this Mass with you. Today we celebrate the most important event in human history… and the most important Person in human history.

We have been preparing for forty days for this moment. And I think all of you have been doing something, perhaps giving something up, perhaps taking something on. And maybe, in the midst of it, you discovered something about yourself.

Perhaps you found that you were weak… that you couldn’t keep your resolutions as perfectly as you had hoped. Perhaps you tried to rely on your own strength—and it wasn’t enough. Or perhaps you did well—but even then, you recognized that it was only by God’s grace that you succeeded.

In any case, you discovered something very important: that you are not sufficient in yourself. When you don’t eat, you become hungry. When you don’t sleep, you grow weary. You cannot live without water. In short, you are a contingent being. You depend on something beyond yourself. And not only that… when we look out at the world, we recognize that something has gone terribly wrong.

There was once a newspaper that asked the question: “What is wrong with the world?” And G.K. Chesterton famously responded:

“Dear Sirs:

I am.

Sincerely yours,

G.K. Chesterton.”

What is wrong with the world? I am.

And that is the truth we discover—not just out there, but in here. There is something wrong with the world… and I cannot fix it. Because there is something wrong with me. And so we come to realize: we need a Savior; not only that, but we recognize something else deep within us: a longing, a desire to live… and not just to live for a time, but to live forever, a desire to share in the life of God Himself. But we cannot give that to ourselves. We can strive. We can push. We can try to be better. But we cannot overcome death. We cannot heal the deepest wound within us. Death still awaits. And so we need a Savior.

And my brothers and sisters—we have One. This is why we celebrate today. Because Christ is risen from the dead. Mary Magdalene runs to the tomb. Peter and John run. There is urgency—because something has happened that changes everything. They find the tomb empty. The Sleeper has awakened.

The Crucified One has risen.

As we heard in the Sequence: “Death and life have contended in that combat stupendous, and Christ the King has conquered.”

And there is that ancient homily from Holy Saturday that gives us a glimpse of what Christ has done: “He has gone to search for our first parent, as for a lost sheep… He has gone to free Adam and Eve… He takes Adam by the hand and raises him up, saying: ‘Awake, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.’” That is not just about Adam. That is about you. Christ descends into the darkness… to take you by the hand, to raise you up, to bring you out of death into life, and this changes everything… because now death no longer has the final word. Sin no longer has the final word.

As St. Peter proclaimed in our first reading: “Everyone who believes in him will receive forgiveness of sins through his name.” But here is the key: The Resurrection is not just something that happened to Jesus. It is something that must happen in you.

St. Paul tells us: “Clear out the old yeast… that you may become a fresh batch.” In other words, if Christ is risen, we cannot go on living as though we are still in the tomb. So the question for us today is very simple: What still belongs to the tomb in your life? What sin are you holding on to? What fear? What resentment? What compromise?

Easter is the moment to leave it behind; When? Not someday… not gradually, but right now. In a few moments, we will renew our baptismal promises. You were baptized into Christ, into His death and into His Resurrection. You were claimed by Him. You were made part of His people, His Church, His bride. And as His bride, we choose Him, to the exclusion of all others. We reject sin. We reject Satan. And we choose new life, because the stone has been rolled away.

And if God can raise Jesus Christ from the dead… then there is nothing in your life that He cannot transform… nothing. Ask for the grace to believe it! Do not remain standing outside the tomb. Run—like Mary. Run—like Peter. Run—like John. And when you come face to face with the empty tomb—believe.

Christ is risen. He is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!