April 12th, Easter Sunday

Acts 10: 34a, 37-43, Psalm 118: 1-2, 16-17, 22-23, Col 3: 1-4, John 20: 1-9

In today’s Gospel reading, Mary Magdalene, Simon Peter and another disciple, struggle to grasp what had occurred at the tomb of Jesus. Like Mary Magdalene and the disciples, I also struggle to fully understand the meaning and the power of Jesus’ resurrection in our lives.

To me, the resurrection represents Christ’s triumph of love over hate, hope over despair and life over death. I think there are times when we experience the power of the resurrection in our own lives.

I am a retired senior citizen. I have lost all my immediate family, many members of my extended family and several of my friends. They still continue to live in my mind and heart. I think this is the power of the resurrection.

I have gained a sense of this power from my two closest friends. One is a priest who, with the help of three families started a support program for families who suffered the loss of a member(s) to suicide. Under this program, families who previously lost a member(s) to suicide, with the assistance of a trained social worker or psychologist, meet with families who recently suffered this tragedy. The program is effective because only these families can understand their pain and offer examples of recovery and hope.

My other friend lost a grandchild to a birth defect after eleven months of life. The family has sponsored several fund raising events to raise money for a nurses’ lounge at the new Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago. This gift is to show the family’s gratitude for the loving care the nurses provided to the baby.

The above are examples of the triumph of life, hope, and love. I pray that Jesus will continue to provide us with the grace of His resurrection so that we may love and better serve Him and our brothers and sisters.

Jack McDonnell, married to Marilyn, father of four, grandfather of seven