What we need now and always is Alleluia! It is the cure to death. It is the cure to sin! It is the cure to almost everything! Alleluia! It raises our souls as we proclaim it. There is a hunger, there is an outcry for God now more than ever. Our Church is calling for a Eucharistic Revival! Even in our culture, the movie Jesus Revolution reminds us how even in the non-Catholic churches in the US, there has been and, we pray, will continue to be Christian revivals among us. Within our Catholic Church, we are seeing grassroots Eucharistic revivals popping up over the nation. Whether it is in the Bronx or at Asbury University in Kentucky, we see how God wants to continue to awaken us to the Good News of Jesus Christ. The main message of these revivals is principally that if you listen to the Holy Spirit, you can expect the unexpected. This is what the Resurrection is all about. The disciples were not expecting this one bit, but it happened. In essence, their whole walk with Jesus was filled with moments that surprised them. The many different miracles of Jesus began to touch their hearts, and they slowly began to believe in who Jesus was in their lives.
The great paradigm shift that we see in the 1st Reading for Easter Sunday is that we get a glimpse at what the Holy Spirit can do after Jesus shares It with the apostles. For what do we see but Peter boldly proclaiming Christ? This was not the Peter we saw before the Resurrection and before Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit upon him. Before this, Peter denied Jesus. Peter lived in fear. Jesus even called him Satan at one point. But after encountering the empty tomb and receiving new life from Jesus, he changed and was able to do amazing things and was able to testify and become a witness of Christ’s love to the world. I pray and hope that this is our desire as we celebrate Easter. I know deep within my heart that I long for change, I long for conversion, I long for a new way of living. We need revival. We need Alleluia. Alleluia is the cure. What does Alleluia mean but “Praise God”? Praise Him today and always as you get to know His power in your life. Praise Him today and always as you look forward to how His Holy Spirit will bless you, renew you and form you into a bold proclaimer of Jesus Christ in the world! Alleluia! Praise God!
Happy Easter,
Fr. Jeremy
P.S. Please come to the Divine Mercy Service next Sunday at 3:00 p.m. We have an amazing speaker, Fr. Samuel Leonard, IVE, who will speak on God’s mercy in our lives. We will also praise the Lord, adore Him, reverence His image, and pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet. “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endures forever.” Psalm 118.
