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Christians celebrate Easter |06 April 2015

Christians from around the world, including Seychelles, yesterday celebrated Easter, the resurrection of the Lord, Jesus Christ. It is typically the most well-attended Sunday service of the year for Christian churches.

Christians believe, according to Scripture, that Jesus came back to life, or was raised from the dead, three days after his death on the cross. As part of the Easter season, the death of Jesus Christ by crucifixion is commemorated on Good Friday, always the Friday just before Easter. Through his death, burial, and resurrection, Jesus paid the penalty for sin, thus purchasing for all who believe in him, eternal life in Christ Jesus.
In Seychelles large crowds gathered at the different Christian churches to attend mass.

In his message for the occasion, Roman Catholic Bishop Denis Wiehe said the true joy of Easter comes from the tremendous hope that swells in our heart when we ourselves meet Jesus.

“This inner joy endures despite the many difficulties that we inevitably face on our human journey,” said the Bishop in his message, the full text of which reads:



“Easter – the Resurrection– is celebrated after recalling Christ’s passion, death and burial.
“There is no Easter joy without first the suffering and the trials of Good Friday.

Before Rising Up, Christ assumed, in the very depth of his body and soul, the pain and anguish of human suffering.

“I have often thought about the question the Risen Christ put to the disciples on the road to Emmaüs: ‘Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer before entering into his glory?’ (Gospel according to St. Luke, ch24)

“The way that Jesus asks the question seems to say that it was most evident for Him that he should go through the terrible suffering of his passion and death.

Is it that evident for us?
“We struggle to give meaning to the pain, anguish and suffering that is part of our life, part of every human experience.
“We often complain: ‘What have I done to deserve such an ordeal?’ ‘Why me?’  ‘Why so much pain, suffering and evil around me and in the world?’ ‘And such injustice as well!’ etc.

“Faith and spirituality bring their own answer to this fundamental question as well as an insight about how we can face the inevitability of suffering and evil. Each of the world’s major religions gives its own answers to this question.

“As Christians we seek the answer in the teaching of Jesus: life is a gift from God. What God has given, He never takes back. Life is forever. To put our trust in Christ, to believe in Him, is to receive the promise of eternal life. In death we pass from this life to our true destiny: life with God our father. We are his beloved children.

“Jesus answered the question about pain and suffering not so much by what he said but in the way he lived through the suffering that was his lot during his whole life but especially during his passion and death.

St Thomas Aquinas, one of the Church’s intellectual heavyweights, said that he learned more about Christ by the contemplation of the cross, meaning his death and resurrection, than in all the books he had read.

“Jesus’ love for mankind and for his Father was so great that he accepted the suffering that inevitably came to Him as he accomplished his mission. His moral strength manifested during the last days of his life is extraordinary. This inner strength comes from his ‘giving-of-self-to-others’, from his love.

“Suffering and pain, coming face to face with evil, is part and parcel of human life. It cannot be avoided. Each of us has his share of suffering, some more than others.

“Faith in Christ does not solve the problem of suffering, but it can give meaning and a new sense of purpose to our lives as it did to the two disheartened disciples on the road to Emmaüs; and to such an extent that after recognising Jesus in the breaking of bread, they immediately returned to Jerusalem to break the news that He was risen from the dead, for they had met him.

“The true joy of Easter comes from the tremendous hope that swells in our heart when we ourselves meet Jesus. This inner joy endures despite the many difficulties that we inevitably face on our human journey. Indeed it gives us much strength to face these difficulties and overcome them.
“May this joy be yours as we celebrate Easter this year.”

 

 

 

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