During his homily at the Vatican's 2024 Easter Vigil, Pope Francis invited the faithful to reflect on the moments that led to the unexpected joy of Easter.
He referred to the woman’s question as she anxiously wondered after the burial of Jesus: Who will roll away the stone from the tomb? Then, as they look up, they notice that someone has already rolled the stone back.
The Holy Father pointed out, “There are times when we may feel that a great stone blocks the door of our hearts, stifling life, extinguishing hope, imprisoning us in the tomb of our fears and regrets, and standing in the way of joy and hope.”
Such “tombstones” are encountered on the journey through life in all the experiences and situations that rob people of enthusiasm and of the strength to persevere, he said.
“We encounter them at times of sorrow: in the emptiness left by the death of our loved ones, in the failures and fears that hold us back from accomplishing the good we mean to do. We encounter them in all the forms of self-absorption that stifle our impulses to generosity and sincere love, in the rubber walls of selfishness and indifference that hold us back in the effort to build more just and humane cities and societies, in all our aspirations for peace that are shattered by cruel hatred and the brutality of war,” he said.
“When we experience these disappointments, do we also have the sensation that all these dreams are doomed to failure and that we too should ask ourselves in anguish, “Who will roll away the stone from the tomb?” said Pope Francis.
He said that the very large stone that had already been rolled back is “the Pasch of Christ, the revelation of God’s power: the victory of life over death, the triumph of light over darkness, the rebirth of hope amid the ruins of failure. It is the Lord, the God of the Impossible, who rolled away the stone forever. Even now, he opens our tombs, so that hope may be born ever anew. We too, then, should ‘look up’ to him, to Jesus.” - MTV
Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.” Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.
Latest News
