What do you read at first glance? Some people, at first glance, read the sign as saying “GOD IS NOWHERE.”
Others, however, see something entirely different: “GOD IS NOW HERE.”
One single space makes all the difference!
Depending on where you put that space, either the sign is a complaint about God’s absence, or a bold proclamation of an astonishing piece of good news!
When you think about it, that’s how Easter works. The disciples never really quite got a 100% handle on it. Yes, they had those amazing encounters with the Risen Lord, but when they stepped out of that Upper Room, the world seemed disturbingly unchanged. The Romans still ruled over them. People still suffered. People still fell ill. People still died.
Worse, aside from the physical evil of suffering, disease, and death, there also still remained moral evil: People still sinned. They harmed one another and hurting themselves.
Whatever happened to the Resurrection?
They could have sworn the world would be transformed, but the Lord seemed NOWHERE to be found.
Don’t we today know how that feels? But the message of Easter is precisely “The Lord is NOW HERE— appearances to the contrary notwithstanding!”
Just like the sign, a second look at what seems like the same tired old, broken world– a more attentive and deliberate reading– can reveal the Risen Lord’s presence: Something has happened. Something has changed. And something is afoot.
Either we choose to see it that way–or we join Team Jesus.
Let this Easter be a time of renewal for our faith. See the sign of the empty tomb and rejoice in Christ’s victory over our sin and death. Resolve to return to him with your whole heart, trusting that he will provide for your every need. Live in the joy of the Resurrection and share that joy with those who have yet to experience it. I pray continually for all of you, that through this time of physical separation, your faith may be strengthened beyond measure and that your hearts may be opened to receive the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
With Easter joy Fr. Amar Nagothu, MSFS
Missing you a lot on this Easter, wishing you were here to celebrate this holiest time together. Happy Easter!!!
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