It is Easter once again. With hope in our hearts we proclaim, “Christ is Risen. Blessed is the Resurrection of our Lord.”  The Father raised Him to new life.  Now, He is calling us to new life.

Easter reminds us that life is truly a constant beginning, a constant opportunity and a constant renewal, like springtime, sending the message that we can lighten the load, pack away what weighs us down in exchange for the things that are less burdensome. We are being called to new life.

Easter is about making a constant and conscious effort to renew ourselves especially now in the face of the current coronavirus lockdown and our changing circumstances. It means letting go of lavish material things to make room for what I consider the nobler…relationships and friendship. It means becoming more conscious of spending time instead of money in ways that will enrich our life and the lives of those around us. It means living a life that isn’t defined by things we know won’t last. In other words, it means trading the material trappings — driving flashy cars, buying designer clothing, or the latest gadgets while attending every social event — for the freedom of creating less stress and becoming more resolute in the quality of relationships instead of quantity.

Our mandated social and physical distancing due to the COVID-19 gives us time, space, and room to question the inconsequential inanimate material items we covet, trading them with the loved, treasured and adored in the living and breathing. Easter, like spring, is the signpost reminding us to renew ourselves and to stay connected to the simple things that make life grand, to reach out to others, to pause, to wonder, and to connect to Him from whom everything is possible…Wounds will be healed, sins forgiven, hearts at peace, and souls resurrected. He calls us.

The promise of new life in the Easter Resurrection of Christ.