Archbishop of Sydney

Easter

By + Cardinal George Pell
Archbishop of Sydney
23/3/2008

At Easter we celebrate most of the foundational events in the Christian system of meaning, Christ's institution of the Eucharist, his death on the cross, and his resurrection.

Christians claim that Christ rose bodily from the dead, which was not a resuscitation, not a return from a near-death experience.  This claim to resurrection is straight forward and too much for many people.  It can only be accepted in faith as the apex of a chain of events, claims and reasoning.  But it does not present the stiffest intellectual challenge, which lies in the meaning of Easter.

Christians also believe that through Christ’s death and resurrection sin, evil and death have been conquered.  Even in a prosperous and decent society like Australia’s, the evidence seems mixed, and in some parts of the world evil seems rampant and unrestrained; anything except vanquished.

Because of our Judaeo-Christian heritage most people in Australia also know that somehow Easter is designed to help us remove personal guilt, and give us strength also to cope with the evil around us beyond our control.

Christian understandings of Christ’s role in our redemption are a development and reinterpretation of the ancient feast of Yom Kippur, which is still celebrated in the Jewish religion by public worship and fasting. In ancient times the priest entered the Holy of Holies in the Jerusalem temple, offered incense and sprinkled the Mercy Seal with blood, before the scapegoat was driven into the desert carrying the sins of the people.

Christians see Christ’s suffering and death as replacing this annual ritual, purifying the hearts of those who repent of their sins and seek forgiveness.

Much suffering is caused by adults who cannot forgive themselves, believing they have slipped too far to return and be healed.  Easter is the Christian answer to this because no one is excluded from the possibility of return; not Judas Iscariot, not even Hitler or Stalin or Mao would be excluded, provided they had repented, acknowledged their evil.

I once received criticism for stating that those who do not believe in God cannot turn to Him for forgiveness.  Although a German survey once showed that more people prayed than believed in God, generally individuals do not seek help from a non-existent ally; except perhaps as fire insurance or because they believe nothing is lost by such a gesture and something just might be gained.  But God can and does turn regularly towards all those who are lost, especially when they are seeking truth and goodness.

Christians don’t believe that Christ is the Easter Redeemer for Christians only, so that all others after death are either condemned to hell or non-existence.

Catholics do not believe that Easter only brings salvation to Catholics or more widely to Christians.  The Risen Christ has brought about the possibility of eternal life for all good people, including those who do not know or accept Christianity and there are many rooms in the Father’s house after death.  Accidents of birth or circumstances will not be decisive with our good God.

The Christian Easter is a promise of life after death and a reminder of the four last things death and judgement, heaven and hell.

But the Spirit of goodness released by Christ is also active in the here and now all over the world.  Not all is gloom and doom.

On the world stage the visit last week of the German Chancellor Angela Merkel to Israel for its sixtieth anniversary celebrations was a sign of hope, of turning the page after the millions of Jewish dead in the Holocaust during the Second World War.  In a wonderful example of reconciliation the Jewish parliament gave the Chancellor a standing ovation, with only a handful of parliamentarians boycotting her visit. 

At a local level the public interest in the preparations of World Youth Day, the turnout of Catholic youth for the journey of the Cross and Icon (a prelude to World Youth Day like the travels of the Olympic flame before the Olympics) and high levels of interest from overseas pilgrims (despite the falling U.S. dollar) are all signs of hope and reasons for optimism.

To believe in the Christian Easter requires a lot of faith, more than is necessary to believe that a good God cares for us.  But it is a feast offering hope beyond our hopes.

I often retell for adults the story of the good thief, because Christian children take the incident for granted.  Adults don't.

Christ was crucified between two thieves, bandits guilty of serious crimes.  Luke tells us one of them mocked Jesus, taunting him to save himself and them.  The good thief rebuked the first, saying that Jesus had done nothing wrong, unlike them who deserved their sentences.  Then he turned to Jesus and asked "remember me when you come into your kingdom".  A simple request.

Jesus replied to this criminal, this man of violence.  "Today you will be with me in paradise".

I think they are the most beautiful lines in the Bible.  They capture the Easter message.