Easter Message Preached By HE Charles Cardinal Maung Bo.,  Archbishop of Yangon. 2023 Easter

Vigil readings : Genesis : 1:26-31;Ex: 14:15-15-1;Is: 54:5-14; Ez:36:16-17,18-28; Mathew 28:1-10

My Dear Myanmar People,

Blessed Easter Greetings to each one of you.  Jesus has risen! Alleluia.

Jesus way of the Cross ended in Victory of Good over evil. We have come to celebrate that great event.  May all that pain  of suffering of every human being  be  healed on this day.  Let every heart breaks forth in hope of peace and reconciliation.  

The message of Christmas was  “ The People who walked in Darkness have seen the Light.” The message of  Easter is  out of death,  life asserts.  Jesus is the Lord, who won over the powers of death in this world.  Let all tombs of  darkness be opened. Jesus is risen in our hearts.

As a nation and as a people, let us roll down the stones of hatred, human suffering and let the message of “Jesus, the Prince of Peace, has risen” ring in our hearts, in our streets  in every household in this nation.  Let a new Paschal message be heard in this country.  Let my country rise again into freedom and peace.  The time for suffering is over. The prince of Peace is risen again.

Easter is the reflection of the Paschal feast of the Old testament. The message of Pascal feast is the message of freedom. Total  Human liberation from suffering  with the help of a compassionate God – that is the core theme of the old  Testament.   The Israel, the chosen people, found themselves as slaves in the cruel land of Pharoah, who persecuted the  Hebrews and refused to allow them freedom.

God intervenes. Yahweh calls the powerless and self-doubting  Moses and says : I hear the cry of my people and their suffering. Be their leader. Lead them to freedom. (Exodus 3)  Easter is the story of God’s limitless compassion for the suffering humanity.  You and I and all the suffering people of the World can take heart : God’s message is  Liberation from all kinds of suffering.

The  First paschal feast was established by God in the book of Exodus as a way for the Israelites to remember their deliverance from slavery in Egypt. This feast was a solemn reminder of God's saving power and his fidelity to his covenant with his people. The blood of the Passover lamb was spread on the doorposts of their homes, protecting them from the angel of death, and marking them as God's chosen people.

But as we know, this ancient rite was only a foreshadowing of the ultimate paschal sacrifice, the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus himself is the new Passover lamb, whose blood was shed on the cross for the salvation of all humanity. His death and resurrection mark the ultimate victory over sin and death, and the establishment of a new covenant between God and his people. So, Jesus brought inner liberation showing  our Promised land is God himself. Let us be washed by blood of Jesus, the lamb of God,  let him  make us whole Lord.

In the New Testament, we see the ultimate fulfillment of the Paschal feast in the person of Jesus Christ. In the Gospel of John, we hear the story of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem, where he is hailed as the King of Israel. The people spread palm branches before him, a sign of victory and triumph. To the poor and the suffering Jesus is the only savior.

AS  we know, Jesus' victory was not a victory over earthly powers, but over sin and death. My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the triumph of life over death, of hope over despair, of light over darkness.  The core theme of today’s celebration is  "let all the stones from our graves be opened, let there be Easter." This theme reminds us that just as the stone was rolled away from Jesus' tomb, so too can the stones that weigh us down be lifted, allowing us to experience the joy and freedom of new life in Christ.

For some of us, these stones may be the burdens of sin and shame, the weight of past mistakes and regrets that prevent us from experiencing the fullness of God's love. For others, these stones may be the pain and suffering of illness, loss, or other challenges that threaten to overwhelm us.  As the psalmist bemoans :  "Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God." - Psalm 42:5

For many the message of history is  a despairing tomb.  Many chose to bury themselves in hatred, in vengeance and in despair. But what are the "tombs" of today, where humanity's hopes are buried? There are many, unfortunately. Poverty, disease, war, inequality, and injustice are just a few examples of the "tombs" that threaten to bury our hopes and dreams for a better world. These are the forces that stand in the way of peace and prosperity for all people.

So, how can we remove the "tomb stones" and bring about a new world of peace and prosperity?  The tombstones look too heavy.  Too many, this life  has been too long buried in despair.  Can there be resurrection to the tombs covered with heavy stones?

The message of Easter is that no stone is too heavy, no burden too great, for the power of God's love to overcome. Just as Jesus rose from the dead, so too can we rise above our circumstances, our struggles, our anxieties,  the heart wrenching scenes of human suffering our and our fears, and experience the new life and hope that comes from trusting in God's love and mercy. That is the call to come out our self-made tombs, tombs that deny God’s grace.

This Easter season, let us allow the stones that weigh us down to be lifted, so that we may experience the fullness of God's love and the joy of new life in Christ. Let us remember that no matter what challenges we face, we are never alone, for the Risen Lord is with us always, guiding us, comforting us, and leading us to new life and new hope.

The vigil readings are  a moving reminder of God’s unfathomable love.  The living, loving and liberating God never allow us to die in man made disasters.

The first reading comes from the book of Genesis, where we hear the story of creation and how God breathed life into the first human beings. As we hear the words, "The Lord God formed man out of the clay of the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life, and so man became a living being" (Genesis 2:7), we are reminded of the miraculous power of God to bring forth life from the dust of the earth. Yes. God can create life for all of us even out of dust.

The second reading comes from the book of Exodus, where we hear the story of how God delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, parting the Red Sea so that they could cross over to safety. As we hear the words, "The waters flowed back and covered the chariots and the horsemen and all the army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea" (Exodus 14:28), we are reminded of the power of God to overcome even the most impossible situations and most arrogant powers on the earth.  Ukraine and other parts of the world will see the resurrection of Hope.

The third reading comes from the book of Isaiah, where we hear the words of the prophet proclaiming the coming of the Messiah. As we hear the words, "The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone" (Isaiah 9:1), we are reminded of the hope and promise of salvation that comes with the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The fourth reading comes from the book of Ezekiel, where we hear the vision of the valley of dry bones, where God commands the prophet to prophesy to the bones, and they come back to life. As we hear the words, "I will put my spirit in you that you may live" (Ezekiel 37:14), we are reminded of the power of the Holy Spirit to bring new life and transformation to even the most hopeless situations.

The Gospel reading  of Mathew, where we hear the story of the women who come to the tomb of Jesus and find that it is empty. As we hear the words, "He has been raised; he is not here" we are reminded of the glorious reality of the resurrection, and the hope and joy that it brings to all who believe. Yes. Jesus is the Lord of Life.  We come today to celebrate that life.

As we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ tonight, let us remember the power and significance of this miraculous event. Let us be renewed in our faith, and let us live our lives with the hope and joy that comes from knowing that our Savior has conquered death and brought us new life.  There are no permanent tombs in Christian faith.  Only perpetual life as St Paul extols

"But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive." (1 Corinthians 15:20-22)

Yes brothers.  The recent past has been very challenging.  Death courted us. But like Jesus we are not people of death; we are people of life, we are people of resurrection.

How can we be people of resurrection?  

First, we must be advocates for justice and equality. We must stand up for those who are oppressed and marginalized, and work to eliminate the systemic forces that keep people in poverty and suffering bury the innocents before their time of death.

Second, we must be peacemakers. We must work to resolve conflicts and bring about reconciliation, both in our personal relationships and in the wider world. Vengeance is a tomb from which few come back alive.  Jesus came back because he could overcome vengeance.

 And finally, we must be people of prayer and faith. Yes brothers and sisters: this is the time of prayer, more prayers, unceasing prayers.  Prayers against the agents of death. Prayers against all powers that believe in the power of darkness and death.

We must believe in the power of God to transform the world and to bring about new life, even in the midst of the darkest of situations. As Isiah assured us : "But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint." - Isaiah 40:31

My dear brothers and sisters, let us be inspired by the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and let us work to remove the "tomb stones" that threaten to bury our hopes and dreams for a better world. Let us be agents of change in the world, working for justice, peace, and the healing of the earth. And let us have faith that, with God's help, a new world of peace and prosperity is indeed possible. May God bless us all on this Easter Sunday. Let the message of Jesus continue to inspire us :

 'I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.'" (John 11:25-26)