A Blessed and Happy Feast
In the Resurrection of Christ, which was the firstfruits of every other resurrection, we come forth with many spiritual reflections:
- The Life of Eternity:
The Resurrection elevates the value of man and gives us an understanding of his immortality. He does not end with death, for his life has another extension beyond this world. The story of man on earth is very short.
But his life in eternity is a story without end, and it begins with this death…
We rejoice in departing to eternal life, for that is far better. Therefore Christ said to His disciples: “If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, ‘I am going to the Father.’”
- Bodies of Light:
Just as the Resurrection elevates the value of man in his immortality, it also elevates his value in the kind of body with which he will rise.
We shall rise with spiritual bodies, bodies of light, which have been freed from matter and are no longer connected to it. These resurrection bodies are glorified, in the likeness of the glorified body with which Christ rose. Bodies that do not hunger, thirst, grow weary, become sick, decay, or die…
Indeed, how beautiful is the saying of Scripture that we shall be like the angels of God in heaven. How glorious is this resurrection.
- Joy Unspeakable:
How many are the joys of the Resurrection…
The first joy is the victory over death, for it no longer has authority over man.
The second joy is the joy of entering the Kingdom, into the heavenly Jerusalem, into the land of the living, into the assembly of angels and saints.
The third joy is the joy of that which “eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has entered into the heart of man,” the things which the Lord has prepared for those who love His holy Name.
And the joy beyond all joys is the meeting with God, the everlasting fellowship with Him, and the enjoyment of Him.
This is the eternal bliss to which the Resurrection leads us.
The Resurrection is our hope. “For if in this life only we have hope, we are of all men the most pitiable.” How joyful is the Resurrection…
An article by His Holiness Pope Shenouda III – in El-Keraza Magazine – Year Eight (Issue Fifteen) 15-4-1977
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