May 2024 Letter

Dear brethren,

Christ is Risen … Truly He is Risen

With the commemoration of the Feast of Resurrection, let’s mediate on the writings of the late Pope Shenouda III on The Resurrection entitled: “Death is an alien and a stranger to humanity”:

“When God created man He formed him for life. He breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became a living being. God wished him life and perpetuity but man’s option inclined to sin. So he brought death and caused it to himself as a result of his sin, “For the wages of sin is death” (Rom 6: 23). Thus, death came into the world and reigned over humanity.
“So, we rejoice with the resurrection because it is a triumph over death and a return of man’s nature to life. God has created man to live and not to die.
“Christ’s resurrection is a handsel of our resurrection. Thus Saint Paul, the apostle, described Him as “the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1Cor 15: 20). He is the first-fruit and we will rise after Him.
“Perhaps someone may ask saying: how can Christ be the first-fruit of the dead while many rose before Him?! The son of the widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon whom Elijah the prophet, raised from death (1Kings 17: 22), the son of the Shunammite who Elisha the prophet raised from death (2Kings 4: 32-36). There are three others whom Christ Himself raised from death. They are: The son of the widow of the town called “Nain”, the daughter of Jairus and Lazarus.
“In fact, there are some persons who rose from death before the days of Christ but, after their rising, they died once more. They are still waiting for the general resurrection. Christ’s resurrection was the one after which there was no death. It was the first-fruit and the inordinate desire for which longs every believer in eternity.
“We mean by the resurrection the way which leads to eternal life. We know that man’s life on earth is a very short story. It is nothing if measured or compared to eternity and the land of the Joy which is the good hope and the dream of all human beings.
“The resurrection elevates the value of man and asserts that his life is not ended by death. It affirms that there is another life which differs from this earthly one. We, God willing, will enjoy that new life after the resurrection. Thus we say in “The Creed” which we recite every day in our prayers: “we look for the resurrection of the dead and life of the age to come, Amen.”

The blessings of the Holy resurrection, blessings St. Mary & St. Mercurius be with us all.

Belleville, May 1, 2024

رسالة شهر مايو ٢٠٢٤