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| Prayer Before and Prayer After |
THE RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD
“And behold there was a great earthquake. For an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and coming, rolled back the stone and sat upon it. And his countenance was as lightning, and his raiment as snow. And for fear of him, the guards were struck with terror and became as dead men” (Matt. 28, 2-4).
First Prelude: Behold Jesus, rising gloriously from the tomb.
Second Prelude: Adorable Conqueror, I rejoice in Thy glorious resurrection. Replenish my heart with love and exultation and render me worthy to participate in the fruits of Thy glorious triumph.
First Point
THE GLORY OF THE RISEN SAVIOUR
“The Lord is risen! Alleluja!” This is the glad tidings announced by the angels on Easter morn. Jesus, our beloved Redeemer, Whose bitter passion filled us with grief and sorrow, has returned to life, to die no more. Having conquered death and all His enemies, He now enjoys inexpressible glory in His holy Humanity. A great mystery was enacted on that hallowed Easter morn. In the company of all the holy souls of the Old Testament, who were to witness His resurrection, the glorified soul of Jesus appeared and reunited Itself with His sacred Body, covered with blood and wounds, until then lying in the tomb. What a sudden transformation! With wondrous majesty, arrayed with all the magnificence of heavenly glory, the Lord of life raises Himself from the grave. His sacred wounds, but a moment ago eliciting sympathy and compassion, are now translucent and brilliant! In place of the crown of thorns, a diadem of immortal splendor rests upon His sacred head. How lovely is now the once so shamefully disfigured sacred countenance! His eyes are aglow with heavenly joy, His features radiate a holy peace and inexpressible delight. This transformation was but the work of one moment. Earth trembled as if to celebrate, with awe, the resurrection of her Creator. An angel descended from heaven, his countenance radiant with heavenly lustre, his garments white as snow. He rolled back the stone from the entrance to the grave and sat thereon. The guards, terrified and blinded by the splendor issuing from the opened cavern, fell senseless to the ground.
Rejoice, O my soul, in the glorious victory of your risen Saviour. If, as a true spouse of the Crucified, you have shared in His sufferings; if the ignominy and the contemptuous treatment accorded Him filled your heart with compassion and sorrow, then, now, participate in the joy of His glorious triumph. Behold, your truest Friend, your dearest Father, your King, your Lord and God, has risen again. He will live and reign for all eternity! Is my love the love of exquisite delight, peculiar to the true friends and faithful followers of Christ who rejoice in the marvelous glory of the risen Lord?
Second Point
THE JOY OF HOLY CHURCH ON THIS GLORIOUS FESTIVAL
“This is the day the Lord hath made! Let us rejoice and be glad! Alleluja!” With these words Holy Mother Church exhorts us to rejoice and exult in the resurrection of her Divine Bridegroom. He is risen, she tells us, in the Mass and in the divine office. Yes, He is risen! The Lion of the tribe of Juda has conquered, Alleluja! The heavenly Father has given Him all power in heaven, on earth, and under the earth. Let us rejoice and be glad! May the joy of this great festival expand our heart! Holy Church by her example, invites us to praise and exultation. She has put off her garment of mourning and donned her costliest festal attire,—her lamentations have ceased and ever and anon, she pours forth her joy in the canticle: “Alleluja! Christ is risen from the dead!”
O Mystery of joy and consolation, foundation of our faith and our hope! Thou teachest us that victory and glory will be the end of all sufferings endured for love of Christ. We will, to-day, open our hearts to the great expectations embodied in the resurrection of our Divine Saviour, and seek to become wholly imbued with that true, spiritual joy, which tends to our growth in holiness. Replenished with this holy joy, we shall find all things easy. Irksome labor and heavy crosses shall then be our delight, while we shall run with alacrity on the way of perfection, forgetting with St. Paul, what we have already achieved and thinking only of that which is yet before us. When oppressed by the hardships of daily life, let us recall the words of St. Paul: “The sufferings of this time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come, that shall be revealed in us” (Rom. 8, 18). Have I not often experienced that fidelity in little things, perseverance in the combat of my passions and in the exercise of virtue, have elicited new energy and spiritual joy? Which sacrifice must I make today in order to render my heart receptive for the graces that the Saviour desires to bestow on me so abundantly on this glorious festival?
Affections: O holy, truly blessed day of my beloved Saviour’s glorious resurrection! What exquisite joy and delight are mine in Thy glorious triumph! It is my sweetest consolation to know that Thou, dear Lord, hast no more to suffer, and now rejoicest in Thy inexpressible glory and exultation. O almighty Conqueror of death and hell, complete the work of Thy grace in me, let me participate in the glorious life to which Thou invitest me in the mystery of this day. O Jesus, Who didst clothe in glory and splendor that Body which had been the victim of the cruelty of man, give me grace to die to myself that I may rise again with Thee, and after Thy likeness lead a new, divine, immortal life, worthy of an all-surpassing, everlasting glory! O holy Virgin, by thy glorified Son, obtain for us the grace to rise after our death to the eternal glory of paradise.
Resolution: Animated with holy joy, I will today contemplate the radiant beauty of my risen Saviour, and resolve anew to lead a life of fervor and love.
Spiritual Bouquet: “This is the day the Lord hath made! Let us rejoice and be glad! Alleluja!”
O Queen of Heaven, rejoice!
V. Queen of Heaven, rejoice, alleluia.
R. For He whom you did merit to bear, alleluia.
V. Has risen, as he said, alleluia.
R. Pray for us to God, alleluia.
V. Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary, alleluia.
R. For the Lord has truly risen, alleluia.
Let us pray. O God, who gave joy to the world through the resurrection of Thy Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, grant we beseech Thee, that through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, His Mother, we may obtain the joys of everlasting life. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
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