ARCHBISHOP GOMEZ REMINDS FAITHFUL TO ‘BELIEVE IN GOD’S LOVE FOR US’ IN EASTER MESSAGE
Archbishop José H. Gomez celebrated Easter Sunday Mass today, the second Easter during the global pandemic, at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels reminding the faithful to stay close to Jesus and return to the simplicity of living out their faith by simple decisions and daily practices. In addition to attendance in person, Easter Sunday Masses were livestreamed on facebook.com/lacatholics and http://olacathedral.org/live/.
“There are some signs that things are different. The pandemic has been a very difficult reality and then there is an unsettled attitude in our society. We are not sure where it is all heading, but we know where we need to be. We need to stay close to Jesus, close to his empty tomb, close to his Church,” said Archbishop Gomez.
During the Easter Vigil homily Archbishop Gomez reminded the faithful that the first Christians “did not talk about programs, or initiatives and activities,” but rather referred to their faith as the “way” and the “life.”
“We need that same simple faith: Begin by believing in God’s love for us. Trust in the promise of life that he makes to us. Our faith is not complicated. It involves simple decisions and practices we can make every day,” said Archbishop Gomez. “Trying every day to seek the Lord’s face in the Gospels. Listen to his words, ponder his example. Praying always to know what he wants us to do. Then do it with all our heart and all our strength.”
Archbishop Gomez called on the faithful to live their faith simply by loving the people in their lives, serving with a humble heart and showing mercy and forgiveness – and to love without counting the cost and to give without expecting anything in return.
“As Easter people, we also need to grow in our love for the Church, and in our desire to share in the Church’s mission. We need to be his witnesses, bringing others to follow him in this beautiful way of life,” said Archbishop Gomez as he ended the homily. “This is our mission now, my brothers and sisters. We are sent forth from the empty tomb, just as those first disciples were. We are sent out to speak to others of the love we know. To preach by example, by our deeds, by the joy of our life!”
The homilies from Easter Vigil (English) and Easter Sunday (Spanish) are available as prepared below.
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Homily – The Easter Vigil in the Holy Night 2021[i]
Most Reverend José H. Gomez
Archbishop of Los Angeles
Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels
April 3, 2021
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
He is risen! Alleluia! Every Easter is a new beginning! When we hear this glorious Gospel tonight, we become a witness to something beautiful and amazing.
With Christian people all across the world today, we are standing before the empty tomb with Mary Magdalene and the other women.
What they saw, we see, too. The tomb is empty! We hear those thrilling words from the angel: “You seek Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Behold the place where they laid him.”
And what these first disciples came to believe, we now believe: The Lord has risen, indeed! We are witnesses to the resurrection, 2,000 years later.
And tonight we hear these readings, and we know that these readings tell our “family story.” These are our ancestors in the faith.
This is who we are, and this is where we come from. We are “Easter people,” a people made alive in the Risen Christ.
As St. Paul tells us tonight: “As Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in the newness of life.”
My brothers and sisters, we are still living in a difficult time. The world around us is changing.
There are some signs that things are different. The pandemic has been a very difficult reality and then there is an unsettled attitude in our society. We are not sure where it is all heading, but we know where we need to be.
We need to stay close to Jesus, close to his empty tomb, close to his Church.
This Easter, our Lord is calling us back. He is calling to remember who we are. He is calling all of us in the Church to live as “Easter people,” to return to the simplicity of life that we see in those first disciples.
The early Church did not talk about programs, or initiatives and activities. The first Christians called their faith the “Way,” the “Life.”[ii]
We need that same simple faith: Begin by believing in God’s love for us. Trust in the promise of life that he makes to us.
Our faith is not complicated. It involves simple decisions and practices we can make every day.
Trying every day to seek the Lord’s face in the Gospels. Listen to his words, ponder his example. Praying always to know what he wants us to do. Then do it with all our heart and all our strength.
Trying every day to love the people in our life, serving them with a humble heart, and show mercy and forgiveness. Love without counting the cost, give without expecting anything in return.
And knowing that Jesus walks with us always, that we can call on his name and he will reach out his hand to lift us up.[iii]
And, the most important thing we need to do each week is to renew our faith in celebrating the Holy Eucharist. This is how the first Christians lived — praying together, hearing the words of the Scriptures, and having communion with Jesus in the “breaking of the bread.”[iv]
The Eucharist is the most beautiful gift of Easter! Jesus remains with us, out of love for us. He remains, to be our food, to be our friend and companion on the journey of life.
As Easter people, we also need to grow in our love for the Church, and in our desire to share in the Church’s mission. We need to be his witnesses, bringing others to follow him in this beautiful way of life.
There is a beautiful story from the early Church. The apostles were thrown in prison, but an angel came at night and threw open the prison doors. The angel said to them: “Go and … speak to the people all the words of this Life.”[v]
This is our mission now, my brothers and sisters. We are sent forth from the empty tomb, just as those first disciples were. We are sent out to speak to others of the love we know. To preach by example, by our deeds, by the joy of our life!
I wish you and your families a blessed Easter.
May our Blessed Mother Mary help us to make this a new morning for our lives, a time when all of us return to the simple beauty of our faith, the joy of being an Easter people!
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Homilía – Domingo de Pascua de la Resurrección del Señor[vi]
Mons. José H. Gómez
Arzobispo de Los Ángeles
Catedral de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles
4 de abril de 2021
Mis queridos hermanos y hermanas en Cristo,
¡El Señor ha resucitado! ¡Aleluya! ¡¡Cada año que celebramos la Pascua de Resurrección es un nuevo comienzo!
Cuando escuchamos el Evangelio de la Misa de hoy, nos convertimos en testigos de la resurrección de Nuestro Señor Jesucristo.
En este día, ustedes y yo, junto con los cristianos de todo el mundo estamos de pie ante la tumba vacía, en compañía de María Magdalena, Simón Pedro y el discípulo Juan.
Lo que ellos vieron, nosotros también nosotros lo vemos. ¡La tumba está vacía! Y lo que ellos llegaron a creer, lo creemos también nosotros: ¡El Señor verdaderamente ha resucitado!
Dos mil años después, nosotros somos testigos de la resurrección.
Lo que San Pedro proclama hoy en la primera lectura, lo sentimos en el fondo de nuestro corazón: “Lo mataron colgándolo de la cruz, pero ¡a este hombre Dios lo resucitó al tercer día y concedió que fuera visible!”.
¡Jesús había muerto y ahora está vivo! Él ha resucitado y en él nosotros también resucitaremos.
En esta Pascua, nuestro Señor nos está llamando a volver a él, nos llama a todos nosotros, los que formamos parte de la Iglesia a que vivamos como un “pueblo pascual”, nos llama a volver a la sencillez de vida que podemos ver en aquellos primeros discípulos.
Como todos sabemos, estamos viviendo un tiempo de prueba. El mundo que nos rodea está cambiando. Seguimos con la situación de la pandemia y también con la realidad de un tiempo extraño y turbulento de nuestra sociedad. Sin duda, son señales de que las cosas son diferentes.
No estamos seguros hacia dónde va todo esto, pero sabemos dónde debemos de estar. Tenemos que estar cerca de Jesús, cerca de su tumba vacía, cerca de su Iglesia.
La Iglesia de los primeros años no vivía su fe dependiendo de programas o de iniciativas y actividades. Los primeros cristianos vivían su fe, sencillamente. La llamaban el “Camino”, la “Vida”. La Pascua era suficiente para ellos, era todo lo que necesitaban.
Vivir nuestra fe no es algo complicado. Empieza por vivir pensando en el amor tan grande que Dios por cada uno de nosotros. Confiando en el modo de vivir que él nos ha enseñado.
San Pablo nos dice en la segunda lectura de hoy: “Puesto que han resucitado con Cristo, busquen los bienes de arriba, donde está Cristo, sentado a la derecha de Dios”.
¡Queridos hermanos y hermanas, la vida de fe a la que Dios nos llama es muy sencilla!
Se trata de conocer a Jesus. Escuchar sus palabras, reflexionar sobre su ejemplo. Hablar con él en la oración para saber lo que quiere que hagamos y, desde luego, tratar de llevarlo a la práctica de corazón y con entusiasmo.
Se trata de amar a los demás, especialmente a lo que están más cerca de nosotros. Sirviéndolos con un corazón humilde y teniendo misericordia y sabiendo perdonar. Amando a los demás sin esperar nada a cambio.
Y siempre con el convencimiento de que Jesús camina siempre con nosotros. Que podemos en cualquier momento invocar su nombre y él extenderá su mano para levantarnos[vii].
Y, desde luego, sabiendo que el regalo más hermoso de la Pascua es que Jesús permanece con nosotros, por amor a nosotros, en el precioso don de la Sagrada Eucaristía. Él sigue siendo nuestro alimento, nuestro amigo y compañero en el camino de la vida.
Por eso lo más importante que podemos hacer cada semana, cada domingo, es renovar nuestra fe participando activamente en la celebración de la Sagrada Eucaristía.
Así vivieron los primeros cristianos, rezando juntos, escuchando las palabras de la Sagrada Escritura y estando en comunión con Jesus en “el partir del pan”[viii]
Como “Pueblo Pascual”, hemos de crecer en nuestro amor por la Iglesia y en nuestro deseo de participar en la misión de la Iglesia. Hemos de ser testigos de la Resurrección de Jesus invitando a los demás a que lo sigan en este admirable camino de vida.
Hay una hermosa historia de la Iglesia primitiva, en los Hechos de los Apóstoles, que nos cuenta cómo los apóstoles fueron encarcelados, y en la noche vino un ángel y abrió las puertas de la prisión. El ángel les dijo: “Vayan, hablen en el Templo y anuncien al pueblo el mensaje de vida” [ix].
Ésta es nuestra misión, queridos hermanos y hermanas. Somos enviados desde la tumba vacía, así como lo fueron aquellos primeros discípulos.
Somos enviados a hablarle a los demás sobre el amor que conocemos, a predicar con el ejemplo, con nuestras obras, ¡con la alegría de nuestra vida!
¡Les deseo una feliz Pascua de Resurrección a ustedes y a sus familias!
Que nuestra Santísima Madre María nos ayude a hacer de esta Pascua una nueva mañana para nuestras vidas, un tiempo en el que todos volvamos a la sencilla belleza de nuestra fe, ¡a la alegría de ser un pueblo pascual!
[i] Readings: Gen. 1:1–2:2; Gen. 22:1–18; Exod. 14:15–15:1; Isa. 54:5–14; Isa. 55:1–11; Bar. 3:9–15, 32c–4:4; Ezek. 36:16–28; Rom. 6:3–11; Mark 16:1–7.
[ii] Acts 9:2; 19:9, 23; 24:14, 22; Acts 5:20.
[iii] Matt. 14:31.
[iv] Acts 2:42; Luke 24:35.
[v] Acts 5:17–21.
[vi] Lecturas: Hech 10, 34a, 37–43; Sal 118, 1–2, 16–17, 22–23; Col 3, 1–4; Jn 20, 1–9.
[vii] Mt 14, 31.
[viii] Acts 2:42; Luke 24:35.
[ix] Hech 5, 17–21.