Following Christ, Light of the World

Today I share part of the homily Cardinal Jorge Urosa Savino gave at the Easter Vigil last Holy Saturday, summarized in my own words. It is a message to reflect on in this Easter season, when we Christians feel immensely happy!, despite our difficulties, because Jesus Christ has risen and is with us.

The Cardinal began by proclaiming: Christ is risen! Throughout the world, he said, the Church proclaims this fundamental fact of our faith, the central event in all of human history. Jesus had foretold his death and resurrection (Mt 16:21), and at dawn on Easter Sunday he broke the chains of death in victory and lit up the dark night of humanity’s dramatic history with his splendid light. Countless witnesses saw him, proclaimed it, and testified that the one who had died for our sins truly rose for our salvation.

The Holy Week liturgies, he continued, let us contemplate the mysteries of the Lord’s Passion and Death, culminating in the Easter celebration with the glorious manifestation of Our Lord Jesus Christ’s triumph over death and evil, over sin and the devil.

In the readings of the Vigil, he noted, we meditate on the great steps of the history of salvation, which in some way mirror the history of humanity: creation and sin, the promise of salvation, the outpouring of the Spirit on believers, the announcement of the Messiah and of his saving death for the redemption of the world. That history reaches its high point on this holy night, when we hear once more the proclamation of Christ’s resurrection, which lights up all of human history.

What a joy it is, he said, to have the wonderful grace of being enlightened by the Lord, who breaks through the darkness of our minds and hearts so that we can see clearly the greatness of God and of our own human condition, and walk without stumbling along the path of life toward the Kingdom of his marvelous light. For that grace, for our faith and for belonging to God’s Holy Church, he invited us to give heartfelt thanks to the Lord of life and to value the priceless gift of faith.

Under the heading “Let us follow Christ, the light of the world,” the Cardinal explained that through his death and resurrection Christ brings us out of the kingdom of darkness into his marvelous light (cf. 1 Pt 2:9). Christ’s resurrection is the cause of our salvation, and to obtain it we must live a living, practical faith, active in charity and full of hope.

“You are the light of the world,” the Lord tells us (Mt 5:14). Jesus wants those who follow him to be light for others: through a virtuous life, keeping God’s commandments and hearing and doing his words, which are words of life, we reach salvation and spread Christ’s light around us.

Taking part in the Easter Vigil, he said, calls us to follow Jesus Christ and live our Christian life deeply and authentically, leaving behind the things below, that is, sin and all the darkness, pain, tragedy and death sin brings. The Church of Christ, more than a billion Catholics throughout the world, is called to be the people of light and of life, in contrast to the darkness and death that show themselves in lies, disordered sexuality, hatred, violence, murder, induced abortion, war and drug trafficking, among other things. He asked us to leave behind religious indifference and a mediocre, inconsistent, occasional way of living our faith, and, enlightened by Christ, to follow him every day so that we too can light up our brothers and sisters with his wonderful, unfailing light.

Thanks to the risen Christ, he said, the Church lives, is renewed and grows throughout the world, in Caracas and in Venezuela, and what a joy it is to belong to God’s holy people, a people of life, love, peace and light.

He closed by inviting everyone to renew their firm adherence to the Holy Church, their faithfulness to the Lord and their determination to walk as children of the light and to be light in the Lord for everyone, especially family, friends and coworkers: “Live as children of light” (Eph 5:8). United to Mary Most Holy, who at dawn on Easter Sunday had the immense joy of embracing her risen Son once more, he invited us to glorify the Lord and renew our baptismal promises, so as to follow Christ, the Light of the world, and enjoy the light of life.