Bishop of Broken Bay
Most Rev Anthony Randazzo
Easter Message 2022
“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad” (Psalm 118:24).
These words from Psalm 118 ring out through the Easter Sunday liturgy. And our community of the Church will repeat these words in the Easter weeks that follow. It is our way of proclaiming a new way of life with Jesus Christ, our saviour, who is risen from the dead!
The new life that we hope for is not merely a refashioning of what we already have. Rather, it is life in all its fulness – eternal life, the salvation of our souls.
Christian faith holds fast to the hope of everlasting life.
One dimension of eternal life is peace in our time. Peace is the gift of the risen Jesus who breaths the Spirit of Peace upon his apostles and on the newborn community of the Church.
Peace in our time may seem totally out of our grasp for our world, especially when we are confronted by the belligerent aggression in Ukraine which threatens with force and injustice.
Peace in our time might also seem a far distant desire in our community for the woman or man who suffers from the abuse of domestic violence, from ethnic prejudice, from the cruelty of gossip or bullying behaviour. Whenever individuals or communities are physically, psychologically, or spiritually harmed, peace in our time is polluted.
The peace given by the risen Jesus is both essential and fundamental for the good of humankind in this world. It is the foundation for a civilization of love, it assists in creating pathways for the progress of peoples, and it provides opportunities for unity and cooperation among all peoples and nations.
It is our strong belief as the Catholic community in Broken Bay that the idea of Peace is, and must be, central in human life. Peace in our time is the fruit of genuine respect for others. Anything else is not true peace.
My sisters and brothers, the joy of Easter this year is to make real the peace of Christ in our world. Whenever or wherever it is contradicted, our mission is to give witness to the peace of Christ. The peace of Christ is the goal of our activities, be they individual or collective, personal or communal.
May the peace of the Risen Christ reign in our hearts, in our community, in our world, and in our time.
“This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad”.
ENDS