As we reach the conclusion of Bright Week, the holy week of Christ’s Resurrection, we are reminded of the transformation that our faith has brought into the world. No longer are we bound by death. No longer are we confined to the ways of this broken and sin-ridden age.

This evening our parish will again serve Paschal Vespers as we did on Bright Monday. It concludes with a beautiful hymn about the transformation of the cosmos that Christ has made possible through faith in him. It speaks of forgiveness and brotherly love, even for those who hate us:

This is the day of resurrection. Let us be illumined by the feast. Let us embrace each other. Let us call brothers even those that hate us, and forgive all by the resurrection, and so let us cry: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs bestowing life.

CHRIST IS RISEN!