Easter on the Holy Land, Father Batton: We do not bear imprisonment in an empty grave

Father Francesco Patton

For a period of nine years, I have the honor to celebrate Easter in places that remember the resurrection of Jesus and its first manifestations: the empty grave and the nearby church that remembers the meeting with their mother, with Mary Magdalina and with women; Emaus where Jesus teaches bread. Cenacle where the students appear on Easter Night and after eight days.

This year, my Basque thinking comes from Tabga, which is located on the beaches of the Sea of ​​Galilee, not far from Capernaún, Beatitudes and Magdala.

Magdalina asked Jesus to announce to his brothers and sisters that he had resurrected him and went in front of them to Galilee, and that they were meeting him again, as everything began, three years ago.

In Tabga, on the shores of the lake, Jesus seems to Litter and six other students trying to hunt, as if they had ignored his call because they were overwhelmed by the death of the teacher. In Tabga, Jesus appears at Dawn, when he is no longer at night but is no longer a day yet. It seems when it is difficult to get to know his face, but not his voice.

Revival appears and asks again hunting when hunting is useless. Ask, this, trust it, completely and completely. Because it is only able to demolish our failures and fill our gaps.

The revival appears and Pedro asks about the most important question, which is the same question that gives us: “Do you love me more than anything and everything? If you really love me to start following me again. If you really love me, you can start caring for the people who trust you. If you really love me, you can also give your life to the end, to the end, like me. ”

If we want to celebrate Easter, if we want to celebrate it completely, we must also learn not to stay empty grave prisoners. Risen -Skipting in front of us and walking in front of us.

If we want to celebrate Easter, we cannot be prisoners of our personal failures: whether in man or religious.

If we want to celebrate Easter, we cannot remain crush under the heavy stone of the conditions in which we must live, which talk about failure and death: wars, epidemics, earthquakes, economic crises, natural disasters and disasters caused by our human cruelty, and sometimes, even with our human cruelty.

Jesus has already overcome all this and just asking us: “Do you love me to the full confidence of me? Are you ready to start with me again?

Are you ready to return to the center of your life? After that and only then you can tell us again: “Follow me, take care of the people who trust you and learn with me to give your life.”

After that, only then, we will also be able to get to know him when it is no longer at night, but it was not the time after the day, and we will try that waiting for it will not disappoint your property, deception or confused, and we can walk with confidence, accompanied by the paths of time towards eternal Easter.