NOTE: Christ in Our Neighborhood is a parish-based program consisting of small Christian communities that gather in the home weekly to prayerfully discuss the upcoming Sunday Mass readings. It’s easy to form a community and you can find out more by searching “Christ in Our Neighborhood at the Diocese of Phoenix website, dphx.org.
This coming Sunday, we celebrate the Resurrection of Our Lord. The question the Christ in Our Neighborhood Commentary asks us is: How has Christ’s resurrection changed your life?
The waiting is over. Easter is here! Our Lenten fasting has come to an end and we rejoice in Christ’s resurrection from the dead.
Or do we?
As a young woman, I heard a Dominican priest give a powerful homily one sunny Easter morning. He said something like, “if you didn’t really enter into the spirit of Lent this year, this morning’s celebration may ring a bit hollow for you.” That has stayed with me down through the years.
It is only by entering into austerity, that “dry and weary land” of Lent, that we can truly feast. No cross, no crown, as they say.
When we face the truth of our own sinfulness and need for redemption, our need to be saved by the mercy of God, we realize the magnitude of what Christ did for us in entering into our humanity and dying a shameful death so that we could one day be with Him in Paradise.
His death on the cross and resurrection breaks down prison walls: addiction, depression, loneliness, fear, shame and despair. He’s victorious over all that and invites us into a new life of freedom.
How has Christ’s resurrection changed our life? It changes everything — if we let it.
If you haven’t joined a Christ in Our Neighborhood small group yet, perhaps you are being called to start one yourself. It’s easy! Check out our website today to find out more: dphx.org/Christ-in-our-neighborhood.
Watch the video of the weekly podcast segment featuring Christ in Our Neighborhood with Bishop Dolan by clicking HERE.
To sign up for our weekly Christ in Our Neighborhood newsletter that has everything you need for your next meeting, visit: https://phoenixdiocese.flocknote.com/CION
