THE SOURCE OF HOPE AND LIFE
Fr. Panayiotis Papageorgiou, HOLY TRANSFIGURATION, Marietta, GA

"And have hope in God, . . . that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust." (Acts 24:15)

Christ is Risen! we cry out over and over again as we celebrate this momentous historical event-the resurrection of Jesus Christ. There has been nothing else in human history that has gripped human imagination as powerfully as the life, death and resurrection of thisJewish man called Jesus.

Generation after generation we stand in awe in front of the mystery of these events. The greatest appeal of Jesus is actually found in his teachings: He turned upside down everything that his contemporaries had known.

He taught equality for men and women of all social states in a society of many inequalities. He taught love, caring and forgiveness in a world of revenge, selfishness and self-gratification.He taught a peaceful resolution of conflicts in a world where the powerful always trampled upon the powerless. He was a revolutionary without weapons. His positions challenged the status quo of his time so much so that the leadership of his people sought to eliminate him to utter extinction.

His condemnation on the cross was supposed to bring about his ultimate humiliation so that no one would ever remember him. What they did not take into account,however, was his real power.

What they ignored was his ability to bend the laws of nature. What they did not believe was that he was indeed God. Their biggest fear, that he might rise from the dead, came true, in the end, to their great horror.

Although his teachings still retain the greatest of apeals, the power of his resurrection is the primary reason why Christianity still exists today. Christ`s Resurrection is the most significant part of the Gospel(the Good News). It was in the resurrection that Christ`s divine nature was fully revealed. It is through the resurrection that those who unite with him are able to become free even if they remain slaves physically. It is in the resurrection that one could be rich on this earth even if he has few possessions.

The appeal of Christianity was great to the people of that time who lived under oppressive and difficult conditions because of the hope of the resurrection, proclaiming with St. Peter: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead" (1Peter 1:3) .

Christianity continued to remain appealing through the centuries to all people who experienced oppression and suffering: It was in the celebration of the resurrection that the Greek people found hope while under the domination of the Turks for 400 years. It was the hope of the resurrection that kindled the spirits of the Christians of Russia and other countries during those oppressive years of communism.

Christ is Risen, my brothers and sisters! Let us look with a renewed heart and mind at this momentous event. During these difficult and uncertain times the power of God is revealed again through the resurrection of His Son Jesus Christ.In Him is the Hope. In Him is the Love. In Him is the Life.