The joy of the resurrection
April 5, 2026 – The Resurrection of the Lord, The Mass of Easter Day
Readings: Acts 10:34a, 37-43; Psalm 118, R. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad.; Colossians 3:1-4; Gospel – John 20: 1-9
The first part of the Gospel that was committed to memory was the Resurrection narratives. From these narratives, the rest of the Gospel was recalled. This supports what Fr. Hans Kung said that the final word of God is joy because of the Resurrection. We will suffer or sacrifice for what we believe in or commit ourselves to, but the final word is always joy—the joy of the Resurrection.
We saw this movement in the past Easter Triduum. From the beginning of Jesus’ journey to his Passion and Cross on Holy Thursday to the suffering and death on the Cross of Good Friday, we witnessed how he endured all this because of his commitment to his Father’s will. “Not my will, but your will be done.”
Let us reflect on the power of the joy of the Resurrection.
Certainty about his destiny
The pain and agony of the Passion and Cross of Jesus was something that he anticipated. Several times, he predicted this as well as the Father raising him up.
As he approached Jerusalem, the city of destiny, Jesus became more certain about his predicted destiny. His resolve too became more definite, as the prophecy said, “and set his face like flint” toward Jerusalem.
This Jesus was able to face and endure because of his trust in the Father’s plan. He knew of this with certainty in his first beatific vision in his baptism. This was reaffirmed as he came closer to Jerusalem in the Transfiguration. But I would say that it was constantly reaffirmed in more “quiet” moments every time Jesus withdrew into solitude to pray.
Each moment of prayer was to “check”—not just if he was doing what his Father wanted him to do, but if he was doing it the way his Father wanted him to do it.
Not just the what, but more so the how. Jesus knew what was coming.
Feeling the weight of it all
Yet—and this is our second point—he slowly felt the weight of this “how.” In his agony in the garden, he “bargained” with his Father. Any human being would have done the same.
Amid this human despair, the divine started to show itself. Hope always comes at the threshold of despair. “Not my will, but your will be done.” The surrender in loving obedience was the beginning, yes, of this Passion and Cross, but also of his Resurrection.
My Novice Master, Fr. Mat Sanchez, S.J., used to tell us when we were in the seminary that in the narrative of his passion, Jesus so serenely and silently endured it. One could almost picture him as a king triumphantly mounting his throne of the Cross. “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” (John 15: 11) It was his joy to finally fulfill his Father’s will through his loving obedience.
Through the agony, pain, and death on the Cross, his joy in fulfilling the Father’s will was what was most important to him.
The joy of Jesus’s loving obedience
Finally, our last point for reflection this Easter Sunday—“that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.”
The joy of the Resurrection is the joy of Jesus’s loving obedience. From beginning to end, it was all about loving obedience. From his Incarnation through the mysteries of his life all the way to his final “yes” in his agony in the garden and the Cross, it was his loving obedience that was his joy.
His joy found its fulfillment and union with the Father’s joy in the Resurrection.
The Father said, “This is my Beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” It was the Father’s joy in raising his Beloved Son from the dead to show us how pleased he was, is, and will always be.
We share in this as we exclaim, “Rejoice, the Lord is Risen!”
