Peace be to you!  
What are We to say to you, that can correspond to the duties of Our apostolic ministry and be adequate to the spirit of this unique occasion? Our words can only be the words to the Gospel, which has just been read to you; the words of the risen Jesus, which He repeated three times: Peace be to you!
 
Truly, verily, Peace be to you!
 
How rich in meaning, how abundant in good things, is this divine and human greeting of Peace! Repeated thousands of times, we all recognize it, we all desire it. And that is good. But allow Us to exhort you to consider it once again, to preserve it as the Gospel message of the Pope as He lands on this soil and proclaims to all those He meets: Peace be to this house, to this continent, and to all those who inhabit it!
  – Pope Saint Paul VI, excerpt from the Homily from Holy Mass at Yankee Stadium – Papal Visit to the United Nations and United States of America (October 4, 1965)
 
Christ is Risen!  He is Risen, Indeed!
 
Happy Easter! 
 
The words of the Risen Christ are so few, in comparison to the preaching and teaching of his earthly ministry and yet so powerful.  Throughout these encounters, as brief as they are, it is clear that the Risen Christ has come give and exhort the Peace of God upon his disciples.  Again, and again, the Resurrected Lord says “Peace be with you!”
 
In our time this idea of ‘peace’ can seem like a nice greeting of the Lord, a pleasant way for God to talk to His people.  Almost a way of expressing his affection for us or imparting a blessing of sorts… no doubt, this perspective has some validity.  Yet, it cannot be ignored that these simple words were radical in their first utterance, are contrary to the evidence of human history, and continue to be in opposition to the rubrics of our fallen age.  We, as Catholic Christians, are invited to fully consider the meaning and impact of these repeated words of the Risen Christ during this Easter Season – a prolonged (50-day) season of the Church’s Liturgical Year to abide in the graces of the Resurrection of the Lord.  Easter gives us a new understanding that peace is rooted in Christ, in the image of the merciful face of our Heavenly Father who has fulfilled every letter of the Word of God and by whose name He sanctifies us through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
 
Pope Saint Paul VI, the first Pontiff to visit the United States of America focused on peace during his very brief visit to America (lasting less than a full 24-hour day).  Celebrating only one Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, at Yankee Stadium, during the inaugural visit of the Pope to the Western Hemisphere – further, it was an impassioned appeal to the World for peace.  The words of Pope Saint Paul VI are of particular significance looking back upon them, seeing their position within the history of the United Nations and the United States of America, to say nothing of how it was the beginning of increased travel for the Bishop of Rome to speak with peoples throughout the world in their own lands and places.
 
Anyway… this homily is a worthy read – I recommend taking a moment for the whole thing.  In three simple parts Saint Paul VI implores us to embrace peace: (1) to love peace, (2) serve the cause of peace, and (3) to seek the peace of God – based upon moral and religious principles.  It is a thoughtful homily on the need for each of us to radiate the joy and gladness of the Risen Christ, to live according to his words: ‘Peace be to you!’
 
Christ is Risen!  He is Risen, Indeed!
 
 
 
Know of my prayers for you, please pray for me!
 
Father Wilke
 
Saint Joseph, Guardian of the Redeemer, pray for us!