EASTER PASTORAL LETTERS: Choose to live as people of hope, offering Christ's peace and love (04/20/03)

EASTER PASTORAL LETTERS

Choose to live as people of hope, offering Christ's peace and love

Easter pastoral message of Metropolitan Stefan Soroka of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the United States.

My brother Bishops, my brother Clergy, the Reverend Sisters, and my brothers and sisters in Christ:

Christ is Risen!

I know that your hearts and minds are heavy with sadness in these difficult times. The war in Iraq, with its innocent victims found among the people on both sides, evokes our prayer for a speedy resolution - one that will bring freedom and democracy for all people involved. Our hearts particularly share the anguish of families with soldiers abroad, and we offer payers for their success and for their safe return home. The unstable political and economic situation found in many parts of the world, including our beloved Ukraine, causes much heartfelt concern, especially for the plight of families being divided and scattered all over the world. There are many people without work, suffering hardships and challenges, and many in need of our prayer and comfort.

It is such times as these that particularly call forth from within us strength in the Risen Christ. Jesus Christ entered the upper room filled with frightened apostles. He offered them His peace, His assurance that He would be with them, and His encouragement that they should not be afraid. Jesus Christ comes to us today, to you and to me, and offers His peace, His assurance that He is among us. Be not afraid or inordinately concerned about these times. Jesus Chris is among us. You and I are called to be "people of hope" amidst a world filled with despair. Jesus Christ is among us, and you and I are called to present Him into today's world. We do this by being positive and hopeful people, offering encouragement and hope to those around us because Jesus Christ is among us!

I urge all of us to live as people of hope, offering Christ's peace and love through all you do and say. It is Christ's peace that we are called to enjoy and share in this world. It is the Risen Christ Who grants His peace to us and to the world around us. You and I are beneficiaries of Christ's peace in our lives. Allow His peace to flourish through you, first within your own heart and your entire being. Be at peace with the Lord Jesus, Who loves you and wants you to be at peace with yourself. Search your heart for that which holds you back from your realizing His peace within you, and resolve to rid yourself of any such barriers. Then, celebrate Christ's peace with your closest loved ones, with your friends and with your community. Be encouraging and nourishing of others, emphasizing their gifts and goodness. Place greatest emphasis on the positive in life and "breathe" hopefulness into all of your relationships. In this way, the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ within you will spread and will be celebrated in your life, and in the lives of those surrounding you.

Every parish community needs the infusion of people who are positive and hopeful. Such individuals offer a vision for the parish community, contributing to its growth and nourishment as a parish family. God gifts every parish family with many gifted individuals who encourage one another, and lead others to a greater closeness to God through their shared hope and support. The parish priest is called to be the prime example of hope and vision within a parish; however, he himself needs the love and support of a positive and nourishing Christian environment if he is to be an effective leader. You and I are called to live as brothers and sisters in the Risen Christ, offering His peace and love to one another. Today's world thirsts for this. You and I thirst for it.

Are you a person who "breathes" hope into others? Are you positive and nourishing to others? As a follower of Christ, you are already gifted with His peace and love to give to others - to give the "gift of life" in your offering hope and nourishment to your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. Recall what the Master did to the servant who hid his gifts and failed to use them. And, remember how richly the Master rewarded those who flourished with their gifts. In daily life when you are with loved ones and with strangers, choose to live and do all things as a person of hope and nourishment. You will then live as someone who knows the peace of Jesus Christ, because Christ is Risen!

Be assured that my heart is full of peace and love for you, and that my prayers ask for your knowing Christ's peace and celebrating it in all you do and say. Especially, I pray that our parish communities will serve as a haven for many who search for Christ's peace and love, and that each of us will do all we can to "breathe" His peace into the world around us.

Christ is Risen!

Ý Stefan Soroka
Metropolitan-Archbishop

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