The flowers! We come to Church on Easter and are overwhelmed with the beauty and fragrance of flowers. Here is an obvious question: Why flowers? Why do we fill the Church with flowers to celebrate Easter? The answer is far more than Easter takes place in the Spring when the flowers begin to bloom. There is a deeper meaning than that. The flowers signify the beauty of a world renewed. Easter celebrates the beauty of renewed life in Christ.
John’s Gospel tells us that the world was darkened when Jesus died on that horrible hill. It also tells us that He was raised from the dead and walked out of the tomb into a garden, one so full of flowers that Mary Magdeline initially thought that Jesus was the gardener.
The flowers are a symbol of the new life that the Lord offers to those who will commit their lives to Him. We are called to be part of this beauty. We are called to be flowers.
Many people have returned to their Catholic faith this Lent. Many decided that they needed to conquer the past and take a serious look at their relationship with God. Many people who were not Catholic felt drawn to learn about Catholics. Some of them are attracted to Pope Francis and his humble ways, his embracing those shunned by society, his firm control of the direction of the Church. His determination to spread the Kingdom. Some asked this question about committed Catholics: Why are they so determined in their faith, their morality, and their public and private prayer lives? Those who sought to come into or to return to the Church were all given the grace to come to God.
All of us here have been given this grace at various times in our lives. We are, after all, a community of saints. And yet, there are very few people here who have always been saintly. Let me emphasize this: If you have just returned to the faith, know that the person sitting near you who has come to Church for years is most likely someone who had to re-evaluate his or her life and return to the Lord. Every one of us belongs here. This is a Church of saints, but these saints are converted sinners. There are very few people here who have not at some point in their lives had to turn back to the Lord. We are all on the road to Emmaus, wondering about the Lord, and knowing that we needed to travel to Jerusalem and announce the Good News of a world transformed by the Risen Christ.
A number of years ago, Chris Rice wrote a beautiful hymn, that was more of a prayer than a piece of music. Our choir used it as the title song of one of their CD’s. The hymn wasCome to Jesus:
Weak and wounded sinner
Lost and left to die
O, raise your head, for love is passing by
Come to Jesus Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus and live!
Now your burden’s lifted
And carried far away
And precious blood has washed away the stain, so
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus and live!
And like a newborn baby
Don’t be afraid to crawl
And remember when you walk
Sometimes we fall…so
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus and live!
Sometimes the way is lonely
And steep and filled with pain
So if your sky is dark and pours the rain, then
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus and live!
O, and when the love spills over
And music fills the night
And when you can’t contain your joy inside, then
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus and live!
And with your final heartbeat
Kiss the world goodbye
Then go in peace, and laugh on Glory’s side, and
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus and live! © CCLI License # 2368115
We can put the past behind us. We give it to the Lord and we trust Him to heal us. We can each be the person God created us to be.
“Alleluia!” we proclaim today along with the Church. Alleluia, Jesus is alive. He is our Savior. He is our Redeemer. He is ours.
We are renewed by Christ. We are His, flowers in His Garden.