Easter celebrates the triumph of life and human liberation
By Rev. Fr. Leopold Ratnasekera OMI.
Ph.D., Th.D.
OMI seminar, Ampitiya
Easter, the most important Christian festival, heralds a message of life and brings with it the good news of human liberation, because in Jesus Christ of Nazareth, who rose from the darkness of the grave of death and burial, we become with the wonderful deals with the invitation to accept and defend life and to be involved in every possible way in bringing true freedom to our fellow human beings, while we do our best to free them from all the chains of slavery that keep them from their human dignity and from God deprive given basic rights. Prosperity in life and an environment of freedom create a wonderful world society in which people live in security and peace, with solidarity, dialogue, benevolence, sharing, cooperation, trust and mutual trust strengthening the sense of humanity and thus strengthening the nations in the Enable you to be at peace and truly enjoy the fullness of life’s blessings.
Easter heralds a new era
of civilization
The risen Lord empowered his disciples to go and teach all nations, to observe what He taught them, to assure them of his infallible presence to accompany them to the end of the world. It was a permanent mandate that should reach people of all cultures, civilizations, ethnicities and languages. During 20 long centuries of the Christian era, this good news of life and freedom had been proclaimed in towns and villages, among the rich and poor, among those of higher and lower social status, and among kings and governments, those in power sit and be ruled with the sole aim of turning the world into an oasis of life and creating a civilization of love. In the first five centuries of Christianity, in addition to the Christian message, which took root in the great world of the Middle East and covered the cities of Athens, Corinth, etc., it had also reached imperial Rome and all of the colonial territories of his mighty empire. It preached a call to reconciliation between Jews and Gentile Gentiles that transcends differences of religion, race, language, social class, ethnicity, and even gender. The Bible confirms that Jesus of Nazareth, crucified and resurrected at Easter, gave a name that stands above any other name of cosmic meaning before which everyone in heaven, on earth and under earth must preach on their knees bent he should be the sovereign “Lord”.
Christianity renewed and
empowered
In the name of this humble but eternal Galilean teacher, his disciples were even willing to lay down their lives while refusing to worship Caesar as god or the host of other pagan gods of the notorious Roman pantheon ordained by the emperor. The history of the earliest persecutions documents the brave hundreds of the first martyrs killed in the amphitheater of the Colosseum. Then came the Middle Ages when the church enjoyed both temporal and spiritual power, and at times combined with the temporal power of kings and emperors including the era of Napoleon the Great. But soon this socio-political environment was to disappear, and the church gave up temporal power and only clung to authority in spiritual matters. In this context, we must observe the development and growth of the Church on different continents and, above all, achieve strong bases in Europe. With the development of some countries in modern shipping and armory, the European colonial powers such as England, France, Germany, Holland, Portugal, Belgium and Spain eventually emerged.
With its colonial expansion, which was formerly reinforced by the explorations of Marco Polo and Vasco di Gama, Christianity also invaded non-European, American, Asian, and African countries that were colonized. Since the mid-19th century, after a period of incubation in colonial forms, Christianity began a process of inculturation of its manifestations of faith, mainly in the field of teaching and worship and with the oncoming tide of social liberation tendencies and struggles for freedom even implicated in the work of human liberation, which has been stirred up by new theological trends such as liberation theology and its own charter of human rights. Today Christianity is heavily involved in the work of social justice and environmental issues, human rights and workers’ rights. It strongly opposed the dehumanizing tendencies that came with the industrial revolution, which canonized the machine over human labor, as well as extreme social evils, followed by the Enlightenment and the French Revolution.
Christianity: a catalyst for
Sourdough society
At this historic moment in the history of Christianity, the challenge is on the one hand, in partnership with all people of good will, to defend enduring spiritual values against the destructive effects of the culture of secularism and consumption and, on the other hand, to condemn a capitalism that relentlessly relies on goods and Profit oriented. It means getting involved in an economic system without a soul, in which people and their work are fully exploited by all liberal systems of thought and ideologies. So while one’s right to exist and act as one of the living religious traditions worldwide is being defended, dialogue with other world religions must be worked on in order to preserve the feeling that the sacred is neither suppressed nor devalued or weakened invade modern lifestyles. In this sense, Christians today are committed to promoting democratic freedoms and focus on environmental issues that secure the earth and its resources without being misused. This confrontation with the world makes them the voice of the voiceless: the poor, the marginalized, the exploited and the migrants looking for greener pastures that have been driven from their native lands.
This social apostolate is seen as inspired by religious and spiritual ideals rather than just humanitarian or philanthropic endeavors. Medical facilities, educational projects, homes for the sick, the elderly and orphans and people with disabilities are motivated worldwide by this ideal of religions in the service of people and thus go beyond the religious rites and rituals that are carried out in churches, temples and other countries Centers. In reference to Christ crucified, the churches share the human pain of people around the world, which leads to natural and man-made disasters, plagues and epidemics that strike them, injustices caused by bribery and corruption in high positions and abuse dictatorships of political rule emerge from authority in the USA. It remains the indisputable mission ideal of the so-called social work of the church, to give all people, especially the poor and marginalized, the opportunity to achieve the fullness of life. In dialogue with other global organizations, the Pontifical Council for Justice, Peace and Integrity, the Creation of the Vatican, and the World Council of Churches (WCC) participate in massive human development projects in the fields of education, health and human rights.
Conclusion
Celebrating Easter in real life therefore means engaging in the struggle of life against deadly forces and good against evil. The triumph of a culture of life against the culture of death and that of goodness and truth over evil and lies, authenticity over hypocrisy, responsibility over calluses, maturity over superficiality, etc. would be the wonderful path to civilization of love and trust that can only be the unshakable foundations of a new world we all dream of. The risen Lord brought the greeting of peace, which caused fear, doubt and fear in his disciples, because the crucifixion should not be the end of the Jesus story. Even in this time of the global crisis that was triggered by the corona killer virus, the risen Christ is there like at the Pond of Siloam in Jerusalem’s temple precincts of his time to stir the waters of healing for the world that is about survival this deadly pandemic is fighting. By far the most impressive, incredible and overwhelming event of the resurrection broke out with new sources of hope and life. Christianity, in which the Risen Lord is still active in history, helping in the gradual development of a new creation, a new heaven and a new earth, inspires life and love that ultimately, despite its moments of pain and trial be analyzed, make life worth living. Easter is victory over death. The spirit of Easter will inspire everyone to remove deadly factors that hurt and strengthen the search for the sources of life.
