Father Michael Himes described Easter celebration
Sunday is the Lord’s Day. The special day when faithful Catholics seize from casual labours, gather for mass, and engage in works of mercy. My review is on the solemn mass of Easter Sunday, which was celebrated at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on April 12th, 2020. The video record shows just a few attendees. The Eucharist is regarded as the real and true body and blood and soul of our Lord; thus, there was much display devotion and respect and reverence in the manner in the behavior of the few congregants. The church’s organization had some solemn revelations on the preservation of one of the church’s essential doctrines of ethical conduct by upholding etiquette in the congregation.
Father Michael Himes described Easter celebration as an important doctrinal activity of the Catholic Church, marking the holy week of the fulfillment of the blessed promise of salvation. He defines this day as of special revelations on the mystery of the resurrection of Christ. Himes describes Easter as the day on which Roman Catholic faithful commemorate the passion, death resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. As illustrated in the scriptures, the gospels record the resurrection of Jesus on the third after his crucifixion, which falls on the first day of the week, Sunday. This significant event which marked the savior victory over sin and death confirms that the righteous dead will be raised at Christ’s appearing. The Easter celebration’s significance is based on the fulfillment of God’s promise to humankind, marking it an important holiday in the Christian calendar.
There were sessions of deep silence during the mass; these short sessions of silence were tended accordingly were sessions that do not lull the people into inattentiveness but instead provided an opportunity for the congregation to have a moment of profound contemplation mystery of the mass. Ryan Holiday describes silence as the tranquility of the inner life, quiet at the depths of its hidden streams. He calls it a calm, full presence, a being all there, receptive, alert, and ready, having nothing inert or oppressive about it. However, I believe in not taking silence or stillness too seriously. The reflections on the Liturgy do not open with it for nothing. Liturgical life begins with a sense of need to answer: with a stillness of learning. Our perceptions of stillness should be nothing extraordinary or aesthetic.
Moments of contemplation are essential in our prayer life. When we get lost in the thoughts of the love God has for man even in sending his Son for our redemption, we get the understanding of just how much love we owe the world. It is in the still voices of contemplation that we get communion with the saints and appreciate God’s fullness of love in our life in Christ’s redemption. Our church doctrines are in more ways attached to love, God, and love and God as love. The quietness that covers our courts of worship during the mass translates impresses meditation, generating love and purifying us to God’s perfection. As Ryan Holiday puts it, when we get to appreciate this aspect of worship, then we shall be able to understand out involvement with one another, acknowledging God’s gift of love and living a life full of love with the saints.
Then comes on of the most important part of the mass; After the priest’s service of consecrating the bread and wine, I notice only the priest recited the mystery of faith and then he remained silent as the Eucharist who stood in front of him continued the proclamation of the mystery of faith. I noticed the overwhelming power that rendered the priest speechless by the magnificent mystery revealed to him in Christ’s body and the blood. Thus the Eucharist joins him in the acclamation displaying a full and deep intelligent participation of the participants of the mass. Michael Himes describes expounds that our participation in the mass is because of God’s invitation to us to share in the experience of redemption that comes in the death and resurrection of his Son, thus committing to working with God for his kingdom. Furthermore, Himes relates our participation in the sacramental service as incorporating as to the body of Christ reconciling us with him and expressing companionship in the body of Christ; that the Eucharist opens a new world of persons with the form of Christ.
I noticed that during this solemn service, the priest prayed for the church, the clergy, the government, and the faithful then proceeded to lead the congregation in the Lord’s Prayer, asking for peace and mercy of God. Our faith defines our identity as linked intimately with the sacrament baptism. Through baptism, we become connected with Christ, and an understanding of this rebirth is the freedom from sin and an incorporation into the Christian body of the church. During the mass, the congregation was led to the renewal of the baptismal promises expressing willingness to grow in faith connected with Christ in the sacrament life. Father Michael Himes views baptism as an important doctrine of the church. He discloses the renewal of baptismal promises as a spiritual acknowledgment and public recommitment to Christ and his body the church. He expresses the need for this sacred service as sanctifying and a rejection of temptation to sin and the devil.
In his sermon, the priest emphasized the Christian decision to find peace and joyful, to rejoice and be glad in the day of the Lord. He acknowledged the good news of Easter to be the living Christ. While pointing to the deliberate decision to stay happy, he added that there is joy in making the right decisions to remain joyful in the hope of a risen savior and the serenity that comes with his love. We have been cut loose from the bonds of the enemy, and this freedom has come with a purpose, which making the right decisions is crucial in discovering our purpose and giving ourselves to it. We can subject our desires to perform the good works, the will of the Lord to attain purposeful happiness and joy.