Death is an event in life that no one is exempt from. Sooner or later everyone discovers the horror of it. Even a child attached to their pet will eventually come face to face with death as their friend lies cold and motionless, breathless and unresponsive.

The death of a parent at an early age is, of course, harsher and more painful, mixed with a multitude of emotions and fears about the future. The loss of a child by parents is perhaps the most painful experience of death as the natural order of things does not call for this sequence of events.

Humanity has grappled with this phenomenon for thousands of years and continues to stand in wonder and bewilderment in front of the event of death each time it encounters it. Every culture has attempted to deal with it by trying to postpone it, and many cultures sought to conquer it one way or another, but the sting of death has remained, a pain for humanity to be dealt with.

Even the disciples of Jesus frightened by the death of their teacher scattered in fear as they ran for their own lives. And when the reports began arriving that some of them had seen him alive after his burial, they had a hard time accepting that death had been reversed, even though they had seen Lazarus come out of the grave at the call of Jesus, the daughter of Jairus rise at his bidding and the son of the widow be lifted up from his bier at the touch of their master. Death's power was still looming in their minds as big as ever.

It wasn't until they all saw Him enter the upper room (the doors being shut) that they began to change their thinking, while Thomas (skeptical as ever) still demanded tangible proof before he would accept the reversal of His death. Jesus appeared to them many times over the next forty days proving again and again that he was alive. And yet, it wasn't until after the Holy Spirit was poured over them on Pentecost that they finally got it. It took a "divine shock" to shake off of them the notion that death is all powerful and everlasting.

It was this very message of the defeat of death by Christ that the disciples, now turned into Apostles, brought out of Palestine into the rest of the world: "And with great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus" (Acts 4:33), proclaiming that death has lost its power over humanity; “O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?” (1Cor 15:55). The Lord is Risen! Christ is Risen! "Christ is Risen from the dead, conquering death by death and to those in the tombs bestowing life!"

The human conundrum of the prominence of death has now found a powerful antidote. Death has been conquered once and for all through the life of Christ. We can now share in that life by our closeness to Him. We have now received proof that God has granted to us life eternal. Death, no longer has dominion over us: “Truly, truly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live." (John 5:25)

Let's tune in to the “Good News”, that we may hear and live!

Fr. Panayiotis