He Is Risen and Rising
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Happy Easter everyone! Today and for the next fifty days we celebrate the greatest event in human history. Jesus Christ rose from the dead and He continues to rise in the lives of his followers. The evidence of his resurrection is compelling and stunning. Not only is it reported in all four of the gospels but, according to St. Paul, the risen Christ “appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at once" (1 Corinthians 15:6). His appearances compelled Christians to spread this Good News around the world for twenty centuries. They were not only proclaiming that Jesus had risen from the dead, but also that we can rise with him to everlasting life.
Today the witness of the disciples is complimented by an amazing artifact from the first century: the Shroud of Turin, the linen burial cloth of Jesus. Fr. Robert Spitzer says the shroud is “the most unusual image in the whole history of images in the world and the most scientifically analyzed historical artifact in the history of the world.” And scientists agree that the only thing that could have produced that image on the shroud is a very strong source of radiation. In other words, the image on the shroud was not created by a human artist but by an enormous burst of energy and light. What kind of burst of energy and light? Fr. Spitzer summarizes the scientist’s conclusion:
“It was 6 to 8 billion watts of light energy, columnated vacuum ultraviolet radiation, coming from the body—like half a million search lights worth of energy coming out for a brief 140 billionth of a second! To get such a pulse of energy you would need an Excimer Lazer which would have to exceed all the ultraviolet laser radiation capacity we have in every laboratory in the world today, and it still could not produce that amount of energy. And dead bodies normally don’t do that, so you’re going to have to have a supernatural cause, obviously.” (See his interview with Christ Stefanik here: https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=5xxiR37eUt8&si=Jo4lRAe30HqABbmm )
The French Philosopher, Blaise Paschal said, "There is enough light for those who desire to see, and enough obscurity for those who have a contrary disposition." Do you desire to see the risen Lord? Then take the leap of faith. The tomb was empty; more than 500 people saw his risen body; and his burial cloth remains as compelling scientific proof.
But even more convincing is the risen Body of Christ which is the Church. We are not perfect, we are human. But we are infused with the divine light of Jesus. He is risen anew in the 43 people who were baptized into our parish family at the Easter Vigil. He is rising in the many others who will receive Confirmation and First Eucharist during this Easter season. He is rising in each one of us who renew our Baptismal Promises this Easter Sunday and recommit ourselves to being his disciples.
On that first Easter morning, “there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, approached, rolled back the stone, and sat upon it... The guards were shaken with fear of him and became like dead men. Then the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid! I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified. He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said’” (Matthew 28: 1-6).
Based on what we know from the shroud about the explosion of energy within the tomb, that early morning earthquake was a mere aftershock. It caused the guards to become like dead men but caused disciples to come back to life. And the aftershocks of the resurrection have reverberated through the centuries. May it recreate us this Easter season inspiring us to rise with Jesus, bearing witness with our lives to the greatest event in history.
For more information about the Shroud of Turin see these websites:
Fr. Robert Spitzer: https://www.magiscenter.com/blog/tag/shroud-of-turin
Rev. Dr. John Bombaro: The Shroud of Jesus? Its Archeological and Apologetic Value
https://youtu.be/NyoUfPtZl10?si=I4lx8cxXol_0h7WU