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In his Easter message, Roman Catholic Bishop of Oradea Böcskei László dwells on the unusual circumstances of this year's celebration shadowed by the coronavirus pandemic, and emphasizes the idea of moving from darkness to Light by the personal decision to "redefine our deep and sincere desire to seek God."
The Bishop makes a connection between the moment when, in the still dark hours of the morning, Mary Magdalene goes with a heavy heart to the tomb of Jesus to discover that the stone has been removed, and the moment when Pope Francis prays alone in a deserted square for the healing of the ailing mankind.
"Under the veil of the night, something happened at the tomb of Jesus, conferring a new meaning to what had happened until then. Mary Magdalene, however, still lives with the sorrow that weighs on her soul, and in the darkness that engulfs the world she does not realize what she'll experience in the dawning day," the Easter message reads.
The Bishop then recalls the evening of March 27, when Pope Francis delivered a special prayer in St. Peter's Square in Rome.
"The darkness was lightly falling over the city and the increasingly heavy rain seemed to carry in this sad world the hope for purification. The simple ceremony gained dramatism through the Pope's heartbreaking gesture, who, after imploring for the intercession of the Lord's Mother in front of Her icon, paced to the miracle-working crucifix, where contemplating the world's most outrageous act, he prayed for the release of the entire world from the burden of this trial," he writes.
In his opinion, the shattering events on Good Friday provide the connection between the previously mentioned two moments: Mary Magdalene's walk to the tomb and the realities highlighted by Pope Francis during his prayer.
"These are realities we are also facing these days, when, despite the darkness that surrounds us, we continue to believe in the light, in victory, in life. Because for us too the feast of Easter signifies a walk in the early morning, when it's still dark," says the bishop.
He concludes by saying that although we cannot overlook the unusual circumstances and obstacles that prevent us from celebrating together the greatest feast of Christianity, "they do not prevent us from further finding ourselves in God's wonderful plan."
"I wish everyone that the feast of the Resurrection of the Lord this year brings them a renewal of their life, strengthened faith and the courage to stand testament. Amen!," the Roman Catholic Bishop of Oradea writes in the end of his Pastoral Letter. AGERPRES
