Words of hope

Words of hope in a world afflicted with fear of the future and the scourge of injustice are contained in the Easter messages that the heads of the Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches have addressed to their faithful. Following the Julian calendar, the Orthodox Churches celebrated Easter on 16 April, so a week after the Catholic Easter, which follows the Gregorian calendar.The good wishes of the Pope. Benedict XVI has sent his good wishes for Easter to the heads of the Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches. In his message the Pope cites the words that the Angel spoke to the women at the sepulchre on the morning of Easter "Do not be afraid!". The annunciation of the Resurrection of Jesus – the Holy Father continues – is the source of hope for the whole of mankind, because it shows that the last word of human existence is not death, but life, and reveals in this way the fullness of God’s love. Then, recalling that Christians today are called to spread this message of hope to the men and women of our time, Benedict XVI emphasises that this annunciation would ring out all the more forcefully if we could proclaim it together. Therefore the Pope expresses the wish that the paschal annunciation, renewed by common witness in truth and in love, may strengthen the faith of all Christians and renew their hope, especially in those parts of the world where they are victims of violence, and give peace and consolation to all those who suffer on account of pain, disease, injustice, hunger and poverty in this difficult age of ours. Russian Orthodox Church. "Let us vanquish the fear that derives from the limitations of our human nature and acquire the capacity to tackle without fear every challenge of our time". That’s the wish expressed by the Patriarch of Moscow and All the Russias Kirill to the faithful of the Russian Orthodox Church. "Not for nothing – explains the Patriarch – does the Gospel transmit to us several times the words that the Lord pronounced to encourage and strengthen the spirit of his followers: ‘Do not be afraid!’. The fear of the future, the fear of dangers, of unknown threats, imaginary or real, is a feeling familiar to most of us. But the Lord is with us, it is enough for us not to reject him". "Even if now we live in conditions of social and religious freedom, the effort to live according to the moral precepts of Christianity means in any case swimming against the tide". So the Patriarch appeals to the faithful to oppose the "stereotypes of conduct" that "are being imposed today insistently and systematically on people’s lives through the modern means of influencing our awareness. Ecumenical Patriarchate. An appeal for peace is contained in the Easter message of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I. "Christ is risen, and all those who so desire life may follow Him on the way of Resurrection. By contrast, all those who bring about death, whether indirectly or directly, believing that in this way they are prolonging or enhancing their own life, condemn themselves to eternal death". "Our Risen Lord Jesus Christ came into the world in order that all people ‘may have life and life in abundance’ (Jn 10:10). We deceive ourselves – continues Bartholomew I – if we believe that prosperity in the world can come from destroying one another". According to the Ecumenical Patriarch, the world that is alienated from Christ "endeavours to amass material goods because it bases its hopes for survival on them. It unwisely imagines that it will escape death through wealth". But life is only acquired "through faith in Christ and incorporation in His body". The message is therefore joyful for everyone: "Our strength lies not in the invulnerability of our existence but in its possibility for resurrection". Serbian Patriarchate. "During our life – writes Serbian Patriarch Irenej I – we are confronted with numerous injustices and sorrows. But we know that the Lord transforms the greatest sorrow into joy". In the days of Easter, continues the Serbian Patriarch, the "most mysterious question posed by man in every age is posed anew: ‘But does the man who dies, live again?’. Before this eternal question, even the greatest brains lower their head and remain silent. But we Christians know the meaning of our life and therefore have hope: our hope is the Risen Christ". In another passage of his Easter message, Patriarch Irenej invites the faithful to reflect on the commandment to love each other left by Jesus: "no legislator, no wise man in this world has ever been able to imagine bequeathing so perfect and beneficent a law: precise, simple, useful, and applicable everywhere. Such a law is the very foundation of life". The Patriarch exhorts the faithful to apply it in the various fields of social engagement, and at the various social levels, from employees to "statesmen and leaders": may they all perform their work "in an honest and responsible way", taking care that "no one, through our fault, may weep or be sad".