The Lord is risen and that alone is reason enough to rejoice.
We must be careful, however, that our journey through this valley of tears does not dampen our joy in the Lord’s resurrection. Rather, we should face the challenges of our times with equanimity, knowing that Christ has conquered all things.
The divisions in our world, our Church, our country, our communities, our families and even within our very selves are real and press us on every side. They can even foment in us a sense of confusion and powerlessness to the point where we are tempted to question whether the reality of Christ’s resurrection has any meaning for us today.
It may help our flagging spirit to recall how overwhelmed with terror and confusion Saul and the Israelites were at the sight and threats of Goliath and how God sent them relief in the person of David, a shepherd boy. David dressed in Saul’s armour could not move against the enemy. He, therefore, put on his own clothes and, picking up five stones from the river and going against Goliath in the name of the Lord, felled him with a single blow. Indeed, if God be for us, who can be against us?
Today, we face a new Goliath, an anti-life juggernaut and blasphemer of the Triune God, that devalues human life, both preborn and long born, spurns Christian sexual morality, advocates that human feelings, science and technology should trump nature and the natural law and promotes godlessness. Like Saul and the Israelites we are confused and powerless before advances of the culture of death, the new Goliath.
Let us, then, like David cast off the panoply of worldly arguments and, dressed in our own clothes, that is, our baptismal garment, arm ourselves with the stones with which Christ conquered sin, Satan and death, namely, humility, obedience, suffering, prayer and love. Phil.2:8; Heb.5:7-8. Then journeying through the darkness of this valley of tears, we shall see clearly the light of the Risen Christ and, with resounding alleluias, truly rejoice.