{"id":3355,"date":"2011-04-23T15:38:53","date_gmt":"2011-04-23T19:38:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/community\/deaconsbench\/?p=3355"},"modified":"2015-03-13T17:28:10","modified_gmt":"2015-03-13T21:28:10","slug":"homily-for-april-23-2011-easter-vigil","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/2011\/04\/homily-for-april-23-2011-easter-vigil\/","title":{"rendered":"Homily for April 23, 2011: Easter Vigil"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Several years ago, the PBS series \u201cAmerican Masters\u201d decided to profile a true American master, Don Hewitt, the creator and executive producer of 60 MINUTES.\u00a0\u00a0 And the reporter asked him, what is the secret of the show\u2019s success?\u00a0 How has it endured for four decades as one of the top rated shows in America?<\/p>\n

And Don replied: \u201cIt\u2019s very simple.\u00a0 It comes down to four little words.\u00a0 Four words that every child knows: \u2018Tell me a story.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

I think he was getting at something fundamental.\u00a0 We are storytelling people.\u00a0 It is woven into our DNA.\u00a0\u00a0 We need to hear stories \u2013 and we need to tell them.\u00a0 We need to share what we know, what we have experienced, what we believe.<\/p>\n

Well tonight, we tell our story.\u00a0\u00a0 A story that began in darkness and ends in blazing, brilliant light.<\/p>\n

It is the story of how Christ conquered sin and death.\u00a0 It is the story of how we were saved.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> And it has been passed on, person to person, across the centuries, like that one great fire that tonight spread throughout this church and lit a thousand flickering candles. Tonight, it fills every heart here with something so incandescent, so luminous, it can only be called joy.<\/p>\n

In this gospel, we hear how it all began:\u00a0 on a morning in Jerusalem, when two women saw something incredible \u2013 and an angel told them to \u201cgo then quickly and tell his disciples\u201d what has happened. And with that, the gospel began to spread.\u00a0 The light was passed on.<\/p>\n

And here, tonight, it blazes anew.\u00a0 We continue to tell what happened.<\/p>\n

Don Hewitt said the success of 60 MINUTES all boiled down to four little words.\u00a0 Well, here are four more, four little words that have sustained us across two thousand years: \u201cDo not be afraid.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

We hear that twice in this gospel \u2013 first from the angel, but then from Jesus.\u00a0 They are his first words after his resurrection, his message to an anxious world.\u00a0 Across two millennia, those words have uplifted a world torn apart by war, persecution and terror.\u00a0 They have inspired martyrs and missionaries.\u00a0 And they uplift us even today.\u00a0 Some here will remember they were the first words spoken by Pope John Paul \u2013 soon to be Blessed John Paul \u2014 in his first homily as pope.\u00a0 He was a man who had witnessed and experienced first hand some of the horrors of the last century. And yet, still he proclaimed to our own age, again and again: \u201cDo not be afraid.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is a message that offers inspiration to so many \u2013 and should speak in a special way, I think, to those who are joining the church this evening: men, women and children who are walking their own journey of faith, often defying extraordinary odds.<\/p>\n

They are people like Abby Johnson \u2013 who used to work as an administrator at Planned Parenthood, helping to facilitate abortions, until she saw, for the first time, an image of an unborn child on an ultrasound monitor.\u00a0 She is joining the church tonight in Austin, Texas.<\/p>\n

They are people like Ahdija Baker, who was raised Muslim, and survived the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, and went searching for a church where she could give thanks to God.\u00a0 She is joining the church tonight in New Orleans.<\/p>\n

And they are people Tom Leopold, a Jewish comedy writer who wrote for \u201cSeinfeld\u201d and \u201cCheers\u201d and tonight will become a Catholic comedy writer, joining us in the Archdiocese of New York.<\/p>\n

They are people like the 15 men and women here tonight who are joining us through the RCIA process.<\/p>\n

This is how the church continues to be reborn.\u00a0 This celebration of Christ\u2019s resurrection \u2013 his new life \u2014 is also a celebration of new life in the church, the Body of Christ.\u00a0 As these new Catholic Christians become a part of that body, they become a part of our story. And we become a part of theirs.<\/p>\n

\u201cTell me a story,\u201d Don Hewitt said.\u00a0 I think now, more than ever, the world is hungry to hear what we have to say.\u00a0 It is desperate to know the Good News.\u00a0 And the gospel for this vigil compels us: tell this story<\/em>.\u00a0 Bear witness, like the women at the tomb, and let others know.\u00a0 Pray it.\u00a0 Sing it.\u00a0 Live it.<\/p>\n

And be assured: we do not walk this road alone. After the women set out to tell the disciples, as Matthew puts it, \u201cJesus met them on the way.\u201d\u00a0 He meets us on our journey, as well.\u00a0 He walks with us.\u00a0 He welcomes us.\u00a0 He encourages us and guides us.<\/p>\n

So do not be afraid.\u00a0 Tell this great story of this extraordinary night and all that it represents.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It is a love story\u2026an adventure story\u2026a story full of miracles and mystery and, best of all, hope.<\/p>\n

Tell the world: he has been raised!<\/p>\n

It really is<\/span><\/em> the greatest story ever told.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Several years ago, the PBS series \u201cAmerican Masters\u201d decided to profile a true American master, Don Hewitt, the creator and executive producer of 60 MINUTES.\u00a0\u00a0 And the reporter asked him, what is the secret of the show\u2019s success?\u00a0 How has it endured for four decades as one of the top rated shows in America? And […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[306,11175],"class_list":["post-3355","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-homilies","tag-easter-vigil","tag-homilies"],"yoast_head":"\nHomily for April 23, 2011: Easter Vigil<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Several years ago, the PBS series \u201cAmerican Masters\u201d decided to profile a true American master, Don Hewitt, the creator and executive producer of 60\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/deaconsbench\/2011\/04\/homily-for-april-23-2011-easter-vigil\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta 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