A homily for The Resurrection of the Lord, Easter Sunday, April 5, 2026, at the Mass of Easter Day
Acts 10:34a, 37-43, Colossians 3:1-4, John 20:1-9
On May 24, 1989, the finest movie in the franchise, “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” hit the big screen. Its pre-Memorial Day release guaranteed that the flick would be a summer blockbuster and, like the other “Indiana Jones” films, would become part of pop culture.
(We can debate this installment’s rank in the canon later, though I’m right about this.)
Near the climax of the movie, Indy must cross a seemingly impassable, staggeringly wide chasm to find the Holy Grail and save his father’s life. It’s the last of several life-threatening obstacles protecting the Grail. It’s The Leap of Faith.
By taking that leap, Henry Jones Jr. finds a solid path to his goal, much to his amazement.
Every year, Easter challenges us to take a leap of faith and renew our belief in the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ through the divine power of God.
By taking that leap this year, as we have in years past, all of us believers will again find a solid path to our goals. God willing, we’ll continue to be amazed.
Each of us has multiple goals in life, both secular and spiritual.
Individually, we aim for worldly success and happiness, however we define them. We each seek to live lives on Earth that lead to everlasting lives in the presence of God.
Communally, a little peace on Earth and goodwill to all would be nice. An end to wars and bloodshed, to inequality, prejudice and injustice, to hunger and illness and other indignities … yeah, those, too. And communally, our efforts toward achieving those goals likely will count us among the sheep Jesus the Judge will herd home on the Last Day.
To achieve our goals, we need faith: faith that the love of God, through grace, will give us the strength, skills and time we need. The “let go and let God” kind of faith. The “lead me, Lord” kind of faith.
Which means leaps of faith aren’t always easy; in fact, they rarely are. Leaps of faith, even baby steps of faith, can require us to ignore whatever is staring us in the face. To set aside whatever presents itself as pure observable fact and open our minds to the possibility that miracles can and do happen.
Small miracles. Everyday miracles.
The biggest miracle of all, which we celebrate on Easter today.
Maybe we’ve never seen and, God willing, will never see an execution, let alone a crucifixion, but we know death penalties happen. We know what happens to the people involved. We can clearly see that people who are executed don’t wake up ever again.
Except Jesus of Nazareth.
Maybe we have seen someone overdosing or having a heart attack, and through the miracle of modern medicine, they can be revived with naloxone or a defibrillator. Through modern medicine and the kindness of strangers, these people do wake up from flat-lining. From near-death experiences.
Jesus of Nazareth woke up from death on his own. No paramedics.
Not near-death. A hundred percent stone-cold death.
At least, that’s what we believe. Or we say we believe.
Because, for us in the 21st century, the notion of someone returning to life has become, in some ways, no big deal.
We shock ’em back from the brink thousands upon thousands of times a day, electrically or chemically.
We pump on their chests and blow the breath of life into their lungs. Ta-daa!
We’ve all seen “Frankenstein” movies or TV shows or read Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley’s book. Or other science fiction. We’re swimming in it.
Resurrection just ain’t the miracle it used to be. Or so it seems.
And so, many of us shrug. We’re past being awestruck.
We shouldn’t be. No one rose before Jesus did, and no one has risen since. The miracle belongs to Jesus, the Son of God, alone.
We who believe find ourselves continually hopping, skipping, and jumping in that belief.
So: Do we believe that there’s a solid footing to land on if we indeed take a leap of faith?
Our cynical modern eyes may say no, but our hearts know better. Our hearts and our imaginations know that taking a leap of faith can defy logic. Taking a leap of faith can defy conventional wisdom. Taking a leap of faith is countercultural.
Fortunately for us, Jesus was — and is — all about being countercultural.
Empathy. Sympathy. Kindness. Equality. Diversity. Equity. Inclusion. Charity. Justice. Peace.
All of them are rock-solid paths to follow. All of them are the rock-solid paths Jesus calls us to follow, to continue his mission here on this fragile Earth.
Together, they’re a highway for life’s journey paved in granite and striped with Christ’s blood, which he shed freely for us. Together, they’re a highway of love leading to divine truth.
And like any highway (especially the Parkway), we use an on-ramp to merge with our fellow travelers.
We take a Leap of Faith.
Christos anesti! Alethos anesti!
