Dear Sisters and Brothers,
The peace of the Risen Christ be with you! In this Easter season of 2026, we are all living in very troubled, wounded times. With so much conflict, violence and entrenched hatred, we might even be tempted to occasionally lament: Where is our God?
In such chaotic times it is good to be reminded of a wonderful story about St Teresa of Avila.
One day the devil appeared to her, disguised as Jesus. St Teresa wasn’t fooled for even a second, dismissing the devil. Before leaving, the devil asked her, “How could you be so sure I wasn’t Jesus? Teresa replied: “You didn’t have any wounds – Christ has wounds!”
One of the most striking elements of our Gospel’s Resurrection stories is that Jesus is still wounded in all of them. The crucifixion wounds do not disappear. The resurrected body of Christ remains marked by his earthly suffering, forever. It is not until the disciples see the wounds of Christ that they recognise Jesus for who he is.
Our Catholic faith, however, refuses to gloss over our own personal wounds – the wounds of our brothers and sisters, and those of our suffering planet, with hollow positive thinking. Instead, our Holy Father Pope Leo urges us to move beyond passivity. Leo challenges us to become peacemakers!
And we can all become peacemakers in very simple ways. If only we had the eyes of faith we would notice that peacemaking is all around us. To name only a few examples:
- In the quiet, tender care of our nurses and care-givers in our hospitals, especially to the elderly and the dying
- In the patient and professional care of our Catholic teachers who generously serve our young people
- In the quiet heroism of parents as they sacrifice themselves for the good of their children
- In the outreach of our social services like Catholic Care who help the needy
- In the lives of ordinary people who refuse to become resentful and instead choose to forgive and love their enemies.
Yes, the wounds of such peacemakers do not embitter them but become fountains of peace and hope for others.
This Easter let us allow the risen Lord to roll away the rocks of pride, ego and selfishness from our hearts. May we banish all violence from our lives. May the light of the risen Christ that streams from his glorified wounds bring joy, healing and peace to us all.
For “By His wounds we are healed”. A blessed Easter to you all.
Bishop Vincent Long OFM Conv, Bishop of Parramatta
