Bright Monday

Every year on Bright Monday, the Russian Greek Catholic Church that I attend offers one of the most beautiful liturgies a human can experience.  A Festal Divine Liturgy is celebrated accompanied with an outdoor procession with the recitation of the Four Gospels of the Resurrection at the four corners of the Church.

Tonight, as I listened to our holy Priest reciting the Troparion below while blessing us with the Paschal Trikirion

"Christ is risen from the dead, trampling on death by death, and on those in the tombs bestowing life."

I had to hold back tears at this sublime realization that Our Lord has conquered death by his own death.  My soul, which is encumbered by sin, has been redeemed by our Great God.  He entered Hades and took the Just into Paradise.  He then rose from the dead showing that death did not have the final word over Him.  He shattered the Enemy by "trampling on death by death."

At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, we then all went outside with lit candles in our hands and walked to the four corners of the Church hearing the Four Gospels.

We were also given red eggs before we left.  The story goes that St. Mary Magdalene went to the Emperor and told him that Christ had risen.  The Emperor noticed that there was someone there who had a basket of eggs.  He said that if Christ had truly risen, then He would perform a miracle by making those eggs red.  The eggs did turn red affirming the Truth of the Resurrection!

Christ is Risen!   Indeed He is Risen!