Sts. Philip and James, Apostles

In the Catechism, we learn that Jesus’ Resurrection is unlike the return to ordinary earthly life experienced by those he raised before Easter. In his risen body, he passes from death to a new life beyond time and space. His body still bears the marks of his Passion, showing that it is truly the same body that was crucified, yet it also has the new properties of a glorious body and is filled with the power of the Holy Spirit. The Resurrection is a real event, witnessed through the empty tomb and the apostles’ encounters with the risen Christ, while still remaining a mystery that transcends history and human senses. Jesus revealed himself to his disciples in ways meant to awaken their faith. As a family, we can prayerfully contemplate Christ’s suffering, death, and risen glory, trusting in the Father’s power revealed in raising his Son.

The Catechism presents the Holy Trinity at the heart of God’s plan for salvation: the Father gives his beloved Son and the Holy Spirit for the salvation of the world and the glory of his name. Christ accomplishes this work through his Paschal mystery—his Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension—and the Church proclaims and celebrates this mystery in the liturgy. In the liturgy, Christ our redeemer continues the work of redemption through his Church, drawing the faithful into conscious, active, and fruitful participation. Liturgy includes divine worship, the proclamation of the Gospel, and active charity, calling us to serve God and neighbor. As we gather with the Church in prayer and worship, the liturgy helps root us in the Father’s love, strengthens the community’s new life in the Spirit, and sends us into the Church’s mission and service to unity.

At Pentecost, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit made the Church manifest to the world and began the age in which Christ makes present and communicates his saving work. God’s eternal plan blesses us in Christ and calls us to be holy and blameless before him as his children through Jesus Christ. Throughout salvation history, God’s blessings guide humanity toward life, and Scripture recalls these saving gifts with praise and thanksgiving. In the Church’s liturgy, the Father’s blessings of creation and salvation are fully revealed and communicated. As we pray together, we can respond with adoration, praise, thanksgiving, and trust in the gift of the Holy Spirit.