Archbishop Villegas urges flockand Follow risen Christ

DAGUPAN CITY (PNA)--Follow the risen Jesus.This was the message of Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Socrates Villagas, also president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), to his flock in Pangasinan on the occasion of Easter Sunday. Be like the risen Jesus. Look at the risen Jesus. Love the risen Jesus. Follow the risen Jesus.What is it in Jesus that we must carry with you through life? It is His Joy. he said.He said Easter beckons the customary greetings and feasting, adding that we must continue the mission of the risen by being ready to bring his message to more people. We all yearn for joy. We work for joy. Yet, in its quest we have often failed to find it. We are bundles of shattered dreams or we are showcases of fulfilled dreams, which leave us empty, he stressed.He saidand We have worked hard, but are frustrated we have struggled, but feel the weight of disappointment. We are victims of calamities, natural or man-made, or victims of our own coldness in the face of overwhelming suffering. He called on the people to remember Yolanda, the most destructive cyclone of the century, the Mamasapano incident where 44 members of the Special Action Force (SAF) and 18 others lost their lives, the frustrating unsolved problem of government corruption, and the loneliness of loved ones toiling abroad.He said the memory is full of broken hopes and dreams and that the litany of frustrations is endless but on the other hand he said, we have hope . Our calling is to return to the joy that comes from the Gospel and from sharing the Gospel. That is a joy that comes neither from a covetous heart nor from the frivolous pursuit of pleasures, nor from a blunted conscience. It comes rather first and foremost from a renewed personal encounter with the risen Jesus Christ. That is the goal of Christianity—encounter with Jesus Christ in joy, the archbishop said.He said this joy can be real and deeply personal in our world. Consequently, it is a joy which needs urgently to be shared today in all its fullness-– no matter the danger, no matter the ridicule, no matter the dying that it may entail. Move on with joy of the risen Jesus. Carry on with the peace of Jesus. The world needs the Lord. May you bring the risen Jesus with you wherever fate may lead us! (PNA)CTB/LVM/RMA