Dear Parishioners,  Over two thousand years ago, in the Middle East, an event occurred that permanently changed the world.  Because of that event, history was split into "Before Christ" and "The Year of Our Lord."  Every time you write a date, you're using the resurrection of Jesus as a reference point.  Easter, for Christians, is the most important day of the year.  It is important because Jesus proved who He claimed to be.  He was God in the flesh; a God who gave his life for all people, for all time.  Easter is  Good News for us, telling us that life does not end at death, that good triumphs over evil, that our lives here have meaning.  After Jesus rose from the dead, he didn't go back to Herod or Pilate or the Scribes and Pharisees and say, "See, I told you I would rise!"  He only appeared to his followers- his disciples.  Biblical accounts tell us that he appeared to five hundred people at one gathering (of course, we know that the authors of the Gospels used the art of exaggeration when telling the story).  Can you imagine witnessing the death of Jesus and then seeing him walking around Jerusalem three days later?  He appeared to the disciples on the Road To Emmaus.  He appeared to the disciples in the upper room, where they were hiding for fear of being arrested.  Jesus is present to us in the Eucharist, in his holy Word, and in each other.  We find the Risen Lord in the hearts of all who believe.  Jesus "appears" to us each day.  How does Jesus affect your life right now?  Do you live differently because of your faith in Jesus?  Jesus is no longer physically present like he was to the disciples- but we are his hands, his heart, his eyes, and ears.  We are the ones who continue to bring the presence of the Risen Christ to others.  May this fifty day Easter season bring you happiness and peace.

I am truly grateful to all those who helped with our beautiful liturgies during Holy Week.  Thank you to our Liturgy Committee members, Robert Palomo, our maintenance man, our music director, Erika Linsdell, choir members, cantors, and our staff who helped to cover all the details of our liturgies, and most of all, our parishioners.  Many thanks for your      Christian example to others, for your generosity to our parish, and for your strong faith in Jesus.

Many thanks. God Bless You,  Fr. Paul J. Alciati