Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen!
With this proclamation, we send you our prayers and love from hearts full of concern for you and your family’s well-being. With never ceasing prayers I offer on your behalf to assure you that the Lord is at hand.
This Easter is unlike any we have enjoyed in the past. It is not about colored eggs or chocolate. It is not about a basket of candy or bunnies. It is about an empty tomb as our families and nation suffer from the coronavirus, forced into isolation and self-imposed imprisonment. We are denied the hugging of one another or comforting each other.
Easter is about the assurance of the empty tomb. It is about life over death. It is about Jesus fulfilling a promise. It is about victory over death. Hell has been destroyed and this Light shall always shine from the empty tomb. Remember, after the crucifixion, after the crown of thorns, after the sponge of vinegar, after the spear, after the giving up of His life, after the burial, there is an empty tomb. As the angel said, “He is not here. He is Risen.”
This Holy Week we are crucified with Him, but on Easter Sunday we will be glorified with Him. We died with Him, but on Easter Sunday we become alive with Him. During Holy Week, we are buried with Him and on Easter Sunday, He will raise us up with Him. The spirit of Easter calls us to a sense of renewal and hope; that as our Redeemer lived, we shall all live.
On behalf of Fr. Jim and Audrey King, the Deacons, the Parish Council; Elie Akel, Chairman and all church organizations, we wish you a Blessed Holy Pascha.
Al Masih Qam! Hakan Qam!
Yours in the Risen Lord,
Fr. George and Nouhad Shalhoub and family