1 April 2027 · Syro-Malankara Rite
Open in the Daily Word appAlso: Syro-Malabar Rite · Latin Rite · മലയാളം
“He is God not of the dead, but of the living; you are quite wrong.” Mark 12:27
Christ is risen! In the white week of Easter the Church sets before us a question that was once meant as a trap. “Some Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him.” They tell of a woman married in turn to seven brothers, each of whom died, and ask: “In the resurrection whose wife will she be?” The story is built to make the hope of rising look foolish. Jesus does not mock them; he shows them where they went astray: “Is not this the reason you are wrong, that you know neither the scriptures nor the power of God?” Many of the Jewish people of his day, with the Pharisees, already believed that God would raise the dead, as the prophets and the Maccabean martyrs had hoped (Daniel 12:2; 2 Maccabees 7:9). Jesus stands with that faith of Israel and deepens it. The risen life is not this life repeated; “when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven.” This does not make marriage small. Marriage belongs to this age as a sacrament of Christ's love for his Church, and it points beyond itself to the wedding feast of the Lamb, where every love that was faithful is fulfilled, not cancelled (Catechism 1619–1620).
Then the Lord goes to the book of Moses itself, to the burning bush. God said, “I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” He did not say “I was.” Long after the patriarchs had been buried, God still named himself by them, because they were alive to him. “He is God not of the dead, but of the living.” The Letter to the Hebrews shows how this hope reaches us. It quotes Psalm 8: God made human beings “for a little while lower than the angels” and crowned them “with glory and honor.” Then it admits honestly: “As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to them, but we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.” What Psalm 8 promised to humanity is already true in one Man, the risen Jesus. St Irenaeus wrote that the glory of God is a human being fully alive, and that true life is to see God (in substance). On Easter morning that glory shone first in the body of Christ, and in him it is promised to us.
How do we live this Thursday of Hevoro week? First, speak of our departed with Easter words. When we remember parents, grandparents and friends who have died, let us say what Jesus says: God is their God still, and they are alive to him. Pray for them at the Holy Qurbono, and light the lamp at home for them this evening with an Easter hymn. Second, honor marriage as a road to heaven. Husbands and wives can pray together tonight for the grace to love each other in a way that will not be ashamed on the last day. Third, when someone laughs at the faith with a clever question, answer as the Lord did: patiently, from the Scriptures, and with trust in the power of God. Hevoro week continues until New Sunday, when the Church will hear how the risen Lord showed his wounds to Thomas.
Theme: “He is God not of the dead, but of the living.”
On Thursday of Hevoro week: a question built as a trap, the God of Abraham who is the God of the living, and Jesus crowned with glory.
“Your dead shall live, their corpses shall rise. O dwellers in the dust, awake and sing for joy!” Isaiah 26:19
“I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live” John 11:25
Apply: When someone mocks the faith, answer with patience, from the Scriptures, and with trust in God's power.
“I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” Exodus 3:6
“If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.” Romans 14:8
Apply: Pray for your departed by name this week at the Holy Qurbono, with Easter hope.
“what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?” Psalm 8:4
“Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name,” Philippians 2:9
Apply: When life is unfinished or unfair, fix your eyes on the risen Jesus, already crowned.
God is the God of the living, and in the risen Jesus human nature is already crowned with glory.
Our departed are alive to God, and the Holy Qurbono is the pledge of our own rising.
Take-home resolution: Live this Hevoro week as people of the resurrection: praying for the departed with hope, honoring marriage as a road to heaven, and answering doubt with patience.
Dear friends, Christ is risen! In today's Gospel some Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, bring Jesus a story about seven brothers and one wife. They want to make the hope of rising look foolish.
Jesus answers gently but clearly: you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God (Mark 12:24). The life to come is not this life repeated. It is the life of God, where every faithful love is fulfilled.
Then he reminds them of the burning bush: I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. God is not the God of the dead, but of the living. The patriarchs were alive to him. The Letter to the Hebrews adds: we do see Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because he tasted death for everyone (Hebrews 2:9).
So in this Hevoro week, let us speak of our departed with Easter hope, pray for them at the Holy Qurbono, and live as people who believe that God is the God of the living. Amen.
Children, Christ is risen! Some people asked Jesus a tricky question because they did not believe that people who die will live again. Jesus said: God is the God of the living! Abraham, who lived long, long ago, is alive to God. Jesus rose at Easter, and one day he will raise us too. Tonight, can you pray for someone in your family who has gone to God?
Lord Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, you are the God not of the dead but of the living. For a little while you were made lower than the angels, and you tasted death for everyone; now you are crowned with glory and honor. Keep us faithful to the Scriptures and confident in the power of God. Give rest and light to our departed, who are alive to you. Bless husbands and wives, and lead every family to the wedding feast of your kingdom. To you be glory with the Father and the Holy Spirit, for ever. Amen.