In 1 Corinthians, Saint Paul writes, “If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” To reinforce the reality of Jesus’ resurrection, the Church long ago declared that Easter is not just one day. Liturgically, every day of the week from Easter Sunday through the octave day, the Second Sunday of Easter, is Easter Day again!

The Church celebrates each day as a Solemnity of the Lord during the week following Easter Sunday. The Gospels daily proclaim the Resurrection and its immediate impact on the disciples’ lives. We pray the Gloria and proclaim the Creed each day, experiencing this mystery in our lives. The Gospel Alleluia every day of Easter Week is Psalm 118:24: “This is the day the Lord has made; let us be glad and rejoice in it.”

Today is the first simple weekday of the Easter Season. All the readings in the Liturgy of the Word for the Easter Season are drawn from the New Testament. The two readings today suggest that we will be prepared for Pentecost frequently during these fifty days of Easter. The Gospel today and on the next two days is drawn from John’s account of an important conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus, culminating in John 3:16: “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.”

Day after day this week, we might take time to consider how we can share this central Christian belief with everyone we encounter.

Prayer:

Grant, we pray, almighty God, that we who have been renewed by our Easter celebration may be transformed in the image of our heavenly maker. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. (Collect of the day)