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Celebrated by Archbishop Denis Hart at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Melbourne, on Sunday, 16th April, 2006, at 11.00am Homily Dear Brothers and Sisters, During the battle of Waterloo the citizens of England depended upon a series of signals to indicate its progress. One of these was on the tower of Winchester Cathedral. Late in the day it flashed the disheartening message – “Wellington defeated”. Suddenly one of those English clouds of fog came and obscured the tower and people were plunged into despair. Just as suddenly, however, the fog dispersed and the rest of the message became clearly visible - “Wellington defeated the enemy”. Within seconds sorrow was turned into joy and defeat swallowed up in victory. The apostles would have seen Jesus taken down from the cross and preparing to be laid in a tomb. When Mary Magdalene came she could not believe her eyes. She saw the stone was gone and she went to collect Peter, ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb and we do not know where they have put him.’ The Easter Gospel is one of signs pointing to what the apostles had not dared to hope for. Later, of course, it would be Jesus who would appear and point to the reality of his resurrection. For us, Easter brings us holiness from heaven and the spiritual nourishment of God’s sacraments. When we say, ‘This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad’, we know that it is the Lord himself who is alive, the sunrise that gives the light of day, which will last forever. Whoever follows Christ in all things will come by this path to the throne of eternal light. On this Easter Sunday you and I are invited to make Christ our light, to forget about self, to look for opportunities in bringing the light of Christ to those who suffer and struggle, the truth of Christ to those who do not know who he is, by professing and explaining our faith, the hope of Christ to those who do not want to keep trying. Christ our hope has indeed risen. We know by faith that if Christ is risen from the dead then anything in our life and our world can be changed. We can freely ask for his mercy and his hope. We want what Jesus begged of his Father while on earth, “Father I desire that where I am they also may be, those who have come to believe in me and as that you are in me and I am in you, so they may abide in us.” + Denis J. Hart, Archbishop of Melbourne. 
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