Our annual celebration of the greatest mystery of our faith, the bodily resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ from the dead, begins with the Easter Vigil Mass. The first of the many readings for the Mass is the Genesis account of God's creation of the world. What does this have to do with Easter?

The resurrection of Christ is the beginning of the new creation. For this reason alone, it makes sense that we would hear about the first creation on Easter. It prefigures and prepares for the resurrection. I would like to focus more especially, though, on the "first day" of the process of creation, on which "God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light."

We are meant to see a special connection between this "first day" and the day of the resurrection. At the Easter Vigil this year, after the Old Testament readings and Epistle that we hear every year, we hear St. Matthew's account of the resurrection. This account begins with mention of "the first day of the week." This alone connects the day of the resurrection with the "first day" of creation. And then, in addition, there are the mentions of light in Matthew's account. He says that the women came to the tomb as the day was "dawning" - as light was beginning to appear. He then says that an angel descended from heaven, and describes him: "His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing was white as snow."

This brilliant light of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, God the Son, is the new "God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light," the dawn of the first day of the new creation, of the new and perfect and eternal day. What does it mean, though, when we speak of the light of the resurrection? What sort of light is this?

We might think of the implications of those words in Genesis: "God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light. ... Thus ... the first day." Note that this all happens well before God makes the "lights," the sun and moon and stars, on the fourth day. The "light" of the first day is all the light in the universe, in every place in that unimaginably vast expanse, at every moment in its unimaginably long history. It is the light of all the bright summer days of your life added together, and then multiplied by an immense number. It is an overwhelmingly brilliant light. This, too, then, is the light of the resurrection. It is the light that shakes with fear and makes faint the tough Roman soldiers. It is an incomparable light - a light next to which no other light is visible.

In 1989, I was in Rome for Holy Week and Easter, and attended the Easter Vigil celebrated by the Servant of God Pope John Paul the Great in St. Peter's. If you have ever been in St. Peter's, you know that it is very light inside during the day, even without much if any artificial lighting. There are hidden skylights that let some sunlight in, and the light-colored marble inside absorbs little and reflects much of the incoming light. The Easter Vigil began after sunset, of course, and there were some lights on as we waited for the Mass to begin, but they were turned down very low for the lighting and blessing of the new fire and of the Easter candle and the lighting of the candles that everyone in the Basilica held. As the candles were lit, as the number of little flames increased, it was like dawn. Then, as the procession with the Easter candle reached the altar, all of the lights were turned on, and the interior of St. Peter's was much brighter than I had seen it during any of two or three daytime visits in the preceding week or so. This light, brilliant, incomparable, overwhelming, is the light of the resurrection.

The resurrection is the sum of all the intelligibility and meaning in the universe. It is not that God's other works do not have meaning - but, in a very real way, all their meaning is somehow a share in or a reflection of that of the resurrection. We, for example, exist especially in order to share in the glory and happiness of the resurrection. Everything else about us has to be understood and evaluated in this light. No other light, no independent light, has any reality or meaning next to that of the resurrection.

May the brilliant light of the resurrection dawn and shine in our hearts as we begin our celebration of Easter. May God grant us to find all light and meaning and perfect joy in the resurrection. And may the Blessed Virgin Mary, Morning Star and cause of our joy, intercede for us.

Queen of heaven, rejoice! alleluia:
For he whom thou didst merit to bear, alleluia,
Hath risen as he said, alleluia.
Pray for us to God, alleluia.