PASCHAL ENCYCLICAL

Diocese of Boston and the Americas

Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!

With these words the angel, clothed in a long white garment, first greeted the Holy Women Myrrh Bearers when they came to anoint the Lord Jesus.

The Apostle and Evangelist Mark writes (16:5-7): “ And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted. And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: He is risen; He is not here: behold the place where they laid Him. But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that He goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see Him, as He said unto you.” And, with these words the joy of this miraculous and holy event was spread to the Apostles, and to the rest of the world. So that to this day, all Christians greet each other with these same words (Christ is Risen!) on the feast of all feast, the Resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

These few words carry significant meaning to all of creation. They are words of faith, promise and joy. They confirm the Lord Jesus Christ is the Messiah, who fulfilled all prophecy of the Old Testament, and thereby gave us its continuation – the New Testament and His Holy Church. These are words, which confirmed and inspired the Apostles, and others to whom Christ had appeared after His Resurrection, propelling them to fulfill the Lord’s command: “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature…”)(Mark 16:15-16)

The Holy Gospel records our Saviour raising three people from the dead back to life: the daughter of Jairus, who had just expired, the son of the widow of Nain, who was already being carried to his grave, and Lazarus, who was already in his tomb four days dead, after which our Saviour was greeted as the conqueror of death upon His entry into Jerusalem. The people “when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees, and went forth to meet Him, and cried, Hosanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord. (John 12:12-13)” Yet, soon thereafter, this same “chorus,” swayed by the jealousy and vengeance of the chief priests, pharisees and sadducees, demanded: “Let Him be crucified.” (Matthew 27:22) and, “His blood be on us, and on our children.” (Matthew 27:25) Again, the prophesies were fulfilled.

What dreadful and horrifying words were pronounced against the awaited Messiah, innocent in very way. Even Pilate (not a Jew) said “to the chief priests and to the people, I find no fault in this man.” (Luke 23:4) Nonetheless, even on the Cross, our all-merciful Saviour showing his love for mankind said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)

And indeed, forgiveness was poured forth through Christ’s own Resurrection. Orthodox Christians now have the promise of our resurrection, the restoration of our fallen nature, the forgiveness of sins, and all the Sacraments of the Church for our salvation where we may become one in Christ. By declaring: “Christ is Risen,” we declare our Faith, the Faith of the Old Testament prophets, and the Faith of the Apostles. “Christ is Risen from the dead. Trampling down death by death, and to those in the grave bestowing life!”

Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!

+Victor

Bishop of Boston and the Americas

Pascha of the Lord, 2026

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Homily for Holy Saturday Liturgy

Matthew 28:1-20 §115-116

The Liturgy on Holy Saturday morning in which we just participated celebrates both the Lord’s rest on the Sabbath and His Resurrection from the dead. In descending into Hades, He frees the captives held there in bondage to the enemy from the time of Adam down to the Resurrection of the Lord.

The Vespers with which we began our service is the Paschal Vespers in which 15 Old Testament prophesies proclaim longing for the coming Resurrection of the Lord. Throughout the year we hear the Law, the Prophets, the Psalms, the Proverbs all speak with anticipation of the New Adam, Christ, freely, willingly fulfilling the promise of the Old Adam had he not succumbed to temptations.

As with all the Holy Week services Time now turns upside down: we celebrate our Evening Service, Vespers, in the morning and our Morning Service, Matins, in the evening. Time itself bears witness to this unique occasion when the Uncreated restores the perfected primordial Creation. In doing so, creation falls into turmoil as the Enemy foolishly gloats over victory only to come face to face with defeat. “Death took a body, and met God face to face. It took earth and encountered Heaven. It took that which was seen and fell upon the unseen,” St. John Chrysostom says in his Paschal homily.

But now, as we await the quiet of the early morning, instead of the usual Cherubic Hymn sung as we bring out the Gifts in the Liturgy, we sing today:

Let all mortal flesh keep silence and stand with fear and trembling; and let it take no thought for any earthly thing. For the King of Kings and Lord of Lords draweth nigh to be sacrificed and given as food to the faithful. Before Him go the Choirs of angels with all the principalities and powers, the many-eyed cherubim, and the six-winged seraphim, covering their faces and crying aloud the hymn: Alleluia.

St Epiphanios in his homily for this day tells us: “Today, great silence in the earth. What is this? Great silence and great stillness. Great silence, for the King sleeps. The earth feared and was still, when God fell asleep in the flesh. God died in the flesh, and Hell trembled. God slumbered a short spell and woke up out of Hell those of times past who were sleeping.” He goes on to describe vividly the Lord’s descent into Hades, breaking down the gates that have bound all mankind in dreary non-existent existence.

There is not time enough to tell of all His suffering, but when He descends Adam hears God’s voice from the nethermost Hell and cries: Deliver my soul from the nethermost hell (Ps 85:13). So, the Lord does as we see in the icon of the Resurrection pulling Adam and Eve and the rest of the righteous out through the gates of death broken by the Lord and a host of Angels and Archangels blowing their trumpets and clearing away all futile opposition. For the King of glory, the Lord strong and mighty, King of glory shall enter in (Ps 23:8,9).

All this happens while Jerusalem sleeps a troubled sleep for strange things they see all around them. What the chief priests, scribes and pharisees glibly thought was the end of a thorn in their side hasn’t gone exactly as they planned. They still don’t know how badly their plans have failed.

Now we come early in the morning where the Myrrhbearing women find Angels guarding an empty tomb. Fear overwhelms them, but they have more courage then the broken Apostles hiding in an upper room or fleeing on the road to Emmaus.

The women are rewarded for their manly courage: joy wipes out fear as they become apostles bearing the good news to the Apostles. On their way, Behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him. Then said Jesus unto them, Be not afraid: go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me (Matt 28:9-10).

Only when reports of these happenings trickle in do the murderers begin to panic.

From this small seed, Jesus spoke to the Apostles in Galilee, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always even unto the end of the world (Matt 28:18-20).

Try as they might the god-haters failed to kill God: the martyrdoms they inflict through the ages have only deepened fervent faith. And so, we have received unbroken through the millennia this same Divine Grace through the Fathers and Christ’s Body, the Church filled with the Holy Spirit. How will we respond when asked to account at the Great Judgement for our use of God’s Gifts to us?

Archpriest Joseph Sunderland

Holy and Great Saturday

29 March/11 April 2026