Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion

At the Foot of the Cross: Unfailing Love

Today we stand in silence before the mystery of the Cross. The readings place before us not explanations, but a Person: the Suffering Servant, the faithful Son, the Crucified King.

Isaiah (Isaiah 52:13—53:12) speaks of one who is “pierced for our offenses” and who bears the guilt of many, not through force or retaliation, but through silent surrender and love. This Servant does not save by avoiding suffering, but by entering fully into it. His wounds become the source of healing.

The Psalm (Psalm 31:2, 6, 12-13, 15-16, 17, 25) gives voice to both anguish and trust. Even in abandonment and ridicule, the prayer remains: “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” These words are not resignation, but radical confidence, a choice to entrust everything to God when nothing seems secure.

The Letter to the Hebrews (Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9) reminds us that Christ is not distant from human pain. He is a high priest who knows suffering from the inside, who prayed with cries and tears, and who learned obedience through what he endured. Because of this, we are invited to approach God with confidence, knowing that mercy awaits us.

In the Passion according to John (John 18:1—19:42), Jesus remains sovereign even in death. He freely gives himself, carrying the cross, speaking words of care from the cross, and finally declaring, “It is finished.” His death is not defeat, but fulfillment, the complete gift of love to the end.

Good Friday confronts us with a hard truth: salvation comes through self-giving love. Christ suffers not because God delights in pain, but because love refuses to abandon us. The cross reveals the depth of God’s solidarity with humanity and the cost of our redemption.

As we venerate the cross today, we are invited to place our own suffering, failures, and fears into Christ’s wounded hands. In doing so, we learn that even in darkness, love remains stronger than death, and that surrender to God is the beginning of new life.

Father Sebastien SASA, PhD, MPA

Pastor of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church

West Valley City, April 3, 2026

Holy Saturday At the Easter Vigil in the Holy Night of Easter

From Creation to Resurrection: God Makes All Things New

On this holy night, the Church gathers to listen—again and again—to the mighty works of God. From the very first words of Genesis, “In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth,” we are reminded that our faith begins not with our effort, but with God’s loving initiative. Creation itself is a gift, spoken into being by God’s word, ordered, blessed, and declared “very good.”

As the readings unfold, we see that God does not abandon what He has made. In Abraham’s testing, we encounter a faith that trusts even when the future is unclear. God provides what is needed and renews His promise: blessing not only one family, but all nations of the earth. This teaches us that obedience and trust open the way for God’s saving work.

In the dramatic crossing of the Red Sea, God acts decisively to free His people from slavery. What stood as an obstacle becomes the very path to freedom. The waters that threatened death become the means of life. This moment prepares us to understand baptism, not merely as ritual, but as true deliverance, where God leads His people forward into new life.

Through the prophets Isaiah, Baruch, and Ezekiel, God speaks words of consolation and renewal. He promises an everlasting covenant, clean water, a new heart, and a new spirit. These promises reveal a God who heals what is broken and restores what sin has damaged. The law, wisdom, and mercy of God are not burdens, but gifts that lead to life.

Saint Paul, in the Letter to the Romans, makes the meaning of this night unmistakably clear: through baptism, we are buried with Christ in death so that we may rise with Him to new life. Easter is not only about what happened to Jesus long ago, it is about what happens to us now. Sin no longer has the final word. Death no longer has ultimate power.

Finally, the Gospel proclaims the heart of our faith: “He is not here, for he has been raised.” The empty tomb announces that God’s love is stronger than the grave, stronger than fear, stronger than death itself. The risen Christ meets His followers on the way, sending them out as witnesses of hope.

As a parish community, we are called to live what we have heard. We are a people created in love, freed from bondage, washed clean, renewed in spirit, and sent forth to proclaim resurrection with our lives. May this Easter renew our faith, strengthen our hope, and deepen our love, so that the light of Christ shines through us in a world longing for new life.

Father Sebastien SASA, PhD, MPA

Pastor of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church

West Valley City, April 4, 2026

Easter Sunday

Raised with Christ: An Easter Call to Transformation

On Easter morning, the Church proclaims with joy that Christ is risen, not as an idea or symbol, but as a living reality that changes everything.

In the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 10:34a, 37-43), Peter boldly testifies that Jesus, who was put to death, has been raised by God and now offers forgiveness of sins to all who believe in him. The Resurrection is presented not as a private miracle, but as a public truth witnessed by those who ate and drank with the risen Lord. Faith in the Resurrection calls us to become witnesses ourselves, proclaiming by our lives that death and sin do not have the final word.

The Gospel according to John (John 20:1-9) invites us into the quiet mystery of Easter morning. Mary of Magdala, Peter, and the beloved disciple encounter an empty tomb and burial cloths carefully laid aside. Nothing is yet fully understood, but belief begins to take root. The beloved disciple “saw and believed,” even before everything made sense. Easter faith often begins this same way for us, not with complete understanding, but with trust that God is at work beyond what we can immediately see. The Resurrection asks us to move from confusion to faith, from fear to hope.

Saint Paul, in the Letter to the Colossians (Colossians 3:1-4), reminds us that Easter is not only about Christ’s rising, but about our own transformation. If we have been raised with Christ, we are called to seek what is above and to live differently here and now. The Resurrection invites us to let go of what binds us to the old ways of sin, despair, and indifference, and to live as people whose lives are “hidden with Christ in God.” Easter is the promise that our daily choices, rooted in faith, mercy, and love, participate in Christ’s victory over death.

As we rejoice with the Psalmist (Psalm 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23) “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad”—may this Easter celebration renew our hearts. May the risen Christ strengthen our faith, deepen our hope, and send us forth as joyful witnesses to new life in our homes, our parish, and our world. Alleluia.

Father Sebastien SASA, PhD, MPA

Pastor of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church

West Valley City, April 5, 2026