Easter Reflection by Father Wilfred Labbe - 2026
Who would have thought that an empty tomb would be such a big deal? We gather today because a tomb once occupied is no longer so. The massive stone, which was meant to keep people in and grave robbers out, had been rolled away. The burial clothes of Jesus are neatly folded and left in the tomb, but his bruised and broken body is no longer there. The women who came to visit his grave are amazed at what they encounter. They are perplexed by the news of an angel. “Do not be afraid! I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified. He is not here, for He has been raised just as He said.”
Those who first witness the empty tomb fear they will never see Jesus again. They soon discover that the one they went looking for is looking for them. Jesus does not come out of the tomb and declare his work done, nor does he overcome death and immediately head off for a hard-won and much-deserved vacation. Our Easter alleluia is proclaimed because the empty tomb is not the end of the story but the beginning.
From the moment he conquers the tomb, Jesus goes looking for his disciples to share with them the good news of his victory over sin and death. He looks for them to calm their fears and bestow on them his peace. On the way to Emmaus, on the beach, in the locked room, the resurrected Jesus reaches out to his disciples to inspire them, to empower them, to love them. The mystery of everything his disciples have witnessed, from the turning of water into wine to the washing of their feet, is made clear to them as the resurrected Jesus seeks and finds them.
This reality is no less true today for us than it was two thousand years ago. The resurrected and glorified Jesus continues to seek his disciples. Of course, he comes to those whose faith is strong to walk and talk with them. He looks for and offers compassion to those whose faith is being tested by doubt, disease, relationships, or the chaos of the world. Jesus continues to seek those whose hearts are restless, whose situations are tenuous, whose way is arduous. He seeks us all, as we are, to reveal to us that God is love. We are Easter people because from the crib and from the cross, Jesus revealed to us that God’s plan for us is beyond what eye can see or our imagination can conjure up. We are Easter people because Jesus’s victory over the tomb means that the faithful cannot and will not be imprisoned in the grave. We are Easter people because even today, right now, the risen and glorified Jesus is seeking to love each one of us.
The empty tomb is a harbinger that everything has changed; everything has been made new. Jesus, the Way, the Truth, and the Life, has proven that there is no force, no power, no evil that can prevail over God’s plan for our wellbeing now and our joy in eternal life. The empty grave of Jesus is an eternal sign to every child of God that nothing can keep Jesus, the Good Shepherd, from looking for and finding us. Now we know why the empty tomb is such a big deal. Jesus is risen! Alleluia! Alleluia! He is truly risen! Alleluia! Alleluia!
