Dearest Sisters and young women in formation,
Christ is risen. He is truly risen. Alleluia, alleluia!
May the Resurrection of Christ bring grace and peace to each of you and be the hope that sustains and renews your very being.
Through the death and Resurrection of Christ, God’s plan of salvation has been fulfilled. Let us give thanks to the Lord, who has called us to share in this Paschal mystery, and allow the light of the Resurrection to penetrate our hearts, so that we may “recognize the certainty of Easter in every trial of life.”
In the Gospel of Matthew, the risen Christ comes to meet the two women, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary. He fills their hearts with a new and overflowing joy that dispels all fear, uncertainty, and confusion. In this encounter, the two women are called to move from fear to trust, from silence to proclamation, thus becoming the first witnesses of the Resurrection. An encounter with the risen Christ never leaves us unchanged; it makes us capable of a new mission founded on hope.
It is not without significance that he entrusts this task to them—women who, in the cultural context of the time, did not fully enjoy recognition of their dignity and were not permitted the right to bear witness. In this way, the paradoxical logic of God is revealed: just as his wisdom and power were manifested in the weakness of the cross, so too the proclamation of the Resurrection is entrusted to those whom the world considers small and insignificant.
“Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me” (Mt 28:10).
Galilee, the setting of daily life and the beginning of discipleship, thus becomes the sign of a new beginning, where every disciple is called to encounter the Risen One anew and renew their faith. In this light, the mission of the two women becomes a model for the Church’s mission: to go forth, to proclaim, and to lead others to an encounter with the living Lord.
Christ’s Paschal Mystery is rooted in his filial relationship with the Father, in total trust and complete adherence to the Father’s plan of salvation. Jesus lives his identity as the beloved Son in the total gift of himself, even to death on the cross, holding nothing back. In this self-giving the truth of our own identity is also revealed: we are sons and daughters of the Father, created in his image and called to share in his life.
The document Quo Vadis, Humanitas? affirms that the human person is “a being endowed with potential inscribed in an intelligent and spiritual nature, and also with fragility, subject to death and illness… Religious experience, and especially the Christian faith, proposes that we dwell within this tension between human greatness and limitation, interpreting it in light of the original and foundational relationship with God… We need to recognize our need for salvation: Christ saves us today!”
Yet much of humanity seems to live without a full awareness of its identity or the direction of its journey. It flows like a great river, often without questioning the ultimate meaning of life, without an authentic desire for salvation or eternal life. This situation makes even more urgent and relevant the question Blessed James Alberione posed with deep concern: “Where is humanity going? How is it moving? Toward what goal is this humanity, continually renewed upon the face of the earth, heading?”
This question challenges us deeply as well. We are called to accompany every person in rediscovering, through a living encounter with Christ the Way, the Truth, and the Life, their authentic identity: that of being beloved children of God. It is an identity that finds its fulfillment in communion with the God who gives himself in love.
In this mission, we renew our commitment to be a discreet, faithful, and attentive presence alongside every human journey. We strive to listen deeply to the questions, hopes, and fears that dwell in the human heart, so as to accompany them toward a renewed hope in Christ.
Following the example of the Apostle Paul, we desire to become companions on the journey, capable of sustaining with patience and love even the most complex and painful paths, trusting that every life can be transformed by the Paschal Mystery, until “Christ is formed in them” (cf. Gal 4:19).
Mary, who “welcomed her life as a vocation and thus realized her personal identity in fulfilling the mission entrusted to her, so that the loving plan of the Triune God for all humanity might be accomplished,” is for us a mother and teacher on our apostolic journey. To her we entrust our faith and our mission, that she may make us docile instruments of God’s grace and joyful witnesses of the Resurrection.
Finally, let us pray for peace in the world. May the Lord console those who suffer because of war, restore hope, and lead all toward a true peace founded on forgiveness and reconciliation.
With affection and gratitude, together with the sisters of the General Government, I wish you a radiant Easter of the Resurrection. Please extend this greeting to your families, collaborators and cooperators, friends, and benefactors.
With deep affection, in communion of joy and hope,
Sr. Mari Lucia Kim
and the Sisters of the General Government
