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Reading from the book of Song of
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Solomon. This is what the bride says. On
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my bed during the night, I sought the
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love of my life. I sought him and I did
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not find him. I will get up and walk
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through the city, searching through the
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streets and squares for the love of my
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life. I sought him and I did not find
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him. The guards who were patrolling the
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city found me. Have you seen the love of
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my life? And as soon as I passed by
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them, I found the love of my life. Word
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of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
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Proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus
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Christ according to St. John. Glory to
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you, Lord. On the first day of the week,
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Mary Magdalene came to Jesus' tomb early
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in the morning while it was still dark
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and saw that the stone had been removed
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from the tomb. So she ran and found
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Simon Peter and the other disciple, the
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one Jesus loved, and said to them, "They
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have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and
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we do not know where they have laid
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him." Mary stood outside the tomb,
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weeping. As she wept, she bent down and
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looked into the tomb. Then she saw two
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angels in white sitting where Jesus'
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body had been, one at the head and the
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other at the feet. The angels asked her,
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"Woman, why are you weeping?" She
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answered, "They have taken my Lord away,
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and I do not know where they have laid
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him." After saying this, Mary turned
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around and saw Jesus standing there, but
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she did not know that it was Jesus.
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Jesus asked her,"Woman, why are you
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weeping? Whom are you looking for?
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Thinking he was the gardener, Mary said,
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"Sir, if you carried him away, tell me
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where you laid him and I will get him."
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Then Jesus said, "Mary." She turned and
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exclaimed in Hebrew, "Rabbani," which
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Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me. I
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have not yet ascended to the father. But
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go and tell my brothers, I am ascending
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to my father and your father, to my God
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and your God. Then Mary Magdalene went
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and told the disciples, I have seen the
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Lord. And told them what Jesus had said
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to her. Word of salvation. Glory to you,
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Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
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imagine yourself lost in the darkness of
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dawn, desperately searching for someone
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you love deeply. Your footsteps echo in
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the silent streets. Your heart beats
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rapidly with anxiety and longing. You
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knock on doors, asking everyone you
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meet, "Have you seen the one my soul
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This touching image from the Song of
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Songs invites us today to reflect on our
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own spiritual quest, our insatiable
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thirst for an encounter with the divine.
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The Song of Songs presents us with a
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passionate voice of the wife searching
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for her beloved. By night on my bed, I
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sought the one my soul loves. I sought
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him, but I could not find him. What a
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vivid description of human anguish. How
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many of our nights are filled with this
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same spiritual restlessness, this
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constant search for something or someone
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who can fill the deep emptiness of our
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souls? The wife is not content to remain
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in bed, lamenting the absence of her
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beloved. She gets up and goes out into
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the city streets. I will arise and walk
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through the city, through the streets,
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and through the squares. I will seek the
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one my soul loves. What an example of
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determination. Her search is not
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passive. It is active, urgent,
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passionate. This image resonates deeply
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in our human experience. We all have
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moments when we feel spiritually lost.
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When God seems absent, when our prayers
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seem to echo in the void. These are the
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moments that St. John of the Cross
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called the dark night of the soul.
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Periods when our faith is tested, when
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we must keep searching even when we
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don't feel God's comforting presence.
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But consider the beauty of the
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narrative. The bride doesn't give up.
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She asks the city guards, "Have you seen
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the one my soul loves?" And shortly
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after passing them, she finds him. I
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have found the one my soul loves. I have
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held him fast and have not let him go.
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What a moment of ecstasy. After the
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anguish of the search comes the
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indescribable joy of the encounter. This
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passionate search finds its deepest and
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most beautiful echo in the account in
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John's gospel. Mary Magdalene like the
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bride in the song of songs is also
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searching for her beloved but this time
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it is Jesus the risen Christ. Imagine
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the scene. It is very early still dark.
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Mary Magdalene goes to the tomb bearing
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the weight of pain and grief. Her heart
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is broken. The one she loved, in whom
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she had placed all her hope, was dead.
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And now, to compound her anguish, the
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tomb is empty. They have taken away my
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Lord, and I do not know where they have
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laid him, she says to the angels, and
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then to the man she thinks is the
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gardener. What despair is contained in
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these words? It is the cry of a soul
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that has lost its anchor, its reason for
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being. But then comes the most
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extraordinary moment in all human
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history. Jesus utters a single word,
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Mary. And in that word, her own name
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spoken in that unmistakable voice she
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knew so well. The entire universe is
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transformed. Pain turns to joy, despair
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to ecstasy, death to life. Raboni, she
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exclaims, my master. Like the bride in
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the song of songs, she has found the one
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her soul loved. But this encounter
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transcends all expectations.
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It is not just a reunion. It is the
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recognition of a new reality. Jesus is
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alive. Death has been conquered. Hope
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has been restored. My dear brothers and
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sisters, these two narratives speak
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powerfully to us about our own spiritual
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journey. Each of us at different points
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in our lives is like the wife searching
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the dark streets of the city or like
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Mary Magdalene weeping before the empty
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tomb. There are times when God seems
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absent. When our faith is tested, when
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we wonder if it's worth continuing to
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believe. Perhaps it's during a prolonged
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illness. When our prayers for healing
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seem to go unheard, or during a
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financial crisis, when we can't see a
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way out, or after the loss of a loved
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one, when God's silence echoes louder
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than our grief. In these moments, we are
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tempted to give up, to accept that
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perhaps God doesn't really care about
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us, or worse, that he doesn't even
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exist. But today's readings invite us to
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a different response. Keep searching.
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The wife in the Song of Solomon didn't
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stay in bed mourning. She got up and
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went searching. Mary Magdalene did not
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return home when she found the tomb
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empty. She remained even through her
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tears until the encounter took place.
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There is a profound lesson here about
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the nature of our relationship with God.
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Our Lord is not a distant and
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indifferent God. He is like the beloved
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in the Song of Solomon who desires to be
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found by those who sincerely seek him.
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He is like Jesus who speaks our name
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with infinite tenderness, transforming
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our lament into joy. But this encounter
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requires something on our part.
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Perseverance in the search, fidelity
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even in the dark night. hope even when
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all the evidence seems to contradict it.
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As the prophet Jeremiah says, "You will
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seek me and find me when you search for
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me with all your heart." And when this
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encounter happens, and it will happen
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for all who sincerely seek, it is
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transformative. Like Mary Magdalene, we
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become bearers of good news. "Go tell my
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brothers," Jesus told her. The encounter
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with the risen one is not just for our
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own comfort. It commissions us as
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messengers of hope. Today I invite each
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of you to reflect on your own spiritual
8:32
quest. Where are you on this journey?
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Are you in the stage of anguished
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searching, groping in the dark? Or have
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you experienced the ecstasy of
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encounter? Or perhaps you are somewhere
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in between. Regardless of where you are,
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remember God is more eager to be found
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than you are to find him. As St.
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Augustine wrote, "You have made us for
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yourself, and our hearts are restless
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until they rest in you." This
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restlessness, this spiritual thirst is
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not a weakness. It is a sign of our
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divine origin, a reminder that we were
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created for communion with God. And this
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communion is not just a distant
9:11
possibility. It is available to us here
9:14
and now. Through prayer, we find moments
9:17
of intimacy with God. Through the word,
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he speaks directly to our hearts.
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Through the sacraments, especially the
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eukarist, we experience his real
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presence. Through service to others, we
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touch Christ himself. May we, like the
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bride in the song of Solomon, have the
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courage to step outside our comfort zone
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in search of the one our soul loves. May
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we, like Mary Magdalene, remain faithful
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even in moments of greatest confusion
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and pain, knowing that the encounter
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will come. And when we experience this
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transformative encounter, when we hear
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Jesus pronounce our name with infinite
9:55
love, may we, like Mary, run to share
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the good news. I have seen the Lord. He
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is alive. Hope is not dead. May the Lord
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who seeks us even before we seek him
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grant each of you the grace of
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encounter. May he transform our search
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into discovery, our anguish into joy,
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our spiritual death into abundant life.
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St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in
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battle. be our protection against the
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wickedness and snares of the devil. May
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God rebuke him, we humbly pray. And do
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thou, O prince of the heavenly host, by
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the power of God, cast into hell Satan
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and all the evil spirits who prowl
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throughout the world seeking the ruin of
