The accounts of resurrection bear witness to this compassion. They show us a Christ who gently draws near and meets us on our way as he met the two downcast disciples on the road to Emmaus; Christ who companions us and enters into the burdens we bear witness to this compassion. They show us a Christ who gently draws near and meets us on our way as he met the two downcast disciples on the road to Emmaus; Christ who companions us and enters into the burdens we bear; Christ, the Word within the word, who renders scripture alive and active and sharper than a two-edged sword as it pierces us and causes our hearts to burn within us; Christ who reveals himself in the breaking of  bread, in sign and symbol and sacrament, and the things of this earth; Christ who in the silence of the garden addresses Mary Magdalene tenderly  and intimately by name and in so doing sets her free from the isolation of her grief; Christ who ministers to Thomas' need of certitude by inviting him to touch his wounds; Christ who overcomes the awe and confusion of his disciples by gently asking for something to eat; Christ who delivers Peter from his guilt and shame and rekindles his love by entrusting to him the care of his sheep.

In similar ways the risen Christ approaches us, meeting us in the midst of our lives, our struggles and our joys, and with infinite patience and great care invites us to come forth into a new place, a new reality, a new way of seeing and being that can welcome all in the power of Christ's own compassion worked in us by the Spirit. This compassion is animated by God's love poured into our hearts by the Spirit, a love that can bear all things, believe all things, hope all things and endure all things (1Corinthians 13:7).

+The Most Reverend Frank T. Griswold