Easter Message from Our "Official Priest"

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Holy Week reaches the most solemn day here on
Good Friday, and as Jim referred to it yesterday as Rose. Yeah, Thursday,
we reached the amen corner of Holy Week, and today's
the most summer day of all of course, of the
remembering the crucifixion of Jesus. And we're joining as we

(00:23):
often are, I think every year by on Good Friday
by Father Ryan Lewis, the official priest k have AB's
Morning News. Father Lewis, Good morning.

Speaker 2 (00:31):
We've got a pretty good Good Friday tradition going at
this point. I love it.

Speaker 1 (00:35):
We do. What does the and I know denominations will differ.
What is the what like? What is your schedule today?
What is in a Roman Catholic church? What's the tradition
for Good Friday?

Speaker 2 (00:48):
So yeah, we have what we call the Liturgy of
the Lord's Passion. We do not offer the Holy Mass
on Good Friday and Holy Saturday, but we do have
a energy where we listen to the Passion and hear
about Jesus' suffering and dying on the cross, and we
venerate the Cross because we that is the instrument by

(01:11):
which our Lord accomplished the salvation of the world. By
him dying on that cross. He died not for his sins,
he didn't have any. He died for our sins out
of love for us, and in so doing accomplished the
salvation of the world. And so you say a solemn day,
and it really is. And yet it's also a day
where uh, you know, the glorious fault of our sins

(01:35):
merited us so great a savior, and Jesus did that
all out of love for us. So it's it's it's
very solemn, and it's it's what we we market. We
really want to we really want to feel what he
went through and and to know the love that was
behind all that he went through and all done for us.
And so we have to really respect and respond to that.

(01:57):
And so we will celebrate the resurrection and on Sunday
with Easter, and it'll be huge and it'll be wonderful.
We really want to mark what led to that and
all that he did out of love for us. So
that's what we're about today. So we'll have a service
at three o'clock this afternoon, kind of the traditional hour
where we say he probably died mid afternoon, and then

(02:19):
we'll do a second liturgy of the Lord's passion this
evening for those folks who have to work and so
they can have a chance to mark this holy day
this evening, So at Saint Robert's three o'clock in the afternoon,
in seven pm tonight.

Speaker 3 (02:32):
What is the least told? What is the least told?
Part of the crucifixion is what is that about it
that most don't.

Speaker 2 (02:43):
Know in terms of the manner of his dad? Well,
I just think, I just think how horrific it is,
how horrifically he died. And we want. One of the
things that we like to do is to really look
at him and all that suffering, you know, then being

(03:05):
nailed to the cross, and the way in which he
almost suffocated because he couldn't hold himself up to breathe
as he was nailed to that cross. But really, one
of the beautiful things that we do is we try
to look at the crucifixion through the eyes of his
mother Mary. You know, she was right there with him,
walked to the via crucus with him, was at the

(03:27):
foot of the cross, and we talk about her heart
being pierced with the sword. She was so sad to
see that happened to her son. Whom she loved so much,
and we really think that's a great prism for us
to look at the same event, to see as only
a mother can love her son. That's how much she
loved Jesus and how much she suffered with him as

(03:50):
she accompanied him. There was no way she was going
to abandon him even in his time of need. And
there's lessons in there for us to stay close to
the Lord even when life gets it's really really tough,
and it does sometimes.

Speaker 1 (04:03):
We've become I think, in this country much more in
my lifetime, at least, more ecumenical in terms of communication
among the various denominations. Father Lewis, what have you heard
in your experience in talking with other clergymen and women.
Is there a greater number of people who reach faith

(04:28):
or become converted because of Easter weekend? I know church
attendance always goes up. What have you heard.

Speaker 2 (04:34):
About that, Yeah, there's very much an emphasis on that.
In fact, Gary, wee at the Easter Vigil that'll be
Saturday evening. That's the liturgy each year where we bring
people in people who have been interested in becoming Catholic.
They've been studying the faith to learn more about it,
and that culminates for us always at Easter. So every

(04:56):
year at Easter the church grows in the sense that
we bring these converts in and that's a beautiful gift Ecumenically,
I think more and more we Christians are working together,
and I think less and less is their animosity among
the denominations, because I think we realize Gary that we

(05:17):
Christians don't have any we don't have the luxury of
beckering with each other. We've got great forces against faith, secularization, materialism.
If we're fighting amongst ourselves, we're really just wasting time
and energy. We got to work together. I was just
we've got a new archbishop coming next month, May the seventh,

(05:37):
and I was just putting together a list, and we're
gonna have all the leaders of all the different denominations
come to his installation to really welcome him to Omaha.
And I think that's gonna be a very visible sign
of how we Christians are working together and not against
each other.

Speaker 1 (05:53):
Right, Well, all the joy of Easter to you, Father Lewis,
and always, let's get together more often on this show.

Speaker 2 (06:01):
I would love that, and I'd love to come on
next month and tell you about our new archbishop. He's
wonderful Archbishop Michael McGovern we'll do that.

Speaker 3 (06:08):
Any relation to Marine McGovern or, George mcgom George McGovern.

Speaker 2 (06:12):
Or, George, not that I know him, Not that I
know all right, Father, I want to say to you
my condolences on on your father. Oh thanks father, my prayers, thank.

Speaker 1 (06:22):
You, Thank you. Father Lewis. Yes, uh, Rosie's dad passed
the other day and we'll talk about that in a bit.
I know it's it's a poignant time for sure.