To the light of day
While the 2026 calendar tells us that April 5 is Easter Sunday, Easter is not just one day or even one liturgical season. Nor is it a reward for the sacrifices we’ve made during Lent or a sigh of relief exhaled after the drama and emotion of the Triduum. Easter is not something we wait for; it is something we are continually challenged to seek and find. But to find it, we must remain open to the Holy Spirit working in and among us.
Easter is present in everyday moments of grace. When we experience disappointment, anxiety, fractures in relationships, or the pain of injustice, God this there with a word of encouragement, a moment of clarity, a gesture of kindness, and a reminder that all things will be well. We need to remain open to God’s “still small voice” during these times and recognize God at work in our daily lives on a profoundly authentic and personal level.
At Catholic Charities, Easter is present in the people we serve. The dignity of the human person is not an abstract concept for us—it is a daily encounter with the risen Christ. Whenever we take the opportunity to choose compassion over convenience and mercy over judgement, we see—really see—the person before us not as a problem to solve, but as the very image of Christ. In these situations, Easter becomes not only something that God did for us, but something God does through us.
Our constant desire for renewal also brings us closer to Easter. It is easy to get stuck in the ruts of our routines and grow weary of the barrage of threats that undermine human life and the sustainability of our planet. We need to rise above our tendencies toward complacency and despair to find Easter in the newness of each day, each person we meet, each set of circumstances that provide an opportunity to encounter the God who loves us beyond our imagining. Renewal doesn’t happen automatically. It is an intentional process that pulls us from dark tombs to the light of day; from death to life; from the here and now to the everlasting.
Easter is all around us because He is risen. Alleluia! Alleluia!
Rachel Hrbolich serves as Director of Catholic Charities, Diocese of Youngstown.