From Notebook 27 of Father Eustáquio

He has risen and is no longer here. Only yesterday the Holy Church, shrouded in the black mantle of mourning, consternation, and sorrow, bitterly wept for the death of the Author of life. Today, religion, adorned in festive finery, with its altars adorned in their brilliant splendor, announces the joy and contentment of the entire universe, when the Redeemer of the world rose from his funereal grave. It is customary that every triumph in this world ends in the tomb; here, however, it is in the tomb that the triumph begins.

The life of Jesus was a life so hidden, so full of humility, so full of disdain, without any decorum before the world; yet death, which usually strips away all decorum, all brilliance, here took on an unknown splendor and magnificence. We showed Jesus in Holy Week in his goodness, in his great love for humankind; today, through his glorious resurrection, He proves his omnipotence to us. The life of Jesus is full of stupendous miracles, but he never performed a greater, or better, miracle to prove his divinity: he gave sight to the blind, speech to the tongues of the mute, peace to the possessed, walking to the paralytics, hearing to the deaf, even life to the dead; but giving himself life leaves no doubt whatsoever in the divinity of Jesus Christ.

When the Jews demanded a sign of Jesus' divinity, He told them:
“No other sign will be given to you except the sign of Jonah.” That is, the sign of the resurrection: as Jonah remained three days inside the whale, so Jesus would remain three days in the tomb to, on the third day, rise to life. The entire universe seems to unite in perfect harmony to celebrate the splendid triumph of the resurrected Body of Jesus. The earth, which trembled with horror and astonishment at his death, now stirs on its axis, exulting with joy and contentment; the sun, which had hidden its face in darkness so as not to witness the drama, now at the dawn proudly displays its dazzling rays; the birds sing more joyfully, the stars shine brighter, the perfume of flowers fills the air.

There is more sun, more moonlight, more stars shining, more birdsong, because there is joy and satisfaction throughout nature because of the resurrection of Jesus. And this great miracle, which throughout the ages has made faith acceptable, has confirmed Christianity, has authenticated the Gospel, has been the teaching of the simple, has converted the unbelievers, has sanctified sinners, consoled the righteous, opened Heaven, exalted humanity, and, finally, transformed the whole face of the universe. Blessed, therefore, be the time, the day, and the hour in which this most holy miracle was performed. The Church invites us to rejoice in this great affection: the triumph of Jesus is quite different from the triumph of the world; the triumph of Jesus begins in the tomb, and that of the world ends there. During Holy Week, Jesus showed all his goodness; here, his omnipotence. Now he comes to confirm our faith.

No less remarkable are the extraordinary incidents that accompanied the promulgation of this prodigy. The holy women, who arrived at the holy sepulchre to embalm the Body of Jesus, found only the cloths in which the Body had been wrapped, and an angel, white as snow, seated upon the rolled-away stone of the sepulchre. A holy angel said to them: “Do not be afraid.” Oh, how significant and mysterious is that word at the end of the sentence! The angel wanted to tell them: fear the chief priests, who conspired against the Lord; Judas, who betrayed Him; Pilate, who condemned Him to death; the executioners, who crucified Him.

But you, faithful and devoted souls to the divine Savior, who accompanied Him to Calvary, who adored Him on the cross, who came to visit Him in the tomb, have nothing to fear. However, the same words of the angel, once spoken over the Lord's tomb, still seem to resonate throughout the entire universe today. Yes, let the unbelievers who despise the divine word fear; let the heretics who disfigure and corrupt the religion of Calvary fear; let the proud potentates who enslave and scourge their own brothers fear; let the arrogant who contemptuously condemn the poor of Jesus fear; let all the ungrateful children of the Church fear, who mock its worship, scoff at its practices, deride its piety, despise its teaching, its beliefs, and its commandments.

All these fear, and have much to fear, the tremendous punishments decreed by divine justice. But you, generous souls, for whom Jesus crucified is always the dearest object of your desires and affection; you who live only for the glory of serving Jesus crucified, in your spirit through faith, in your heart through charity, in your being through Holy Communion, in your body through the holiness of your actions—you should expect everything from His tenderness and goodness. Contemplate the holy sepulchre; contemplate it with all your spirit; contemplate it without ceasing, and you will understand how much a God loved us and how much He deserves our love.

O holy sepulchre of the risen Jesus—port of eternal life—in you I wish to dwell, in you I wish always to think, in you I wish to hide. To hide from the world. From you, O holy sepulchre, one day my poor body will rise again, to be with you, with you, O Jesus, O my Beloved Jesus, always, without end, for ever and ever. Amen. Jesus. Amen, Jesus.