2005

Friday 18th March 2005
"Don't be frightened": A Reflection for Easter from Bishop Malone
 As the Catholic Bishop of Maitland-Newcastle, Michael Malone is the pastoral leader of approximately 147,000 Catholics in the Newcastle , Hunter, Lake Macquarie and Manning areas.

When I was a young boy I can remember how I was afraid of the dark. Even though my parents would reassure me that I was safe I was still frightened of those moving shadows on the wall and of what danger might be lurking outside my window. It was only when a light was left on in the hallway that I felt safe enough to sleep.

Now that I am a man (and a much older man at that!), I still get frightened – not so of the dark anymore – but I fear the unknown, the unpredictable, those things that might expose me to a different kind of darkness.

We all experience fear at one point in time or another. Actually fear can keep us from injuring ourselves. But while a certain amount of fear is normal and healthy, if we become controlled or obsessed by it, we can become paralysed. Fear can stop us from living life to the full and engaging with people and experiences.

Easter this year falls at a time when the world family is trying to recover from the life shattering earthquake and tsunamis in south and south-east Asia . Locally, we in the Hunter have recently commemorated the 50 th anniversary of the 1955 Maitland flood, also a time of devastation and fear particularly for those directly affected.

Natural disasters such as these confront us to realise our helplessness, our smallness in the face of powerful, destructive forces. They highlight our vulnerability and our reliance on others. But stories of tragic death, devastation and suffering mingle with stories of courage, remarkable escape and flickers of hope.

The first words of rescue crews as they come to the assistance of survivors are usually ones of reassurance and comfort: “don't be frightened!”

At Easter I am relieved and comforted to hear those words of Jesus: “do not be afraid …” In his risen body he reassures his disciples and us that he is with us in our darkness. All through life we need that reassurance from Jesus: “do not be afraid”.

When we sometimes doubt that God really cares – when relationships sour or when the finances are under threat or when sickness or death strikes – it is comforting to hear “do not be afraid”. And this reassurance is often expressed through unexpected people and in unexpected ways.

The famous Russian novelist Dostoyevsky once wrote: “without God everything becomes permissible” but Easter declares: “with God everything becomes possible”. Dostoyevsky also said that “to live without hope is to cease to live.”

Jesus' resurrection cuts through the dark uncertain moments of our often insecure lives. He calls to us: “do not be afraid”, I am with you. How reassuring to hear those words because we know that Jesus himself knew the pain of loss, violence, humiliation and extreme suffering, climaxing in an excruciating death.

Jesus knew fear and yet he gives us the courage to move beyond our own fear and to get going again. Everything then becomes possible!

I wish you and yours a wonderful Easter. Do not be afraid, he is risen!

FOR EASTER SERVICE TIMES ACROSS THE DIOCESE OF MAITLAND-NEWCASTLE CLICK HERE.

Back to Media Releases