Easter is the most important and greatest feast in the Church. It marks the beginning of our eternal hope for three reasons:

1. The resurrection of Christ is the basis of our Catholic faith. It is more than the raising of Jesus’ body after his crucifixion. No one witnessed the actual resurrection event, but faith demands that we trust the witnesses and their testimony. St. Paul writes that “If Christ has not been raised, then our teaching is in vain, and your faith is in vain…and if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is a delusion and you are still lost in your sins…but in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.” (1 Cor15:14, 17, 20)

Holy Week begins. What an important week that we begin today. The Gospel passage that is read at the beginning of Mass commemorates Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem for the fulfillment of the Passover. Today’s Liturgy of the Word concludes with Matthew’s version of Jesus’ betrayal, arrest and death on the Cross.

As we reach the Fifth Sunday of Lent, standing at the doorway of Holy Week, the Church invites us to listen again to Jesus’ bold and tender promise: “I am the resurrection and the life.” These words are meant to touch the very places where we struggle, hope, and long for renewal. Jesus does not simply restore life—He brings life wherever He is welcomed.

Jesus encounters a man who has been blind from birth. He restores his sight using dust and saliva, thus giving him a new beginning. Notice how Jesus uses ordinary means to bring extraordinary healing and grace. By using what the Jewish people considered unclean, Jesus demonstrates his power to make all things holy.

John’s Gospel today is the long and inspiring story of the woman at the well It is important to prayerfully imagine the scene. Jesus was all alone sitting next to Jacob’s Well around noon. Few women would come to the well at that time of day due to the heat. But this woman came at this time because she knew others would not be around. She was a sinner, and many of the other women of the town knew it.

A few years ago, I stood at the summit of Whistler Mountain in British Columbia, Canada, and that moment has stayed with me. After the long ascent, the world below seemed to fall away. The air grew thinner, the noise faded, and for a brief moment everything felt still. The landscape stretched out in every direction, reminding me how small I am, yet how gently held within something greater than myself. In that quiet, I learned that when we rise above the noise, we begin to see more clearly.

Temptations are usually a way to persuade us that temporal goods are better than the Ultimate Good, God Himself. Temptations offer an opportunity to identity, belong, and measure our worth in things other than God.

Today Jesus is tempted three times by the devil to sin.

Jesus said to his disciples: “I tell you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:20–22

The scribes and Pharisees were masters of the Old Law. Now that the Messiah had arrived, they were unwilling to go deeper and move beyond the Old Testament teachings that they often misrepresented. They preferred their approach to morality that had been with them for centuries. They did not want to change.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus offers a strikingly simple yet demanding image: “You are the salt of the earth… You are the light of the world.” He does not speak about what we should possess or accomplish, but about who we are called to become. This message speaks especially to us as our parish celebrates the Lunar New Year—a time of renewal, new beginnings, and fresh hope for the year ahead.