Bishop Denis Wiehe addressing the congregation during Easter mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in the Seychelles capital of Victoria. (Patrick Joubert / Seychelles News Agency) Photo license: CC-BY – See more at: http://www.seychellesnewsagency.com/articles/2690/Hope+beyond+suffering++Seychelles+Christians+reflect+on+true+meaning+behind+Easter+Sunday#sthash.pBQLpftf.dpuf
Seychelles Christians Reflect On True Meaning Behind Easter Sunday
By Hajira Amla and Sharon Meriton Jean, Seychelles News Agency
Victoria — Churches across the 115-island archipelago of Seychelles were packed on Sunday as the country’s Christians celebrated the resurrection of Jesus Christ with Easter mass.
Religious services with a special focus on the meaning of Easter were held this morning by the Roman Catholic, Anglican and a number of other Christian denominations represented in the Indian Ocean archipelago.
Orthodox Christians celebrate Easter, or Pascha, on Sunday April 12 this year.
This year it seems the overwhelming focus of the Easter messages centred around a message of hope.
Faith in Christ brings a ‘deeper meaning’
At the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in the Seychelles capital of Victoria, Bishop Denis Wiehe gave the Catholics of Seychelles, which make up around 76 percent of the Seychelles population of 90,000, an inspiring message.
Bishop Denis Wiehe addressing the congregation during Easter mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in the Seychelles capital of Victoria. (Patrick Joubert / Seychelles News Agency) Photo license: CC-BY
Reflecting upon Jesus’ resurrection after the pain and suffering of his crucifixion, Bishop Wiehe said the resurrection of Jesus Christ gave meaning to the “pain, anguish and suffering that is part of our life, part of every human experience”.
“We often complain: ‘What have I done to deserve such an ordeal?’, ‘Why me?’, ‘Why so much pain, suffering and evil around me and in the world?’,” said the Bishop.
As he explained, coming face to face with evil, was an unavoidable part of human life, adding that each person had seen their share of suffering.
Faith in Christ does not solve the problem of suffering, according to Wiehe, but he said it could provide a deeper meaning and a new sense of purpose to people’s lives, recounting the story of the two disheartened disciples on the road to Emmaüs who received new hope after realising that the stranger they had broken bread with on the journey had been none other than Christ himself.
“The true joy of Easter comes from the tremendous hope that swells in our heart when we ourselves meet Jesus,” said the Bishop. “This inner joy endures despite the many difficulties that we inevitably face on our human journey. Indeed, it gives us much strength to face these difficulties and overcome them.”
Hope of Easter is ‘not naïve’
Not far away from the Cathedral, at St. Paul’s Church, the Bishop of the Anglican Diocese of Seychelles, the Right Reverend James Wong, called on believers to focus on hope as an “anchor for the soul”.
“This Easter Sunday… we gather to celebrate this touching moment when the stone which sealed the life and love of God has been rolled away and our hopes are now really alive in the resurrection of Jesus,” said Bishop Wong.
