160815 +TC - Bi-Centennary of the Birth of St Don Bosco

110815 +TC - Marriage Day Mass

On what has turned out to be a rather cool evening here in Perth, we began our celebrations by gathering around the new Easter Fire. In many ancient cultures, this fire was meant to symbolise the victory of Spring over Winter. In the early centuries of Christianity, this tradition was adopted by the Church to symbolise the victory of life over death. In the resurrection of Jesus which we celebrate tonight, this is the heart of everything. The power of death has been broken and, in the words of one of the early Popes, Pope St Leo the Great, "the uninterrupted pattern of death was broken and Jesus made temporary what until then had been eternal. By dying," the Pope went on, "Jesus submitted to the destructive power of death but by rising again He destroyed that power".

As we gather here in the Cathedral this afternoon to celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday, the Gospel presents us with three words which can guide us in our reflections. The first is "peace".