Thursday, February 27
Liturgical Color: Green
Today the Church honors St. Anne Line.
St. Anne lived in England during a time
of great Catholic persecution. She
allowed Catholics to gather at her house
for Mass. St. Anne was arrested for
harboring priests and hanged on this
day in 1601.
Can you be a Christian without believing in the Resurrection of Christ?
No. "If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain" (1 Cor 15:14).
How did the disciples come to believe that Jesus is risen?
The disciples, who before had lost all hope, came to believe in Jesus' Resurrection because they saw him in a different way after his death, spoke with him, and experienced him as being alive.
The Easter events that took place in Jerusalem in the year 30 are not a made-up story. Following the death of Jesus and the defeat of their whole cause, the disciples fled ("We had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel", Lk 24:21) or else barricaded themselves behind locked doors. Only their encounter with the risen Christ freed them from their paralysis and filled them with an enthusiastic faith in Jesus Christ, the Lord of life and death. (YOUCAT questions 104-105)
Dig Deeper: CCC section (631-638) and other references here.