THE LAST WORD

The Easter Victory: Overcoming the Structures of Sin in the Labour Domain

The message of the resurrection speaks to all our human realities. The victory of Jesus on the cross belongs to all of us and it must have an impact even on our various labour situations. This victory is purely objective and intrinsically universal.

“No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (Jn 15:13).

BY REV DR ANTONY SITUMA | Scripture Lecturer, St Thomas Aquinas Seniour Seminary, Nairobi, Kenya

EASTER IS the “Feast of feasts”, the “Solemnity of solemnities”, the “Great Sunday” and the mother of all Christian celebrations. Easter celebrates the redemptive work of the Holy Trinity. It is the culmination of God’s efforts, work, to make the human person comfortable in his role, work, as co-creator.

The Social Teachings of the Catholic Church have always regarded human work as a participation in God’s work of creation. The work of creation reached its apex with the paschal mystery where the incarnated Christ was crucified, suffered death and rose again from the dead to symbolize the victory over all the structures of sin in the labour domain.

By working, man becomes a more complete person and humanity flourishes, thus the Church cannot risk abandoning workers to the fate of lacking the necessities for a dignified life.

Through their work, Christians emulate the work of the resurrected Christ by making efforts to change unjust social structures. Easter promises us hope that victory belongs to the Risen Christ. It calls for solidarity with the workers by fighting against the structural causes of poverty and inequality; the lack of work, land and housing; and the destructive effects of the empire of money.

It is common for people nowadays to worry about an uncertain future in the labour market, about jobs that are at risk and about other consequences of the current crisis in the employment sphere. The risen Jesus bears the marks of the wounds in his hands, feet and side. All workers who experience frustration or who face some painful trial in body or spirit can find refuge in these wounds. It is through the wounds of Christ that humanity is healed (cf. Is 53:5; 1Pt 2:24).

No one has done a greater work than this, to lay down one’s life for humanity (cf. Jn 15:13).

The Easter message is: Egerthe! Christ is risen! It is a simple, heartfelt gesture of closeness to and support of the workers which is meant to inspire new forms of action in the face of modern forms of injustices and of capitalistic dependency in the labour domain.

Christian charity is liberating when it becomes incarnate (cf. Lk 4:18–19). The mission of the Church is to proclaim this liberation. Therefore, when she bends down to break the new chains that bind labourers, she becomes a paschal sign. She is called to liberate all labourers who are forced to live in conditions akin to slavery and are deprived of their social and labour rights.

May the power of Christ’s resurrection assure Christians that He who laid down His life for humanity will be able to do even greater things for the workers of the world, and that against the obscure backdrop of failed hopes and inhuman working conditions, the song of Alleluia will re-echo the certainty that God has taken upon Himself and defeated all the evil in the world; that love has triumphed over hatred, light over darkness and truth over falsehood; that God has uprooted diabolical pride that promotes labour exploitation.

The Lamb of God is victorious! Christ, our hope, has risen! Death and life contended in a phenomenal struggle, but the Lord now lives forever (cf. Easter Sequence).

Reflection Questions

• What concrete gestures can I exhibit to break down the structures of sin within my setup?
• How can I radiate the light of the Easter candle to the oppressed in the labour domain?