SVD
Generalate

It was still dark, says the Gospel. And in many ways, it was still dark in the hearts of the disciples too. They had just seen their Lord crucified. Their world had collapsed. But even without understanding, Mary moves. She takes that first step. And because she does, something remarkable begins to stir.

The stone is gone. The tomb is open. The body—gone. At first, this is not a comfort. It is shocking. Confusing. But something in Mary cannot stay silent. She runs. She shares. And suddenly, others begin to move too.

Peter and the Beloved Disciple run to the tomb. They don’t walk—they run. And when they arrive, they don’t find answers, but they do find signs. The cloths, the shroud… And in the midst of it all, the Beloved Disciple sees and believes. Not because he has all the facts—but because faith often begins where certainty ends.

Brothers, isn’t that also true for us?

The resurrection didn’t begin with clarity. It began in the dark, with hearts broken, and hopes buried deep in the tomb. But from that emptiness, life emerged. New life. A new time.

This is the message of Easter. And it’s more than a message—it’s our mission.

We see people living their own darkness—nights of loss, fear, and confusion. We hear the cries of Magdalenas in our communities, in those we serve, and sometimes, even in ourselves. But the power of the resurrection tells us that no stone is too heavy, no night too long. Death does not have the last word.

Easter is not a memory, nor a promise for the distant future. It is a present moment. The Beloved Disciple believed when all he saw was an empty tomb. We too are called to believe—not because we’ve seen everything, but because we’ve encountered the risen Christ in the broken and the beautiful moments of our ministry.

And from that belief flows mission.

As SVD missionaries, this is what we carry into the world: not perfect answers, but the presence of a risen Christ who walks with us now. His resurrection helps us see differently, listen more deeply, and speak with hope where hope is scarce.

So this Easter, let us go out like Mary, like Peter, like the Beloved Disciple. Let us walk into the early dawns of our missions. Let us run when we need to. Let us proclaim—not just that the tomb is empty, but that life is full again.

A joyful and blessed Easter to each of you, brothers. May the light of the resurrection shine in all the places we serve, and may we always be witnesses to the life that never ends.

Fr. Anselmo Ribeiro, SVD