Easter is more than just one day, and Father Dave welcomes back Catholic speaker Mari Pablo to share how she is celebrating all 50 days of Easter.
Mari explains her motivation to find intentional ways to celebrate this season. “Catholics are so good at entering into Lent and everyone gets their ashes. Then we celebrate [Easter] Sunday and it dies out. I say ‘Happy Easter’ all 50 days, and Catholics look at me like I’m weird,” she says. “What are we doing here as Catholics? It’s 40 days of Lent, and 50 days of Easter. The celebration needs to be bigger and more epic. If we’re giving up something [in Lent], we should be adding more things that bring us joy during the Easter season.”
She notes how we can take small actions to celebrate the season, such as choosing uplifting music to listen to. “I have an Easter playlist of songs that’s all about Jesus rising from the dead, punching Satan in the face,” Mari laughs. “God’s victory is our victory; so what are we doing to claim that, and how are we celebrating it?” She also uses an Easter-related song as her wake-up alarm each day.
Father Dave says, “Music really is a very effective tool; that’s really one of the reasons why we sing music when we go to church. It helps us remember things and enter into things with our entire body. It’s like when people play Christmas hymns either before or after Christmas; It helps us realize ‘wait, we’re still in the season.’
Mari shares ideas for families to honor these 50 days, including weekly Easter egg hunts throughout the season or making “resurrection rolls” which look like empty tombs. She also evangelizes through an unusual way: handing out mini Jesus figurines. “I bought 100 of these little Jesus figurines, and I’m leaving Jesus in different places with like a little note that says something like ‘you are loved,’ ‘you are not alone,’ or a Bible verse,” Mari says. “I’m going to be literally spreading the Gospel when I travel or when I go to the supermarket; people are just going to find a random little Jesus.”
She explains that even how we dress can help us live out Easter joy. “I try to wear a lot of florals or bright colors throughout Easter so that even when I put on clothes, my attire is a reminder that he is risen,” Mari says. “I really ask that question, ‘How can I really do the things that bring me joy in an extra intentional way for 50 days?’”
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