St. Bridget's devotion to honor the 5,480 wounds Christ suffered in His Passion



Five-thousand four-hundred eighty.

Thanks to the prayers of St. Bridget of Sweden and her close relationship with Jesus Christ, we have this number to contemplate: the 5,480 blows struck at the body of Christ during His Passion. Strikes meted out with whips, fists, iron nails, rods, and tools of torture such as the cat-o'-nine-tails.

This almost unbearable statistic should rouse the Christian faithful to contemplate the staggering suffering Christ endured to redeem a sinful humanity.

From her childhood in the early 14th century, St. Bridget had special devotion to Christ’s wounds. She had an early vision of Christ on the cross of Calvary, shedding blood for the remission of sins. From that time on, Christ’s Passion took on a central role in Bridget’s life.

'I beheld His body, bruised and beaten to the very ribs.'

Bridget often prayed to Christ to reveal how many times He was struck during His Passion and crucifixion. One day during the year 1350, He appeared to her before a crucifix inside the Church of St. Paul in Rome.

“I received 5,480 blows on My Body,” he told her. “If you wish to honor them in some way, say 15 Our Fathers and 15 Hail Marys with the following prayers for a whole year. When the year is up, you will have honored each one of My Wounds.”

The Shroud of Turin, believed by many to be the burial cloth of Christ, shows evidence of the brutality visited on the Lord’s body.Dianelos Georgoudis/Wikimedia Commons

The mystical dialogue between Christ and St. Bridget adds great depth and detail to the story of Christ’s Passion and death. Bridget received revelations from Christ and the Virgin Mary that were collected into eight volumes and a supplemental volume. They include more graphic details than are typically found in popular art depictions of Christ’s Passion.

St. Bridget was born in 1303. Eight children were born from her 28-year marriage to Ulf Gudmarsson, the governor of an important Swedish district. After the death of her husband, St. Bridget settled near the Cistercian Monastery of Alvastra. She founded a religious order known as the Bridgettines. Pope John Paul II named her co-patroness of Europe in 1999.

“Here began the divine revelations that were to accompany her for the rest of her life,” Pope Benedict XVI wrote in 2010. “Bridget always had a special devotion to Christ's Passion, contemplating in it God's infinite love for human beings. She boldly places these words on the lips of the Lord who speaks to her: 'O my friends, I love my sheep so tenderly that were it possible I would die many other times for each one of them that same death I suffered for the redemption of all.'"

Bridget wrote in stirring and sorrowful tones on the sufferings of Christ.

'Were it possible I would die many other times for each one of them.'

“Thou wast inhumanly scourged and wounded with grievous wounds, that Thy most innocent skin and flesh were intolerably torn,” she wrote. “And thus afflicted and tortured, Thou didst hang on the cross, O my most sweet Jesus, and in excessive pain didst patiently and humbly await the hour of death.”

John Paul II said St. Bridget’s revelations are worthy of belief. “The Church, which recognized Bridget's holiness without ever pronouncing on her individual revelations, has accepted the overall authenticity of her interior experience,” the pontiff wrote in his motu proprio "Spes Aedificandi."

St. Bridget also revealed messages from the Virgin Mary on her sufferings watching her dearly beloved Son tortured at the pillar.

“He stripped Himself, and Himself stretched His hands to the pillar, which His enemies, pitiless, bound,” Mary said, according to one revelation. “Now, while tied there He had no clothing, but stood as He was born, and suffered the shame of His nakedness.

Flagellation of Christ by Peter Paul Rubens, c. 1617.Wikimedia

“At the first blow, I, who stood nearest, fell as if dead, and on recovering my senses I beheld His body bruised and beaten to the very ribs, so that His ribs could be seen; and what was still more bitter, when the scourge was raised, His very flesh was furrowed by the thongs.”

The crown of thorns caused massive bleeding that made it difficult for Christ to see.

“This done, they fitted a crown of thorns to His head, which so acutely wounded the venerable head of my Son that His eyes were filled, His ears stopped up, with the blood that streamed down, and His whole beard matted with the gore,” Mary said.

“His skin was so tender and fair that it could not be slightly struck without blood issuing at once. His blood was so fresh that it could be seen in His clear skin.”

Mary described receiving the body of her son from the cross: “Then He was taken down from the cross, and I received Him into my bosom, like a leper, and all livid, for His eyes were dead and full of blood, His mouth cold as snow, His beard like cords, His face contracted. His hands were so stiffened that they could not be raised above the navel.”

Mary said she had wanted to cross Christ’s arms on his chest, but the rigor made this impossible. This is borne out in the Shroud of Turin, Christ’s likely burial cloth, which shows his hands crossed on his stomach.

St. Bridget died in 1373 and was solemnly canonized a saint by Pope Boniface IX in 1391. She had left Sweden in 1349 and went to Rome. In 1371, she made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

The detail contained in St. Bridget’s revelations is similar to visions related by Venerable Sister Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774–1824), who received extensive insights on the life of Christ and His blessed mother.

In one vision, Sister Emmerich described the half-intoxicated torturers at the scourging at the pillar.

“Jesus’ body was livid, brown, blue, and red, and entirely covered with swollen cuts. His sacred blood was running down on the ground,” she said. “He trembled and shuddered. Derision and mockery assailed Him on all sides."

The Deposition from the Cross. Fra Angelico/Public Domain

“Under their furious blows, the swollen welts on Jesus’ sacred body were torn and rent; His blood spurted around so that the arms of His tormentors were sprinkled with it,” Sister Emmerich said. “Jesus moaned and prayed and shuddered in His agony.”

She described some of the instruments of torture that were shown in painful detail in the 2004 film "The Passion of the Christ."

“The last two scourgers struck Jesus with whips consisting of small chains, or straps, fastened to an iron handle, the ends furnished with iron points, or hooks,” she said. “They tore off whole pieces of skin and flesh from His ribs. Oh, who can describe the awful barbarity of that spectacle!”

The Virgin Mary described to St. Bridget the wounds to her own heart watching her Son treated with such barbarity. “At the death of my Son, I was like a woman having her heart pierced with five lances,” Mary said.

The first lance was the “shameful and opprobrious nudity” at the scourging pillar. The second, accusations that Christ was traitor and liar. The third lance, she said, was the crown of thorns that “so cruelly pierced” His sacred head. The fourth, “His piteous voice on the cross when He cried to His Father, saying, ‘O Father why has Thou forsaken Me?’” The fifth lance, Mary said, “was His most cruel death.”

15 Prayers to Honor Christ’s Wounds

Christ gave St. Bridget a 15-prayer devotion for anyone wishing to honor the sacred wounds of His Passion. The devotion does not include the traditional Five Holy Wounds of Christ (nail holes in left and right hands, nail holes in right and left feet, and piercing of His side), which are the subject of other devotions.

Over the course of a year, this devotion honors each of the 5,475 wounds of Christ.

Prayer I

O Jesus Christ, eternal sweetness of them that hope in Thee, joy exceeding all joy and all desire, salvation, and love of sinners, who hast declared it to be Thy delight to be with the children of men, [Thou who wast] made man for man in the end of time; remember all Thy premeditation and interior grief which Thou didst endure in Thy human body at the approach of the time of Thy most saving Passion, preordained in Thy divine heart.

Remember the sadness and the bitterness which, as Thou Thyself didst testify, Thou didst feel in Thy soul when at the Last Supper with Thy disciples Thou didst give them Thy Body and Blood, didst wash their feet, and sweetly consoling them, foretell Thy imminent Passion. Remember all the fear, anguish, and grief which Thou didst endure in Thy delicate body before the Passion of the cross when, after Thy thrice-repeated prayer and bloody sweat, Thou wast betrayed by Thy disciple Judas, taken by a chosen people, accused by false witnesses, unjustly judged by three judges, condemned innocent in the chosen city, at Paschal time, in the bloom of youth, stripped of Thy own clothing and clothed in the garments of another, buffeted, Thy face and eyes veiled, smitten with blows, bound to the pillar, scourged, crowned with thorns, struck with a reed on the head, and torn with numberless other acts of violence.

Give me, O Lord God, I beseech Thee, before I die, in memory of these Thy passions before the cross, a true contrition, true confession, worthy satisfaction and remission of all my sins. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer II

O Jesus, Maker of the world, whom no measure by just bounds doth compass, who enclosest the earth in Thy palm, remember the most bitter grief which Thou didst endure when the Jews first fastened Thy most sacred hands to the cross with dull nails, and as Thou wast not agreeable to their will, added pain to pain in Thy wounds by perforating Thy most delicate feet, and cruelly wrenched and distended Thee the length and breadth of Thy cross, so that the joints of Thy limbs were loosened. I beseech Thee by the memory of this most sacred and bitter pain on the cross to give me Thy fear and love. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer III

Jesus, heavenly physician, remember the languor, lividness, and pain which Thou didst suffer on the lofty scaffold of the cross, torn in all Thy limbs, not one of which had remained in its right state, so that no pain was found like to Thy pain; for from the sole of Thy foot to the top of Thy head there was no soundness in Thee.

And yet, regardless of all pains, Thou didst piously pray to Thy Father for Thy enemies, saying: “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.” By this mercy and in remembrance of that pain, grant that this memory of Thy most bitter Passion be a full remission of all my sins. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer IV

O Jesus, true liberty of angels, paradise of delights, remember the grief and horror which Thou didst endure when all Thy enemies surrounded Thee like fierce lions, and tortured Thee by buffets, by spitting upon Thee, and by tearing and other unheard-of pains. By these pains and all the contumelious words and most severe torments whereby, O Lord Jesus Christ, all Thy enemies afflicted Thee, I beseech Thee to free me from all my enemies, visible and invisible, and grant me to reach the perfection of eternal salvation under the shadow of Thy wings. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer V

O Jesus, mirror of eternal brightness, remember the grief which Thou didst endure when Thou didst behold, in the mirror of Thy most serene Majesty, the predestination of the elect to be saved by the merits of Thy Passion, and the reprobation of the wicked to be damned by their own demerits; and by the abyss of Thy mercy, whereby Thou didst then compassionate us lost and hopeless sinners, and which Thou didst show the thief on the cross, saying, “This day thou shalt be with Me in Paradise,” I beseech Thee, O merciful Jesus, show mercy on me at the hour of my death. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer VI

O Jesus, amiable King, and most desirable Friend, remember the sorrow Thou hadst when Thou didst hang naked and wretched on the cross, and all Thy friends and acquaintances stood over against Thee, and Thou didst find no comforter except alone Thy beloved Mother, most faithfully standing by Thee in bitterness of soul, whom Thou didst commend to Thy disciple, saying, “Woman, behold thy son.” I beseech Thee, merciful Jesus, by the sword of grief which then pierced Thy soul, to have compassion on me in all my tribulations and afflictions, bodily and spiritual, and give me comfort in time of tribulation and at the hour of my death. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer VII

O Jesus, fountain of inexhaustible mercy, who from intense feeling didst exclaim on the cross, “I thirst,” thirsting for the salvation of the human race, inflame, we beseech Thee, the desires of our hearts to every perfect work, and entirely cool and extinguish in us the thirst of carnal concupiscence and the heat of worldly delight. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer VIII

O Jesus, sweetness of hearts and great sweetness of minds, by the bitterness of the vinegar and gall which Thou didst taste for us, grant me at the hour of my death worthily to receive Thy Body and Blood, for the remedy and consolation of my soul. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer IX

O Jesus, royal virtue and mental delight, remember the anguish and pain which Thou didst endure when, from the bitterness of death and the reproaches of the Jews, Thou didst exclaim in a loud voice that Thou wast forsaken by Thy Father, saying, “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” By this anguish, I beseech Thee not to forsake me in my anguish, O Lord Our God. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer X

O Jesus, Alpha and Omega, ever virtue and life, remember that for us Thou didst plunge Thyself, from the top of Thy head to the sole of Thy feet, into the water of Thy Passion. By the length and breadth of Thy wounds, teach me, too much immersed in sin, to keep in true charity Thy broad command. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer XI

O Jesus, most profound abyss of mercy, I beseech Thee by the depth of Thy wounds, which pierced the marrow of Thy bones and vitals, raise me from the depth of sins in which I am plunged, and hide me in the hollow of Thy wounds, from the face of Thy wrath, till Thy anger pass away, O Lord. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer XII

O Jesus, mirror of truth, sign of unity, and bond of charity, remember the multitude of Thy innumerable wounds wherewith Thou wast wounded from the top of Thy head to the sole of Thy feet, and reddened with Thy most sacred Blood, which magnitude of pain Thou didst endure on Thy virginal flesh for us. O merciful Jesus, what more oughtest Thou do, and hast not done? Engrave, I beseech Thee, O merciful Jesus, all Thy wounds in my heart with Thy most precious Blood, that in them I may read Thy sorrow and death, and in thanksgiving persevere duly to the end. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer XIII

O Jesus, most valiant Lion, immortal and unconquered King, remember the pain which Thou didst endure when all the powers of Thy heart and body entirely failed Thee, and inclining Thy head, Thou didst exclaim, “It is consummated.” By that anguish and pain, remember me in the last consummation of my departure, when my soul shall be in anguish and my spirit troubled. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer XIV

O Jesus, only-begotten Son of the most high Father, splendor and figure of His substance, remember the commendation wherewith Thou didst commend Thy spirit to Thy Father, saying, “Into Thy hands, O Lord, I commend My spirit”; and then, with lacerated body and broken heart, with a loud cry, the bowels of Thy mercy exposed, [Thou] didst expire to redeem us. By this precious death I beseech Thee, O King of saints, strengthen me to resist the devil, the world, flesh, and blood, that dead to the world I may live to Thee; and in the last hour of my departure receive Thou my exiled, wandering spirit returning to Thee. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

Prayer XV

O Jesus, true and fruitful vine, remember the overflowing and abundant effusion of blood which Thou didst pour forth in torrents, like wine pressed from the grape, when on the press of the cross Thou didst tread alone; and Thy side having been opened with a lance, Thou didst pour forth to us blood and water, so that not the least drop remained in Thee; and at last Thou wast suspended on high like a bundle of myrrh, and Thy delicate flesh fainted, and the moisture of Thy members dried up, and the marrow of Thy bones faded. By this most bitter Passion and the effusion of Thy precious Blood, O pious Jesus, I pray Thee, receive my soul in the agony of my death. Amen.

Pray one Our Father
Pray one Hail Mary

O sweet Jesus, wound my heart, that tears of penitence and love may be my food night and day, and bring me entirely to Thee, that my heart may ever be habitable for Thee, and my conversation pleasing and acceptable to Thee; and the end of my life so praiseworthy, that after the close of this life, I may deserve to praise Thee with all Thy saints forever.

Pray five Our Fathers

O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, receive this prayer in that most exceeding love wherewith Thou didst bear all the wounds of Thy most sacred Body, and remember me Thy servant, and to all sinners, and all the faithful, living and dead, give mercy, grace, remission, and eternal life. Amen.

Pope Francis 'returned to the house of his Father' at 88



Pope Francis, certain of the empty tomb, went with hope to his own on Easter Monday at the age of 88. The bells of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome began to toll at the news of the Roman pontiff's passing. In short order, all of the bells in the Italian capital followed suit.

Hours earlier, Pope Francis — born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in Buenos Aires, Argentina — met with Catholic U.S. Vice President JD Vance, rode through St. Peter's Square to greet the faithful, and gave his Easter blessing "urbi et orbi" (to the city and the world).

The pope, greatly weakened by his bout with pneumonia and able only to raise his hands enough to make the sign of the cross, noted in his Easter message, "All those who put their hope in God place their feeble hands in his strong and mighty hand; they let themselves be raised up and set out on a journey."

'In his eyes, every life is precious!'

"Together with the risen Jesus," wrote the pope, those who trust in God "become pilgrims of hope, witnesses of the victory of love and of the disarmed power of life."

Pope Francis also conveyed in his message, which was read by Archbishop Diego Giovanni Ravelli, master of pontifical liturgical celebrations of the supreme pontiff, that "God created us for life and wants the human family to rise again."

"In his eyes, every life is precious! The life of a child in the mother's womb, as well as the lives of the elderly and the sick, who in more and more countries are looked upon as people to be discarded," wrote the pope.

Pope Francis condemned anti-Semitism and the "great thirst for death" seen around the world and drew attention in particular to "the people of Gaza, and its Christian community in particular, where the terrible conflict continues to cause death and destruction and to create a dramatic and deplorable humanitarian situation."

"I appeal to the warring parties: Call a ceasefire, release the hostages, and come to the aid of a starving people that aspires to a future of peace," added the pope.

The pope underscored that Jesus "is alive and is with us always, shedding the tears of those who suffer and adding to the beauty of life through the small acts of love carried out by each of us."

Cardinal Kevin Farrell, camerlengo of the Apostolic Chamber, speaking in Vatican City, indicated that Pope Francis "returned to the house of the Father" at 7:35 a.m. Monday morning.

"His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and of His Church," said Farrell. "He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage, and universal love, especially in favor of the poorest and most marginalized. With immense gratitude for his example as a true disciple of the Lord Jesus, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of the One and Triune God."

The Vatican noted that Pope Francis, who wrote and published four papal encyclicals, approved an updated edition of the liturgical book for papal funeral rites in April 2024.

"The renewed rite," said Archbishop Ravelli, "seeks to emphasize even more that the funeral of the Roman Pontiff is that of a pastor and disciple of Christ and not of a powerful person of this world."

Pope Francis — who once stated that humility "saves us from the evil one and from the danger of becoming his accomplices" — apparently desired a simplification of the funeral rites and a focus on expressing the faith of the Catholic Church in the risen body of Christ.

After the pope's funeral and nine days of mourning, cardinals will convene in Rome to elect Pope Francis' successor.

Pope Francis, born to Italian immigrants in 1936, entered the Society of Jesus at age 21 and was ordained a priest in 1969. After serving as a Jesuit provincial, seminary rector, and professor, Bergoglio was appointed auxiliary bishop of Buenos Aires by St. John Paul II in 1992. Six years later he became archbishop of the city, cardinal in 2001, then pope in 2013 at the age of 76, following the unprecedented resignation of his predecessor, Benedict XVI.

The Catholic News Agency noted that he was the first Jesuit pope, the first from the Americas, and the first to adopt the name Francis — a name he chose on account of St. Francis of Assisi's devotion to creation, peace, and poverty.

During his papacy, Pope Francis — who suffered from lung issues for decades — created 163 new cardinals, canonized 942 saints, and issued 75 motu proprio documents.

Pope Francis often frustrated liberals and conservative Catholics alike, either going what was perceived to be too far in one direction or not far enough in the other.

'Nobody, absolutely nobody, has managed to understand him.'

For instance, he did not depreciate the sacrament of marriage to accommodate the desires of non-straight activists inside or outside the church, and he refrained from removing barriers to female priests. But he also restricted the celebration of the Traditional Latin Mass and was often critical of Western nations, particularly the United States and its policies.

Dan Hitchens, writing for First Things, indicated that "he began the decade being hero-worshipped by the world's media and ended it being denounced by Jordan Peterson. Books, articles, Twitter threads have poured forth from overheated brains. And yet — and I include myself in this — nobody, absolutely nobody, has managed to understand him."

Hitchens rebuffed cynical readings of Francis' papacy and intentions, especially since his pontificate was, at times, "the opposite of cynical: above all, when the pope has returned to his great theme of 'the throwaway society,' his lonely stand against a global system which, from the sweatshops to the euthanasia clinics, treats the vulnerable not as the image of Christ but as useless trash. That magnificent critique will be one of his most significant legacies."

World leaders celebrated Pope Francis' life and impact.

Argentina President Javier Milei wrote, "Despite differences that seem minor today, having been able to know him in his kindness and wisdom was a true honor for me. As President, as an Argentine, and, fundamentally, as a man of faith, I bid farewell to the Holy Father and stand with all of us who are today dealing with this sad news."

'May God rest his soul.'

India Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, "Pope Francis will always be remembered as a beacon of compassion, humility and spiritual courage by millions across the world. From a young age, he devoted himself towards realising the ideals of Lord Christ. He diligently served the poor and downtrodden. For those who were suffering, he ignited a spirit of hope."

Pierre Poilievre, head of the Canadian Conservative Party, stated, "His humility, compassion, and steadfast faith had a profound impact on millions of Canadians and others around the world from every faith background."

Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a statement, "Pope Francis' love for humanity was powerful and profound. The memory and example of his compassion will long endure."

"I was happy to see him yesterday," wrote Vice President Vance. "My heart goes out to the millions of Christians all over the world who loved him. I was happy to see him yesterday, though he was obviously very ill. But I'll always remember him for the below homily he gave in the very early days of COVID. It was really quite beautiful. May God rest his soul."

"Pope Francis will long be remembered for his outreach to those on the margins of the Church and of society," Archbishop Timothy Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said in a statement. "He renewed for us the mission to bring the Gospel out to the ends of the earth and offer divine mercy to all. He has also taken advantage of the present Jubilee to call us to a profound hope: one that is not an empty or naïve hope, but one grounded in the promise of Almighty God to be with us always."

In his first address as Roman pontiff, Francis stated:

Now let us begin this journey, the Bishop and people, this journey of the Church of Rome, which presides in charity over all the Churches, a journey of brotherhood in love, of mutual trust. Let us always pray for one another. Let us pray for the whole world that there might be a great sense of brotherhood. My hope is that this journey of the Church that we begin today, together with help of my Cardinal Vicar, be fruitful for the evangelization of this beautiful city. And now I would like to give the blessing, but first I want to ask you a favor. Before the bishop blesses the people, I ask that you would pray to the Lord to bless me — the prayer of the people for their Bishop.

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Jesus didn't die for this: Paula White's prosperity lie hijacks Holy Week



The apostle Peter describes false teachers: "And in their greed they will exploit you with false words" (2 Peter 2:3).

The Bible describes false teachers in several ways, but one of the most consistent characteristics of a false teacher is that his or her life is marked by greed.

In the prosperity gospel, Christ is not the end, but merely a means to an end: the accumulation of more and more wealth.

Serving as the head of the recently established White House Faith Office, “pastor” Paula White is one of the leading proponents of Word of Faith theology, otherwise known as the "prosperity gospel." The Word of Faith movement is an aberrant form of Christianity. It asserts that all Christians should enjoy financial prosperity and physical healing provided they have sufficient faith and sow enough “seed” (i.e., monetary offerings) in a preacher’s ministry. Sow enough "seed" to reap a "harvest."

Prosperity preachers misuse biblical texts to promise parishioners as much as a “hundredfold return” on their offerings. Mark 4:8, for example, states, “And other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they were yielding a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.”

Just a little logic makes the prosperity interpretation laughable.

If you give $100 and receive $10,000 in return, then sow that $10,000 and receive $10,000,000 in return, it would not take many "harvest" cycles before you could pay off the national debt. The seed mentioned in Mark 4:8 is not even about money. The seed is the word of God that yields a spiritual harvest in the hearts of those prepared to receive it. But Word of Faith preachers never let the Bible get in the way of their lucrative theology.

Paula White is no stranger to such manipulative Bible twisting.

In videos posted before her recent appointment, White has told people to sow $133 based on Proverbs 1:33 and $91 based on Psalm 91 or even $1,144 based on John 11:44. She promises her followers that if they sow these specific dollar amounts in her ministry, they will receive the corresponding blessings mentioned therein.

This is utter foolishness. Chapter divisions and verse numbers were not added to the Bible until the Middle Ages to facilitate easy navigation of the scriptures. The written text is inspired, but the chapter divisions and verse numbers are not. Besides Paula White and countless other prosperity preachers using them to fleece their followers, they have no spiritual significance whatsoever.

One might think that Paula White’s elevated profile from her appointment by President Donald Trump might cause her to be more cautious about shamelessly exploiting people for money.

But one would be wrong.

In late March, White generated controversy once again because she appeared to promise followers the “7 Blessings of Passover.”

These seven blessings are:

  1. An angel assigned to you.
  2. God will be an enemy to your enemies.
  3. Financial prosperity.
  4. Healing from sickness.
  5. A long life.
  6. Increase.
  7. A special year of blessing.

She suggested sowing varying dollar amounts: a minimum of $50 and a maximum of $1,000.

Though White never explicitly said that these seven blessings would be yours in exchange for money, it was certainly implied. At one point a narrator quotes Deuteronomy 16:16, “None shall appear before the Lord empty-handed,” before urging viewers to sow their “best Passover offering.” The narrator then states, “Don’t miss your moment to release seven supernatural blessings and provision into your life.” White follows up, saying, “I believe when you honor God on Passover … you can receive these seven supernatural blessings for you and your house.”

Despite White receiving significant backlash on social media for her video, she posted an almost identical one on April 13. “I believe God for miracles during this time because God is faithful to His word. So get ready to experience the supernatural blessing of this time as we honor God," she says in the video.

In other words: You “honor God” by giving money to Paula White.

If you sow financial seed to Paula White, God will give you these seven blessings. Need money? Give what you have to Paula. Need healing? Give your money to Paula. Do you or a family member — possibly one of your own children — have a serious physical condition like cancer? Well, you’ll need to sow a big seed for that. The bigger miracle you need, the bigger monetary seed you better sow.

Like all Word of Faith and prosperity gospel preachers, Paula White tries to disguise her greed. She says, “Now we’re not buying a miracle; we’re not doing any of that ‘Jesus junk.’” But her attempt is in vain. You can put lipstick on a pig, but it is obvious to everyone observing that it is still a pig.

The Bible says much about how we should care for the poor and the widows. Prosperity preachers like Paula White exploit them and, to add sin upon sin, do so in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus reserved His most blistering rebukes for false teachers who distort scripture and “devour widows’ homes” (Luke 20:46-45).

Paula White takes the most sacred Christian holy day, Resurrection Sunday, and turns it into an opportunity for her to stuff her already bulging coffers.

In the prosperity gospel, Christ is not the end, but merely a means to an end: the accumulation of more and more wealth.

Please do not misunderstand: There is nothing inherently wrong with being wealthy, nor is there anything inherently honorable in being poor. There is nothing wrong with adequately compensating men who serve as pastors — this, in fact, is biblical (1 Timothy 5:17-18).

But it is completely wrong to twist scripture and exploit the poor and the sick to fund a lifestyle of luxury. It is wrong when Paula White tells people to give her money before they even pay their light bill because you can’t expect the electric company to heal your child.

Jesus did not come to this earth to put an end to financial poverty. He plainly stated, “The poor you will always have with you” (Matthew 26:11). Jesus did not even come to put an end to sickness and disease — that will only be realized for believers on the other side of heaven, not here. Jesus came to this earth to put an end to sin and the wrath of God that it incurs.

God the Son, uncreated and fully God from eternity past, took on a human nature at Bethlehem. Jesus Christ was one person with two distinct natures: He is truly God and truly man. As the God-man, Jesus gave His perfect life on the cross as a perfect sacrifice to perfectly satisfy God’s wrath that burns against sin.

Jesus did not die on the cross so that we can have a perfect life, but so that we can be saved from God’s perfect wrath (Romans 5:9; 1 Thessalonians 1:10). Then on the third day, He was bodily raised from the dead, proving Himself to be who He said He was: God in human flesh. The only way to have the wrath of God removed is to turn (i.e., repent) from sin and place your full trust in Christ and what He accomplished with His one-time, never-to-be-repeated sacrifice on Calvary’s tree (Hebrews 10:10, 12).

False teachers have been a problem in the church since its inception. In fact, of the 27 books in the New Testament, 26 of them directly warn about false doctrine and/or false teachers. Not only are false teachers marked by greed, but scripture also describes them as “caring only for themselves” (Jude 12).

Greed combined with a lack of care for others is a dangerous combination indeed.

The most radical thing you can do this Easter isn't new — it's ancient



Here's a fun Bible trivia fact: The word "remember" (and its variants) appears over 8,000 times in the Bible.

As we celebrate Jesus Christ's death and resurrection this weekend, remembering calls us to a more intimate relationship with God. I’m currently reading through the Old Testament, and the amount of times God commands the Israelites to “remember” or “do not forget” seems countless.

No matter what waves come, God calls us to give thanks and to recount all that He has done for us.

And yet, God’s chosen people endlessly turned their backs on God, forsaking Him to worship false gods.

Within an hour of learning something, research shows we forget about 50% of the information. As someone who is currently pregnant, I forget things even quicker.

But unlike being forced to recall information from a college-hall lecture, God isn’t calling us to remember random facts for the sake of regurgitating them. On the contrary, when He commands His followers to “remember,” there’s a specific purpose behind it — and it’s ultimately for our good and His glory.

To stay grounded in truth

Remembering helps us stay connected to what God has done — His promises, faithfulness, and guidance. Forgetting leads to drifting away or repeating mistakes like the Israelites did over and over again.

Throughout their 40-year journey, running in circles around the wilderness, the Israelites continued to doubt God and His goodness. God rescued them from the harsh grip of the Egyptians, miraculously parted the Red Sea, rained down manna from heaven, provided quail by a strong wind, supplied water from a rock, and ensured their clothes never wore out.

And yet, despite these incredible miracles and provisions, the Israelites turned to idolatry.

When Moses was on Mount Sinai, the Israelites grew tired of waiting for him during those 40 days and 40 nights, so they turned back to their pagan practices. Instead of Moses’ brother, Aaron, reminding them of God’s truth and His unchanging character, he succumbed to their request and directed them to gather up gold. Aaron not only built an altar in front of the calf, he announced a festival to take place. Consequences ensued upon Moses’ return, which included people dying and a plague.

It can be easy for us to think how ridiculous it is that the Israelites couldn’t wait for Moses to come down the mountain because the timing didn’t suit them. But how many times do we immediately doubt God because He’s not doing something on our timetable and turn to anything but God and His truth?

To build faith

Looking back on past seasons where God showed up for us can strengthen our trust in Him when we’re facing hardship and uncertainty. One way we can do this is by setting up visual reminders of God’s faithfulness: creating our own ebenezers.

In Hebrew, "ebenezer" means “stone of help.” The great prophet Samuel created the first one to commemorate God’s incredible provision for the Israelites. Many are familiar with the word because it’s in the well-known hymn "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing," written by Robert Robinson, a Baptist minister. The renowned line goes: “Here I raise my Ebenezer, Here by Thy great help I've come.”

It’s by God’s great help and undeserving mercy that the Israelites defeated the Philistines when the Philistines had planned to attack them. After 20 years of infidelity along with the Ark of the Covenant being in pagan possession, the Israelites repented of their sin and pleaded with Samuel during this pivotal moment of history: “Do not cease to cry out to the Lord our God for us, that he may save us from the hand of the Philistines” (1 Samuel 7:8).

When the Israelites faced an impossible situation, they came back to the living God, humbly asking for help. God “thundered” against the Philistines and threw them into “confusion,” giving the Israelites a resounding victory over their enemies. Samuel didn’t want them to forget God’s supernatural intervention, so he set up a stone of remembrance and called it “Ebenezer” because “the Lord has helped us” (1 Samuel 7:12).

Similarly, years earlier after God had parted the Jordan River for the Israelites as they entered the Promised Land, God commanded that 12 stones representing the 12 tribes of Israel be set up to commemorate God’s unwavering faithfulness.

To give thanks and teach future generations

Remembering can be a form of worship. It helps us remain grateful and humble, recognizing that we’re part of something bigger than ourselves. God often told people to remember and tell — to pass on stories of deliverance so others could learn, believe, and trust in the one who is unchanging.

The apostle Paul calls us to “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:18). No matter what waves come, God calls us to give thanks and to recount all that He has done for us.

It strengthens my faith when I read miraculous biblical accounts, looking back on His faithfulness in my own life, and hearing modern-day stories of how God provided when situations looked bleak. God healed my mother-in-law from cancer; God opened my friend’s womb after seven years of waiting; God provided a husband for me in the most wild, unexpected way; God answered three specific prayers when my dad was dying of an incurable disease; and so much more.

We must share these kinds of stories with others to encourage them, to tell of God’s faithfulness, and ultimately to give God the glory for the great things He has done. These miracle stories are to point others to Him and build upon our own ebenezer.

More importantly, God commands us to pass the faith along to the next generation, teaching our children of His wondrous deeds.

In Psalm 78, we are instructed not to “hide” these stories from our children. The Psalmist says, “But tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done.”

This recurring theme of teaching our children about God can be found throughout the scriptures. As God relays His commandments to Moses in the wilderness, Moses instructs the Israelites saying: “And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise” (Deuteronomy 6:6-7).

Here’s my practical suggestion for this solemn yet celebratory weekend: Instead of scrolling social media for a new nugget of truth, listening to podcasts for a new perspective on Easter, or expecting your pastor to preach a new angle on the resurrection, look back at what God has done in your life.

Reflect — and then take action:

  • Grab a pen and write three clear answers to prayer you’ve experienced in your life.
  • Open a new "notes" page in your phone app and make a list of at least 15 things you are grateful for.
  • Find a Sharpie and write down any major struggles that Christ has freed you from — then tear the sheet up and throw away the pieces.
  • Set aside time with your spouse, close friend, and/or children and reminisce about the details of how you came to know the Lord and how He has changed your life through His work on the cross.
  • Set up your own ebenezer to commemorate the miracles God has done in your life and how He has worked faithfully to provide for you.

Greater Exodus: How Jesus is revealed as the ultimate Passover lamb



The Gospel of John can be seen as a “New Book of Exodus,” emphasizing Jesus’ ministry and its profound connection to the Passover. While the synoptic Gospels highlight the Passover meal at the Last Supper to frame Jesus’ crucifixion, John’s Gospel uniquely ties Jesus’ death and mission to the themes of Passover and the Exodus.

These eight points illustrate how John presents Jesus as the true Passover lamb and the fulfillment of the Exodus story.

1. Barabbas and the cross as a vicarious sacrifice

All four Gospels link Jesus’ death with the sparing of Barabbas, but John presents this act with deeper theological implications. Barabbas, whose name means “son of the father,” was spared execution, while Jesus, the true Son of the Father, took His place on the cross. This exchange vividly portrays the cross as a vicarious sacrifice of atonement.

The sparing of Barabbas parallels the Passover, where the blood of a lamb on the doorposts caused the angel of death to pass over the firstborn sons of Israel.

Just as Barabbas was spared through Jesus’ substitutionary death, humanity is spared from judgment through the atoning sacrifice of Christ.

2. The centrality of Passover in John’s Gospel

John’s Gospel emphasizes the Passover more than any other New Testament book, mentioning it repeatedly to frame Jesus’ ministry and mission. Passover is referred to in John 2:13, 2:23, 5:1, 6:4, 11:55, and 13:1. These mentions underscore the centrality of Passover to understanding Jesus as the fulfillment of its themes.

For instance, John 6:4 introduces the feeding of the 5,000 within Passover, foreshadowing Jesus as the true bread of life, whose flesh provides eternal sustenance. Similarly, the events leading to His crucifixion are explicitly tied to Passover, reinforcing Jesus’ role as the lamb, whose sacrifice brings redemption.

3. Jesus, the lamb of God

John introduces Jesus with a profound declaration by John the Baptist: “Behold, the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).

This identification of Jesus as the lamb of God ties directly to the Passover lamb, whose blood spared Israel’s firstborn in Egypt. The imagery of Jesus as the lamb is later echoed in Revelation 5, where He is worshiped as the lamb who was slain and worthy to receive power and glory.

John’s Gospel thus bridges the Old Testament Passover lamb, Jesus’ crucifixion, and the ultimate victory of the lamb in Revelation, presenting a cohesive vision of redemption.

4. His bones were not broken

John 19:31-37 notes that the soldiers did not break Jesus’ legs, fulfilling the requirement of the Passover lamb: “You shall not break any of its bones” (Exodus 12:46). This detail is unique to John and serves to confirm Jesus as the perfect Passover lamb.

The unbroken bones also symbolize Jesus’ unblemished sacrifice. Unlike the animal sacrifices of the old covenant, Jesus’ sacrifice was once for all, perfect, complete, and sufficient to atone for sin.

This fulfillment of the Passover law for John underscores Jesus’ divine purpose as the lamb of God.

5. The timing of the crucifixion and the Passover lambs

John carefully sets the timing of Jesus’ crucifixion to coincide with the slaughtering of the Passover lambs. According to John 19:14, Jesus was crucified on the Day of Preparation, just as the Passover lambs were being sacrificed.

This timing is not coincidental; it reveals the theological significance of Jesus’ death. Just as the blood of the lambs protected Israel during the first Passover, Jesus’ blood provides eternal protection and deliverance from sin.

John’s emphasis on this timing reinforces Jesus as the ultimate fulfillment of the Passover sacrifice.

6. The mention of hyssop

In John 19:29, Jesus is offered sour wine on a hyssop branch during His crucifixion. This detail carries significant Passover symbolism. In Exodus 12:22, hyssop was used to sprinkle the lamb’s blood on the doorposts, marking the homes of Israel for deliverance.

John connects Jesus’ crucifixion to the original Passover by including this detail. Just as hyssop was used to apply the lamb’s blood in Egypt, it is present at the cross, where the blood of Jesus is applied to the doorpost of the heart of believers.

This imagery underscores Jesus as the true Passover lamb, whose blood brings deliverance.

7. Eating the Passover lamb and Jesus’ zeal for God’s house

In John 2:17, Jesus is described as having a zeal for God’s house, a reference to Psalm 69:9: “Zeal for Your house will consume me” (consume is literally “eat”).

The context of this statement in John’s Gospel is cleansing the Temple, which occurs during Passover (John 2:13). This timing ties Jesus’ zeal to consuming the Passover lamb in Exodus 12.

In the original Passover, the lamb was sacrificed and eaten as a sign of covenant participation. Similarly, Jesus calls His followers to partake of His body and blood, symbolized in the Eucharist, as a means of entering into the new covenant. This connection highlights the participatory nature of redemption through Christ, the true Passover lamb.

8. The Passover reinforced by allusions to the Exodus

Throughout John’s Gospel, numerous allusions to the Exodus reinforce Jesus’ role in a new and greater deliverance. For instance:

  • Water into wine (John 2:1-11): This miracle echoes Moses turning water into blood in Exodus 7:14-24, but instead of a sign of judgment, Jesus’ miracle signifies blessing and the inauguration of a new covenant.
  • Jesus’ “I am” statements: Jesus repeatedly declares “I am” (e.g., John 8:58), identifying Himself with Yahweh, the God who revealed His name to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14).
  • Manifesting God’s name: In John 17:6, 11-12, Jesus says He has manifested God’s name to His disciples, paralleling the Exodus theme of God revealing Himself to Israel.
  • The deliverance of the Jews from Egypt through the Red Sea coincides with the Exodus of believers from sin through the sea of Jesus’ (red) blood.

Just as the Exodus revealed God as redeemer, the new Exodus through Christ reveals God as Father. The Gospel of John masterfully portrays Jesus as the fulfillment of the Passover and the Exodus.

Through vivid imagery and theological insights, John reveals Jesus as the lamb of God, the ultimate Passover sacrifice, whose blood brings deliverance and redemption. Moreover, John’s allusions to the Exodus remind us that Jesus’ mission is to deliver Israel and to inaugurate a new and greater Exodus for all humanity.

During this sacred season of remembering Jesus’ passion, let us realize that Passover is not merely an event to remember; it is a reality to live as we partake in the redemption offered through the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.

This article was originally published on Joseph Mattera's website.

'He is not here': Our subversive Savior



For centuries, debate has roiled over the true location of Jesus Christ’s crucifixion and death. I had the privilege of visiting the sites at the center of the controversy on a trip to Israel in mid-March, just before fruitless hostage negotiations ended the ceasefire in Gaza.

The first site has been revered by Catholics and Orthodox Christians since 326 A.D., when it was identified by Constantine’s mother, Saint Helena. Constantine then ordered the construction of a towering memorial, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, there within the city walls. It is the cornerstone of the Christian Quarter in Jerusalem’s Old City, situated between its Muslim, Jewish, and Armenian counterparts.

My strong suspicion is that we’ll never know where the cross was raised and Christ drew his final breaths — because He doesn’t want us to.

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Muezzin droned Muslims into prayer as we stepped inside. During Holy Week, the Church is packed with Christians on pilgrimage — Copts, Syrians, Franciscans, Greeks, on and on — waiting for hours in winding lines to kneel for seconds in the Edicule. More than a month before Easter, the church was nearly empty, save for the locals.

The interior was sacrosanct, decorated with pomp and circumstance befitting the King of the Jews. Arms of light stretched through incense clouding the rotunda. I watched as shrouded elderly women on hands and knees massaged precious oil into the Stone of Anointing with their palms, dragging their rosaries over it and grazing it with their lips before struggling to stand.

They brought to mind the women I had seen earlier that week at the Western Wall on Shabbat (coinciding with Purim, a blood moon, and Ramadan), pressing themselves against the meleke limestone and tucking folded papers into its cracks, desperate to be heard in the inner room, the holy of holies. I sat on a plastic lawn chair and counted hundreds, thousands of pleas suspended in purgatory.

In the late 1800s, Protestant scholars and travelers began to question the placement of the Holy Sepulchre, pointing out that the area had been inside the city walls by Constantine’s time, whereas the Gospels specify that Jesus was crucified outside the city. In 1867, a tomb discovered in a garden area near a rocky outcrop became known as the Garden Tomb and is run by a small British charitable trust.

The Garden Tomb

Entering the garden, which is done through a back road near Damascus Gate, is like an exhale, like slipping from a tourist-laden New York City street into the Elizabeth Street Garden. There are gentle chirps, a breeze through the foliage, and, as you meander toward the back, the whir and mechanical sigh of a bus station built under a pockmarked cliffside.

This rock, they say, is Golgotha, the “place of the skull,” where Mark (15:22) writes that Jesus was brought for crucifixion. Atop is a cemetery for Islamic mujahideen (jihadist holy warriors), guarded by a wall with a prominent inscription of the Shahada: “No God but Allah, and Muhammad is His Messenger.”

“The cross,” said our volunteer tour guide, “would’ve been there, on the main road.” She pointed toward the buses. “Not on a hill, like in your children’s books, but low, where travelers might see him suffer face to face.”

“Why don’t they move the bus station and excavate?” asked a skeptical Catholic in our group. “Seems easy enough.”

The tour guide shook her head and said in her lilting British drawl, “Ask the Waqf.” The station, which opened in 1953, serves as the primary transportation hub to Arab neighborhoods in Jerusalem and the West Bank, with routes to cities like Ramallah, Nablus, and Bethlehem. It can’t (won’t?) be moved.

The true vine and the vineyard

Back through the garden and deeper in is a small sitting area and a cobbled winepress, which, in Christ’s day, would have been lined with hay to catch seeds and skins as workers pressed grapes beneath their feet. The garden is believed to have been a vineyard, a hub of agricultural activity.

Just beyond it is the main event — a rectangular entrance to a tomb, sealed with a wooden door that reads, “He Is Not Here, for He Is Risen.” Further description is almost unnecessary; inside, there’s not much to see. It’s cool and dark, and on the right, two resting places for bodies are carved into the stone.

I am not a historian. I don’t claim to have a scoop (or any strong opinion, for that matter) about the real location of Jesus’ death. The true site is lost to us, unmemorialized due to the persecution of early Christians and the city’s destruction in 70 A.D.

But how like our subversive Savior would that be? To suffer where we might draw near and to bleed and die in a humble garden whose entrance is easily missed. The true vine, entombed in a vineyard, His flesh split and blood pressed out for us beneath our own feet.

He has undermined our expectations from birth, just like that — this was no military leader or politician, but a child, swaddled in humility and sleeping in a feeding trough in the dirt. As Timothy Keller said in "The Reason for God," meditating on the subversive paradox of Christ’s life: “Jesus was the most morally upright person who ever lived, yet he had a life filled with the experience of poverty, rejection, injustice, and even torture.”

And there is no more subversive message than His gospel.

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His promise offers a radical redefinition of identity, not based on performance or societal status but on grace. As Keller notes in "The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith," the gospel of Jesus is not only different from those ideas, but diametrically opposed to them. “I'm fully accepted in Jesus Christ,” Keller said, summarizing, “and therefore I obey."

"When you realize that the antidote to being bad is not just being good,” Keller continues, “you are on the brink. If you follow through, it will change everything: how you relate to God, self, others, the world, your work, your sins, your virtue."

Scholar Christopher Watkin makes a similar point in his book "Biblical Critical Theory: How the Bible’s Unfolding Story Makes Sense of Modern Life and Culture." Watkin emphasizes that Jesus — in his incarnation, choice of disciples, and ultimate sacrifice — turns upside down the societal norms that prize power, control, and prestige. He writes, “The cross of Jesus is not merely a means of salvation, but also a disruption, a radical subversion of the very way we understand the world and our place in it.”

My strong suspicion is that we’ll never know where the cross was raised and Christ drew his final breaths — because He doesn’t want us to. He’s not there. The tomb, wherever it was, is empty, and so is the holy of holies. Instead, He lives and dwells in every heart that will offer Him room.

Muddy waters

Early in the trip, we were baptized at a sterile location in the Jordan River, created specifically for believers on pilgrimage. The water was clear and cool. We wore white robes. Our pastor wore a pink diving suit to keep warm.

The reality of Christ’s baptism was much different. The water was low and dirty, and yet He came. And the heavens opened, and the Spirit of the Lord descended upon him, saying, “This is my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased.” He emerged both muddy and clean.

We can’t avoid the mud. Our best good days won’t cleanse us. Luckily, our subversive Savior does not come to the sacrosanct. He comes to dwell with us, not in spite of the mud but because of it.

Jesus is alive: What happened after the resurrection changed history



So, the tomb is empty. Just as he said he would, Jesus rose from the dead in victory. What happened in the days that followed? The ascension wasn’t immediately after the day of resurrection. Forty days stood between the resurrection and the ascension. And those days mattered for the disciples and for many others.

In 1 Corinthians 15, the apostle Paul gives us a list of bodily appearances: “he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles” (1 Corinthians 15:4-7).

There were bodily appearances of Jesus to his disciples on the day of his resurrection. Generally speaking, these appearances countered the fear in the disciples. He said, “Peace be with you” (John 20:19). The appearances also confirmed his bodily risen state, for he showed them his hands and side (20:20). And his appearances involved instruction for the days to come (20:21-23).

What a unique and precious period of their earthly lives to have such encounters with the risen Christ during that 40-day period.

Some of the instruction Jesus gave during the 40 days was about the Old Testament. He taught his disciples how to interpret this prior revelation in light of what he had accomplished. “Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, ‘Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem’” (Luke 24:45-48).

In one of the most profound and memorable post-resurrection scenes, Jesus was in Galilee with his disciples and gave them the Great Commission. He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20).

More than one of his bodily appearances involved having food with his disciples. In Luke 24:41, Jesus asked them, “Have you anything here to eat?” And he ate some broiled fish in front of them (24:42-43). Eating this fish showed that he was truly present in the flesh. “For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have,” he said (24:39). John 21 reports another scene with fish, this time beside the Sea of Galilee. Hauling in a miraculous catch of fish, the disciples ate with Christ, who said to them, “Come and have breakfast” (John 21:12). He gave bread and fish to them (21:13).

During the episode with the fish by the shore, Jesus restored Simon Peter with three questions — “Do you love me?” — because Peter had denied him three times (John 21:15-17). Peter indeed proclaimed his love for Christ, who then told him, “Feed my sheep” (21:17).

The Gospel accounts do not give us a record of what happened every day between the resurrection and the ascension of Jesus. We only know a small selection of appearances and events and teachings and meals. In Acts 1 we read a summary of what those days involved: “He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during 40 days and speaking about the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3).

Ponder the powerful effect that these proofs and teachings would have had on the disciples. What a unique and precious period of their earthly lives to have such encounters with the risen Christ during that 40-day period. He shared meals with them, built up their faith with instruction and fellowship, and commissioned them to take the good news far and wide.

Jesus’s final words to them, while he was physically with them, are found in Acts 1:8: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

This essay was originally published at Dr. Mitchell Chase's Substack, Biblical Theology.

Easter changes everything: What the empty tomb means for you today



It's no exaggeration: On Easter morning, the world changed forever. At dawn, a tomb sat empty — evidence that death had been defeated.

Outside that tomb stood stunned women. A messenger of the Lord spoke to them: "He is not here; He has risen, just as He said" (Matthew 28:6). Those words echoed across time and space. They are the bedrock of the Christian faith, just as true today as they were 2,000 years ago. If the cross was the cost of sin, the resurrection and empty tomb are the receipt.

Death conquered. Victory secured.

The resurrection is a royal announcement: The King is alive and He reigns now.

But Easter isn't just a historical event. It's a true and present reality.

Wherever you find yourself on this Easter morning — carrying burdens, lost, confused, and exhausted or joyous and content — Easter meets you right where you are. The empty tomb isn't just a sentimental symbol. It's a defiant declaration: Christ reigns now. Sin is defeated. Death has no power.

The apostle Paul writes, "If Christ hasn’t been raised, then your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins" (1 Corinthians 15:17). But Christ is risen — and that changes everything.

The resurrection secures us these four promises.

1. Sins are forgiven

Before Easter comes Jesus' endurance on the cross, a sacrifice that reconciles us to God.

Paul reminds us, "In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace" (Ephesians 1:7). Because of the cross and resurrection, we don't have to wonder if God accepts us. There's no guilt left to carry and no shame left to hide.

"Now there isn’t any condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1).

On this Easter day, we celebrate that Jesus is alive. We give thanks for the redemption that he secured for us, rescuing us from the control of darkness and bringing us into the kingdom of God (Colossians 1:13-14).

2. Death is defeated

The resurrection proves the grave is powerless. Death no longer has the final say. For those in Christ, we follow Jesus through death into eternal life.

Paul rejoices, "Death has been swallowed up by a victory. Where is your victory, Death? Where is your sting, Death?" (1 Corinthians 15:55).

Jesus tells Martha, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me will live, even though they die. Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" (John 11:25-26).

3. Hope is alive

Our world feels uncertain. But Easter reminds us that our hope is not tied to the doldrums of human leaders, the stock market, or headlines.

Instead, our hope is anchored to the empty tomb and the living Christ.

Hope, in fact, is alive because the tomb is empty, sin is conquered, death is defeated, and Christ is risen — and still reigning. Hope is resurrection reality.

The apostle Peter reminds us, "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time" (1 Peter 1:3-5).

4. Kingdom is coming

Easter, the resurrection of the living Christ, is not the end of the story — it's only the beginning.

Resurrection is not only the declaration of death defeated, but it reminds us that God has launched his kingdom and inaugurated His new creation. Jesus is the firstfruits of what is to come (1 Corinthians 15:20). When Jesus exited the tomb, he was launching a new world order: the kingdom of God, breaking into the here and now.

The resurrection is a royal announcement: The King is alive and He reigns now.

The kingdom is coming, and through Christ's empty tomb, it has already begun. And although we live in the "already but not yet," we know that the King is alive and He will return to finish what he started on Easter morning.

As Jesus our Lord taught us to pray, "Your kingdom come, your will be done — on earth as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:10).

This Easter, remember the empty tomb isn't something we merely celebrate — it's something we live from and cling to. We are not alone. The victory has been won.

Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Hallelujah!

Catholic craft brewers take a stand for gun ownership



One of the Midwest’s more popular microbreweries is showing its support for the Second Amendment with the release of its first India Pale Ale — 2nd Amendment New England IPA.

Illinois native Jeff Alcorn and his sons Trevor and Cameron started Tridentine Brewing Co. as a hobby, naming it in honor of their strong Catholic faith.

Not wanting their beer to get lost in a sea of IPAs, Tridentine went with a style focusing on 'more traditional and maltier expressions.'

When their home brews proved popular, the family partnered with Madison, Wisconsin-based Karben4 Brewery to launch their first commercially available beer in October 2024. Since then, the company has surged in popularity, building a fan base of 20,700 X followers and 6,400 Instagram followers and landing a major Forbesprofile in November.

Brewing anticipation

Trevor describes 2nd Amendment as a refreshing, mellow, and juicy New England-style IPA that is more approachable than contemporary IPA products. Its patriotic and pro-gun-rights branding reflects the company’s stances on these issues.

“We actually canned the batch on Tuesday, April 1, and it started to hit some stores, but it wasn’t widespread across all the locations we’re at in Wisconsin,” says Trevor. “I didn’t get the social media stuff up until late Saturday, but it’s getting out there more and it's pretty well received. People loved the artwork even before we brought the beer to share, and now that people have had the beer, the reception is pretty good.”

2nd Amendment is the brewery's fourth release. Like its predecessors, it tells a story through its packaging — an eye-catching can designed by Catholic illustrator Chris Lewis.

God-given rights

Tridentine's Quartermaster Jerry Blonde Ale pays tribute to late family patriarch Jerry Alcorn, who served in the U.S. Navy, while Cristeros Mexican Lager honors Catholics martryed by Mexico's socialist government in the 1920s. Dies Irae Imperial Stout alludes to the final judgment at the end of time. The company expects to launch a fifth beer this summer.

While 2nd Amendment may seem more explicitly topical than the other beers, Trevor says the message is ultimately timeless.

“The timing didn’t have to do with politics per se, with what's going on. This is just our strong belief in the God-given rights we have as Americans and supporting those. That’s the driving force behind it, and it ties into the patriotic theme. We want to drive home the message that being patriotic is not just a holiday thing. For us, honoring and saluting our veterans and our country is something we want to do year-round.”

Trevor also wanted the can's artwork to stress that the Second Amendment applies to all Americans, not just those in the military.

"We wanted to show ... a regular farmer," he says. "Someone who wasn’t in a Continental Army uniform [so we could] highlight the reason for the Second Amendment: for our right to firearms to defend ourselves and our community if needed.”

Tridentine Brewery Co.

A patriotic IPA

As for making it an IPA, Trevor says it just made sense. Given that IPAs control a 46% share of the craft beer industry, demand has been high for the company to branch out of lagers, stouts, and blonde ales.

Not wanting their beer to get lost in a sea of IPAs, Tridentine went with a style focusing on "more traditional and maltier expressions" seen in IPAs from New England — a perfect fit for the patriotic theme.

Tridentine Brewing Co.’s motto is “Brewing beer for the greater glory of God," and this is reflected at all levels of the company's work. Its social media presence is outspokenly Catholic, the family prays before brewing sessions, and the brewery was even blessed by a priest.

Tridentine beers are currently only available in Wisconsin. The company's contract with Karben4 and state liquor laws have slowed the rollout to other states. Still, the company hopes to expand distribution, starting with the Alcorns' home state of Illinois and eventually to other states. Given the passionate evangelization the beer inspires online, Tridentine seems well equipped to hit the target.

Spy Wednesday: A chilling warning from the man who betrayed Christ



Since the earliest times, the Catholic Church has commemorated the Wednesday of Holy Week as Spy Wednesday, the day Judas Iscariot slipped away to negotiate the traitor’s price to turn Jesus Christ over to the chief priests in Jerusalem.

The betrayal of Judas deserves plenty of attention as we prepare to recall Christ’s Passion and death on Good Friday. The remembrance of Judas’ treachery serves as a warning to all, important enough to have its own commemoration on a weekday traditionally associated with bodily mortification.

'They weighed for my wages thirty pieces of silver.'

The chief priests were actively looking for a means to seize Jesus without triggering a riot. As they deliberated, suddenly Judas appeared, seeking an audience.

“The chief priests and the scribes sought how they might put Jesus to death; but they feared the people,” wrote Dom Prosper Guéranger, the late French abbot and author of the comprehensive 15-volume series "The Liturgical Year."

“And Satan entered into Judas, who was surnamed Iscariot, one of the twelve; and he went, and discoursed with the chief priests and the magistrates, how he might betray him to them. And they were glad, and covenanted to give him money. And he promised; and he sought opportunity to betray him in the absence of the multitude.

“They admit him and he says to them, ‘What will you give me and I will deliver him unto you?’” (from Matthew 26:15) Guéranger wrote. “They are delighted at this proposition and yet, how is it, that they, doctors of the law, forget that this infamous bargain between themselves and Judas has all been foretold by David in the 108th Psalm?

Judas Iscariot settled for 30 pieces of silver, the price of a slave, to betray Jesus Christ.P. Molnar/Wikimedia Commons

“They know the Scriptures from beginning to end — how comes it,” Guéranger wrote, “that they forget the words of the prophet, who even mentions the sum of thirty pieces of silver?”

Thirty pieces of silver was typically the price of a slave. The amount of this shameful bargain is mentioned in Zechariah 11:12, “And they weighed for my wages thirty pieces of silver.” The words of the prophets, which would have been clear to these men who plotted against Jesus, did not give them pause as they prepared to carry out the gravest crime in history.

“On this day, Judas leaves his Master, and takes the devil for his guide,” Guéranger wrote. “The love of money blinds him. He fell from the light, he became darkened; for how could he be said to see, who sold the Light for thirty pieces of silver?”

According to the Jewish historian Josephus, there were about 2.7 million people in Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. The people had welcomed Jesus as a king on Palm Sunday, laying their cloaks and palm branches along the path as he rode into Jerusalem on a donkey.

Jesus was determined to eat the Passover alone with his apostles. So he frustrated Judas’ scheming by the way he selected the place to eat the Passover meal.

'This sort of talk is hard to take. Who can stand it?'

“Our Lord knows that Judas had sold him and is about to betray him and Judas therefore is laying plans,” said Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen in one of his Holy Week discourses. “Our Lord now begins to thwart his plans.”

How does our Lord do it? He says to some of his disciples, go into the city and you will find a man with a water pot on his head. Ask him, where has he prepared the house for the Passover meal? The disciples went into the city. They found a man with a water pot on his head. Why did our Lord use that particular sign?

Well, because men never carry water pots on their head. Women carry water pots on their head. That would be just like saying, go into the city and find a man who's carrying a pink parasol. So the disciples then found the man who had prepared the upper room. Judas therefore did not know where he was being led. Our Lord wanted the last meal alone with his apostles, and Judas would now have to come with him and no one would know except the disciples who met the man with a water pot on the head.

The Agony in the Garden.Giovanni Bellini, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Why did Judas go on his spy mission, scheming to betray his Redeemer? Sheen said a popular theory was that Judas had succumbed to avarice. But despite some evidence for this in Scripture, Sheen said the downfall of Iscariot’s faith came when Christ introduced the Holy Eucharist while teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum.

“In truth, in very truth I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood you can have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood possesses eternal life and I will raise him up on the last day. My flesh is real food; my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood dwells continuously in me and I dwell in him” (from John 6:52-57).

This core mystery of the Catholic faith became an insurmountable stumbling block for Judas and other followers of Christ, according to Fr. William Patrick Casey of the Fathers of Mercy.

“Jesus said this over and over again, and the Jews heard him,” Fr. Casey said in a popular audio talk on the Holy Eucharist. “They knew what he was saying, but it was just too much for them. It was too much even for some of his own disciples. They just couldn’t believe it. They said, ‘This sort of talk is hard to take. Who can stand it?’ He said, ‘If you don’t eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.’”

Archbishop Sheen places the start of Judas’ fall on this day in Capernaum.

“Where is the first mention of the fall of Judas?” Sheen asked in one of his audio talks. “The day our Lord announced the Eucharist. When did Judas leave? The night our Lord gave the Eucharist. He broke at the announcement of the Eucharist. As a matter of fact, that was the critical moment in the life of our blessed Lord. When he announced the Eucharist, he lost the masses, because he refused to be a bread king.”

At the Last Supper, Jesus asked Judas to sit near him.

Engraving of the Last Supper.Public Domain/Wikimedia Commons

“Christ chose Judas to be an apostle,” Sheen said. “He did not choose him to be a traitor, but to be an apostle.”

Judas had worked out a sign with the brigands who would seize Jesus in the Garden of Olives: a kiss.

“How shall they, who are sent to seize him, be able to distinguish him from his disciples?” Guéranger asked. “Judas will lead the way; he will show them which is Jesus, by going up to him and kissing him!”

Judas thought Christ to be a coward who would retreat into the olive grove when soldiers came to seize him. But when death came for Christ that night, He went out to meet it face to face.

Judas’ betrayal was no kiss of peace or friendship.

“The Lord came forward and Judas reached out his arms and threw them around the Lord's neck,” Sheen said. “And the Greek word in the Gospel is καταφιλέω; he smothered him with kisses. Divinity is so sacred, it is always betrayed by some sign of affection. And our Lord says, ‘Friend, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?’”

On the traditional calendar, the Church keeps a penitential fast on Spy Wednesday as a reminder of Judas’ betrayal of Christ, according to Dom Benedict Baur, the late German Benedictine theologian.

“What a spectacle! Christ betrayed by one of His own apostles and handed over to His enemies,” Dom Baur wrote in a reflection published in the Mass companion "Benedictus." “That act sounded the depths of ingratitude, hypocrisy, and baseness. The act was made more despicable by the fact that it was performed for money.”

Baur said the stakes are high for all Christians who neglect and lose their faith or chase after worldly gains.

“Often they forsake religion and neglect the sacraments,” he wrote. “What remains to them from all the temporal advantages they may gain? They soon prove empty; this discovery drove Judas to despair."