« Old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. »
(2 Cor 5:17).

In this Holy Year, hope springs forth powerfully in the Easter feast: Christ is risen, Christ is victorious over evil and death!

However, current events in the Middle East are full of violence: they arouse resentment and revenge, desires for power… and those who suffer are always the most vulnerable and the most marginalized. But, « we know that Christ has truly risen from the dead. Death and life clashed in a tremendous duel. The Master of life died; living, he reigns.» (1)

In the grace of Easter we are given faith in the victory of love: we do not deny that in the world, as in our personal lives, there is no lack of difficulties. The vivifying presence of the Risen One illuminates them, transforms our tears into the desire to work for reconciliation and to welcome peace.

« Peace, the Easter gift of the Risen One to his own and to the world, flows from his glorious wounds, from his life given out of love to the end.» (2)

In each of our Carmels, from Morocco to Syria, we are filled with the joy of Easter, that of offering the Lord united communities, open to the hopes and anxieties that surround them, communities where the Lord can dwell and make himself present: « Peace be with you! »
In this Holy Year, may the Easter grace of hope be offered to you broadly: may our eyes be opened like those of the disciples on the road to Emmaus, and may we recognize the Lord in our daily realities.

Holy and joyful Easter to you all!
Christ is Risen!
Cristo è rissorto !
Christ est Ressuscité !
¡Cristo ha resucitado !
Cristo ressuscitou!
المسيح قام حاق قام
ישו באמת קם לתחייה

Your Carmelite Sisters of the Middle East and North Africa.

(1) Easter Sequence Victimae paschali.
(2) Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem. Lenten Message, March 3, 2025.