“At the heart of today’s Gospel is one consoling truth: When we lose someone we love—Jesus is not absent. He is with us, and He leads us to hope.
Martha says to Jesus: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
Those words are not just Martha’s. They are our words too.
When we lose a loved one—a parent, a spouse, a child, a friend—our hearts quietly ask:
“Lord, where were You?”
“Why did this happen?”
“Why did You not come sooner?”
And Jesus does not scold Martha. He does not correct her. Instead, He allows her to speak her pain.
My dear friends, if you are grieving today—if you have lost someone physically through death, or spiritually—someone who has drifted away from God, be not afraid to bring that pain to Jesus.
Because in the Gospel, we see something very beautiful: Jesus weeps.
He knows He will raise Lazarus. And yet—Jesus still cries. Why?
Because love feels loss.
Because God is not distant.
Because Jesus shares your sorrow.
My dear brothers and sisters,
Your tears matter to God. Your grief is not ignored. Your longing is understood.
And then Jesus speaks these powerful words: “I am the Resurrection and the Life.”
This is our hope.
For those we have lost in death—our goodbye is not forever. In Christ, there is life beyond the grave. There is reunion. There is eternal embrace.
And for those we have “lost” spiritually—a son, a daughter, a loved one who has wandered— do not lose hope.
The same Jesus who called Lazarus out of the tomb can call them back to life.
No heart is too far.
No soul is beyond His reach.
My dear brothers and sisters,
As your Archbishop, I want to speak to you like a father:
- Grieve—but do not lose hope.
- Weep—but do not despair.
- Miss them—but entrust them to God.
Because Jesus stands before every tomb—the tomb of death, the tomb of distance, the tomb of lost faith—and He calls out: “Come out.”
And one day, in God’s time, we will all hear His voice again.
And we will be together—in a life that will never end. Amen.”