Some questions about Easter

[Horn]

Firstly, shouldn’t Easter be more important than Christmas? I know that Christmas is an important time too, but Jesus was born so he could die on the cross and be resurrected so wouldn’t Easter be more important because it is the celebration of this?

Secondly, how did Jesus’ death take away our sins? How would it be different if he had never done this?

 

[Spirithound]

Firstly, shouldn’t Easter be more important than Christmas? I know that Christmas is an important time too, but Jesus was born so he could die on the cross and be resurrected so wouldn’t Easter be more important because it is the celebration of this?

Secondly, how did Jesus’ death take away our sins? How would it be different if he had never done this?

Well, it is…the secular world just like presents, and co-opted St. Nicholas to make themselves happy…
God could have redeemed us in any way He wanted. But, He chose to die for us to show the complete love that He has for us. This is the culmination of the sacrifices made in the Jewish Temple, which were imperfect, with a sacrifice that is Perfection itself.

 

[Christy_Beth]

God’s one commandment to Adam and Eve (His original commandment) forbade them from eating of the fruit of one tree. He told them that if they did, they would die. And, God being God, He judged them guilty. In order to restore life, sacrifices were needed. Until Jesus, certain animals were allowed to be used. But the animals couldn’t pay the full price to our guilt. Christ dying on the cross paid the full cost of our sins. His sacrifice fulfulled God’s judgment.

Maybe that isn’t exactly the right way to put it. But Jesus, being God, willingly paid the price of our guilt. His death gave us life.

 

[Fidelis]

The answer to your first question is “Yes.”

As to your second question:

—> Christ did NOT die on the Cross “in our place” (Substitutionary Atonement)
—> Christ DID die on the Cross to take away the sin (in general) of the world = the Redemption.
· This made it possible for each of us to respond to God’s initiative (grace), place our faith in Jesus’ sacrifice and his promises, and be baptized.

1. Baptism
   · Initial justification where our sins are washed away. As a Sacrament, baptism is an efficacious sign that really accomplishes what it signifies. We are “born again” to new life; sanctified and made holy and fit for heaven (this is called sanctifying grace). If we were to die in this state, we would go to heaven.
2. Sanctification
   · After baptism, we want to remain in sanctifying grace since if we die in any other state we will not go to heaven. We do this by relying on “prompting” graces (called actual graces) from God to do good (virtue) and avoid evil (sin). If we respond to God’s grace, we will remain in sanctifying grace. This is the sense in which we are “saved by our works”—it is entirely due to the grace of God with our cooperation. The more graces we respond to, the more we grow in holiness (sanctification), and the surer we are headed for heaven. In this, also, we are, by cooperating with God’s grace, being obedient to the commandments of Our Lord.
   · If we fail to respond to God’s grace, especially if we fall into habitual venial sin, we run the risk of eventually falling into mortal sin. If we do, sanctifying grace dies in us and we are no longer “in a state of grace”—if we die in that state we cannot go to heaven.
   · It is then that God sends us graces to urge us to repent and to confess our sins in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. We are then restored to sanctifying grace. This is how our justification can be seen as ongoing.
3. Final Perseverance
   · Finally, if through faith we remain faithful to God and respond to the graces he has given us through our lives and die in the state of sanctifying grace, we will be with God forever in heaven.

Thus, (1) Christ’s death on the Cross was one of Redemption – closing the chasm between God and man caused by our sins and reconciling mankind to the Father (2) We have been saved (by responding to God’s initiative through grace, accepting Christ as Savior and Lord and through baptism), (3) we are being saved (through responding to God’s continual graces); (4) and we will be saved (by final perseverance).