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Jesus from the dead," and their God. in St. Peter's words. is one "who raised up Jesus from the dead and gave Him glory. so that your faith and hope might be in God."

(b) the Christian God is the God of Easter. Long after the event our faith still has at its centre the mighty act which happened once. and Jesus is always with

us. This is the Gospel!

(c) Easter does not mean that Good Friday is left behind. We must pass through the Cross to the Easter victory. The divine event includes both death and resurrection. The victorious Christ could say to St. Thomas. "reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; reach hither thy hand. and thrust it into my side; and be not faithless, but believing."

The story of Jesus is not the tale of an inspired prophet.

(a) The heart ofthe Gospel is as Christians believe that "in the birth, life, death, resurrection and ascension of Jesus God was giving His own selfin becoming man, and sharing utterly in man's life. St. John says, "The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory." His gospel goes on to Show us how the glory shone in the self-giving of His Passion and Resurrection. (b) Bishop Ramsey says, "Good Friday and Easter are thus the key to the Christian belief about God and about Jesus, and the key also to the Christian life. This is the Gospel we have to witness to, to proclaim. The death and resurrection were the theme of the earliest Christian preaching. even before the records of His birth, and life, and teachings. Christians do not always remember how cross-centred is the Christian faith and the Christian life. (c) Our mission is to proclaim the Gospel of dying and living, sorrowful and rejoicing. That is the Christian way. Nowhere is this double aspect ofthe Christian life more vividly present than in the Eucharist, Tonight. in the Eucharist, we share in heaven's own worship with the angels and saints, and at the same time know that the Risen Jesus who feeds us with the bread of heaven is also the Jesus who suffers in the world around us, and bids us find Him and serve Him there. If you can't find Jesus in the children of the slums you won't find Him in the tabernacle on your altars!

Conclusion: This is the Church 's Work, the Church 's Mission: to know Christ and to make Him known. How shall we respond? (a) St. Paul reports: "First. they gave themselves," (b) God has given to every man and woman the measure of faith. We will first witness by being, then proclaiming. (c) We will look about and see that here in our Region the fields are white unto the harvest. (d) We will study our Bibles and our Prayer Books that we may "be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh a reason ofthe hope that is in you with meekness and fear." I Peter 3: 15. (e) We will love and hold fast to our Mother the Church:

"Church ofthe living God,

Pillar and ground of truth;

Keep the old paths thy fathers trod

In thy illumined youth."