Rising again

Fr. Livio Tonello, director

In nature, we see the phenomenon of rebirth, especially in spring. Actually, it is a matter of transformation, because if there were death everything would be over. We can talk about rebirth, but only by analogy. Even if, in our view, the tree that in winter seemed lifeless seems to be reborn by putting on its leaves, actually it was a pause of inactivity. The sap continued to be there, though not flowing. If we apply the analogy of rebirth to the resurrection of Jesus, we know that it is not the same thing. Jesus on the cross was dead. From the tomb he rose again, that is, he returned to life, rising from the dead. It is a unique event, unrepeatable in human history. Therefore, only by analogy, every time something seems dead and returns to live, we can say that it rises again or at least that it lives again. However, the image is suggestive and has many references: in human life, in the social sphere, in economic events. A society rises again from the crisis, a city rises again from the devastation of war or earthquake, a project that had been set aside is born again. Rising…