Pascha Encyclical of His Eminence Metropolitan Mitrofan

Festive services of Holy Week and the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ were served by His Eminence Archbishop of Toronto and Metropolitan of Canada Dr. Mitrofan at the Holy Transfiguration Monastery in Milton.

Encyclical No. 51
Pascha 2025
Milton/Toronto

Dear brothers and sisters,

On this Most Holy Day, we witness God’s victory over death because our Lord, Jesus Christ, has risen. The Resurrection has illuminated all the darkness of this world and brought us eternal life. This is the most important moment not only in the history of the Church, but also in the life of every person on earth.

The Apostle Paul, in his First Epistle to the Corinthians, speaks of the significance of the Resurrection with great emphasis: “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, and your faith is also in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:14). They show us that without the Resurrection of Christ, our faith would have no foundation, and our Christian testimony would be in vain. This is not just a historical event that once existed, but today it is part of our daily life and faith. If Christ had not risen, then we would not have the meaning of the Holy Liturgy, we would not have the meaning of all those Sacraments that the Church perfects, because everything would be in vain. The Resurrection of Christ reveals to us a profound truth, which is that death was conquered by God’s love, that is, by His sacrifice for us sinners. And He is the only one without sin. Our salvation finds its foundation in His sacrifice for eternal life. Of course, the Resurrection is not only an event that shows that Christ conquered death, but also that everything He taught and did is now confirmed by His Resurrection. Through the Resurrection, God announced His Kingdom, which is not of this world. This encourages us not to look only at the visible world, but to direct everything we do towards Eternal Life.

In the aforementioned epistle, the Holy Apostle Paul tells us that faith is empty if Christ has not risen. For us as believers, we need to incorporate this message into our daily lives and live in love, prayer and action as people who truly believe in the Resurrection. His Resurrection is not only a written truth that is affirmed in the Church, but it is also a truth that we need to practically affirm with our lives. And this is because in the life of Christians, faith is not something that is limited to belief alone, but faith is transformed into a way of life that is shaped by the Gospel teaching. We should be the bearers of that Pascha light in the world. Our lives cannot be the same as the lives of people who have no hope, because regardless of all the difficulties, we have the promise of eternal life, if we are worthy of it. Therefore, our faith must be active and alive, not only in words, but also in deeds. In our every word, prayer, and action, we need to testify that Christ is risen and lives in us. Through prayer, we connect with the entire Church, which is the body of Christ. The Resurrection is also a call to a comprehensive change in our lives. We need to free ourselves from everything that is sinful and that distances us from God. Christ has conquered death and sin, and we are called to be witnesses of that victory, and to pass that victory on to other people. Therefore, we need to live as people who have experienced the Risen Christ.

Christ left us Holy Communion as the greatest gift, so that we may be in union with Him until His Second Coming. The Holy Eucharist is the center of the Church and the essence of Christian life. Through Holy Communion, we believers receive the Body and Blood of Christ, and become partakers of His Resurrection. The institution of the Holy Eucharist occurred at the Last Supper, when Christ took bread and blessed it, saying to the disciples: “Take, eat; this is my body.” Then he took a cup of wine, gave it to them, and said: “Drink from it, all of you; for this is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Mt 26:26–28). Christ said that he would be with us until the end of the age (Mt 28:20). Through the Holy Eucharist He is truly in us and with us. From the early Church to today, the Holy Liturgy is the most important and only gathering where we relive Christ’s sacrifice and Resurrection.

Dear brothers and sisters,

Let us not limit the Resurrection of Christ to just these three days, for every Sunday is the day of Resurrection. That is why Sunday is called “the Lord’s Day” (Rev. 1:10). Because we believers come to church not only to remember the Resurrection, like some Protestants, but to personally experience it through the Holy Sacrament of Communion. The Holy Fathers of the Church emphasize that Christians without Holy Communion spiritually distance themselves from the source of eternal life. Saint John Chrysostom says that the Liturgy and Communion are the center of the life of a Christian, because without them faith becomes only an empty form. He points out that Christ said: “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you” (John 6:53). That is why the Holy Liturgy is precisely the presence of the future age in this world, as is confirmed by the words at the beginning of the Holy Liturgy: “Blessed is the Kingdom of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Therefore, the Church is precisely the place where heaven and earth merge. Saint Maximus the Confessor speaks about this, teaching that every Liturgy represents an icon of eschatological reality – the future world that we await. In it we experience that future communion with God that will fully occur in the Kingdom of Heaven.

We pray to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, to send His peace to our suffering people in Kosovo and Metohija, as well as to our brothers in faith in Russia, Ukraine, Syria, Palestine and Lebanon, so that they may welcome this great Feast with joy.

We thank all of you who have contributed to our monastery, our Diocese and all our Churches, as well as to all those who need material and spiritual help. May the Risen Lord repay you all with His eternal gifts.

From the bottom of our hearts and souls, we warmly greet you with the most joyful greeting:
CHRIST IS RISEN! TRULY HE IS RISEN!

Your intercessor before the Risen Lord Jesus Christ,

ARCHBISHOP OF TORONTO
AND METROPOLITAN OF CANADA
DR. MITROFAN