Blessed Easter!

He has risen, just as he said!”

Jesus says to Martha: “I am the Resurrection and the life: he who believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live; and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this? She replies: “Yes, Lord, I have believed that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God, who came into this world (John 11:23-27).

He who believes—that is, has a living faith in me accompanied by charity—even if he dies, 

will live, because I will call him back to an immortal life of joy and happiness.

His will not be a death, 

but a passage from the faithful life of time to the blessed life of eternity.

We find this text: “He has risen, just as he said!” in the “Regina Caeli” that is one of the four great Marian antiphons prescribed by the Latin liturgical tradition. We and all the Church sing it during Eastertide. Its steady spread in practice is evidenced by the 13th century, with full adoption in the Roman liturgy in the 14th and 15th centuries. 

The antiphon contains this line:

Regina coeli, laetare, alleluia.

Quia quem meruisti portare, alleluia.

Resurrexit sicut dixit, alleluia.

Queen of Heaven, rejoice, alleluia 

For he whom you deserved to carry (in your womb), alleluia 

Has risen, just as he said, alleluia.

According to legend, Pope St. Gregory the Great (6th century) heard angels singing the first three lines on a morning in Rome and added the fourth line, Ora pro nobis Deum “Pray for us to God”.

Unlike the Angelus, which is a meditation on the Incarnation, the Regina Caeli is a resurrection hymn; that celebrates Christ’s victory over death and invites the faithful to share in that joy, repeating rejoice glad, and & Alleluia; multiple times.

It is an Easter title of Honor and signifies that the Mother of Christ already participates in the Easter glory of her son. Instead of the usual address for Mary, Ave, the Laetare, rejoice, is used.

This is an invitation to look to Mary as she lives now: the servant of the Lord on earth has become the queen of heaven. In her exaltation, she has become a sign for all who are united with Christ through baptism. The antiphon reminds Mary, the crowned mother of the redeemer, of the promise fulfilled by using the angel’s words, He has risen as he said! (Matthew 28,6) This prayer is meant to keep the joy of the Resurrection alive in the hearts and minds of believers throughout the 50 days of the Easter season.

Easter Sunday – April 05, 2026