The lesson will doubtlessly centre on the idea of the ultimate sacrifice that Christ made so that God would wash away our sins forever and we would have everlasting life in the Kingdom to come.

On Sunday Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. There will be much feasting and rejoicing as they proclaim God's victory over death and welcome the prospects of renewed life, new beginnings and eternal hope. It will be time to we look forward to better times ahead and put the penitence of the last forty days behind.

Easter comes round every year now and most of us are familiar with its customs. There is no doubt in my mind that I will join the celebrations of Easter Sunday with as much vigour and energy as the next person. We are just coming out of the longest spell of bad weather that I can remember and it would be nice to welcome the "new season" with as much fun and vigelegele as is legal. If there are easter parades in my town I will stop by to watch and wave. I can confidently predict that I will make an appearance at all the parties that I am invited to and that I will not shy away from nyam chom or fried chicken and chapos. It is also highly unlikely that I will turn down pints of lager or glasses of wine as I lead my fellow christians in eating, drinking and the making of merry.

There are many who will tell you that for them the period before Easter was business as usual; that they did not fast or give up stuff for lent; that they did not wear ashcloth or put a sign of the cross on their foreheads on Ash Wednesday; that they did not visit hospitals, prisons, or do any specific act with one eye on the calendar. They will tell you that everyday they help others in one way or another. That they make sacrifices in their own social or domestic situations in order that someone else may benefit.

For others still everyday is a day of penance and suffering is their constant companion. It is as though they are doing penitence for the sins of all mankind. If this is not the case why then are they crushed underfoot by the rest of humanity to live in completely intolerable conditions of poverty, famine, and the ravages of war and disease, in this the 21st century.

Politics and spirituality are not a good mix and I'll go away now to reflect on why Jesus loved us so much that he died on the cross to clear away our sins.

How do we manage our spiritual lives to take full account of His sacrifice. I will look for inspiration to the words of St Francis of Assisi who was speaking to a fellow brother about "Perfect Joy" . He said that it could not come from created things or fame or honours, nor even from prophecies and miracles. It could only come from self-denial and humiliations suffered in imitation of Jesus who suffered so much for everyone.

He went on, "We cannot glory in the gifts that God has given us because they are not ours, but we can glory in sufferings because they are ours!"

Have a happy and peaceful Easter.