You will die.

I am quite sure of that; historically, the odds are not exactly in your, nor my, favor. But, what if they did not have to be?

Since the conception of time itself, two great entities have ruled over all: Life and Death. With this understanding, humanity—for thousands of years—raged at the conviction of their own impermanence. Men and women alike cursed the futility of their lives, denounced the prospect of an inevitable death.

Then, in Nazareth, the Son of God, a Messiah — as prophesied in the Old Testament — was born. He was sent from the Father and devoted his life for a purpose. To “make a new covenant” with humanity (Jer 31:31). To build God’s everlasting Kingdom on Earth.

And throughout his life, Jesus did a pretty good job of just that: He humbly served those around him; He sympathized for the marginalized; and most importantly, He loved. This is all to say that each action Jesus performed during his life was merciful and even seemed to be enough to establish an everlasting Kingdom on Earth. But it was not. There was one issue.

Jesus, during his time on solid ground, was mortal. He was living. While, yes, He accomplished unspeakable and impossible acts, He had yet to conquer the most unthinkable of acts. On Good Friday, He died.

And then came today. The Third Day. Mary Magdalene visited the tomb only to see the stone rolled back and the body of Jesus missing. At first, Simon Peter and the other disciples did not believe: Jesus rose from the dead.

Jesus conquered Death.

He conquered the one certainty of life, the ultimate enemy to humanity, the antithesis to all we know. And He did so for us. For all of us.

In dying and rising, Jesus made it possible for us to do the same. To be born again, anew. He made it possible for us to spread the love that He showed others—a love that does not care about your needs or your wants, justice or truth, Life or Death.

So, yes, our mortal lives will come to an end. But—through His suffering, death, and resurrection—we are reborn again through Christ. Each and every day. To believe. To worship. To serve. To love.

My—isn’t that something to live for?

Matthew Mancini is a senior at Fairfield Prep.