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Limburg (AP) - The chairman of the German Bishops' Conference, Georg Bätzing, admitted in his Easter sermon that it is not easy to believe in life after death.
"You have to be firmly rooted in the faith, and even that is not enough," said Bätzing in the Easter mass in Limburg Cathedral.
"Because the hurdles to understanding are high and the counterarguments that have been clarified are weighty."
He has often heard grieving relatives say: “Nobody has come back yet,” and when he replies, “Yes, Jesus is alive!” He looks into doubtful faces.
Bätzing said that being able to believe in an afterlife is by no means a matter of course for people raised in Christianity.
Rather, belief in the resurrection is "a great, undeserved grace".
At Easter, Christians celebrate that, according to biblical tradition, Jesus rose from the dead three days after his execution.
"Easter is a brilliant idea from God," said Bätzing.
"The best since he created the world."
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210403-99-72434 / 5