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Once upon a time, there was a great famine in which people jealously hoarded whatever food they could find, hiding it even from their friends and neighbors. One day a wandering soldier came into a village and began asking questions as if he planned to stay for the night."There's not a bite to eat in the whole province," he was told. "Better keep moving on.""Oh, I have everything I need," he said. "In fact, I was thinking of making some stone soup to share with all of you." He pulled an iron cauldron from his wagon, filled it with water, and built a fire under it. Then, with great ceremony, he drew an ordinary-looking stone from a velvet bag and dropped it into the water.By now, hearing the rumor of food, most of the villagers had come to the square or watched from their windows. As the soldier sniffed the "broth" and licked his lips in anticipation, hunger began to overcome their skepticism."Ahh," the soldier said to himself rather loudly, "I do like a tasty stone soup. Of course, stone soup with cabbage -- that's hard to beat."Soon a villager approached hesitantly, holding a cabbage he'd retrieved from its hiding place, and added it to the pot. "Capital!" cried the soldier. "You know, I once had stone soup with cabbage and a bit of salt beef as well, and it was fit for a king."The village butcher managed to find some salt beef . . . and so it went, through potatoes, onions, carrots, mushrooms, and so on, until there was indeed a delicious meal for all. The villagers offered the soldier a great deal of money for the magic stone, but he refused to sell and traveled on the next day. That old tale still enchants us with a world less self-centered and more willing to embrace the vision of the Scriptures proclaimed today: a “new creation” governed by the Gospel of love and compassion.The very economic crisis currently plaguing the world has the potential to turn us inward, concerned that we barely have enough for ourselves and our families. Such insular thinking diminishes the potential for the human spirit to rise above a crisis to solutions that will in fact renew and restore our fortunes. Whether we use the fantasy of that famed tale or the memory of the Acts of the Apostles, it is the effort of community, that “oneness” of effort, which uncovers the power of the people. The early disciples organized around a vision that allowed them to accomplish a task that otherwise would seem improbable at best. The vision of “a new heaven and a new earth” was not a fantasy. The Good News was that the commandment of love would triumph over even the darkest hours of our existence. Jesus reasserts that commandment as he is about to be arrested. The disciples of the Acts of the Apostles are regularly beset by conflict, division and persecution. None of that prevents Jesus and his disciples from moving toward that “new creation.” It seems remarkably closer the greater the challenge.Therein lies our hope. Yet conflict, division, and signs of death are all around us these days. A friend recently confided that she has stopped reading or watching the news. “It’s too depressing.” That it is! The lingering cloud of terrorist attacks, a struggling economy, one ecological crisis after another reaches and touches each one of us in one way or another. Political paralysis and religious scandals refuse to let up. These are all very good reasons for gathering to allow the Good News to wash over us, cleansing us of such depression and despair. This Easter Season invites us to re-enter the waters of Baptism to be made clean again, not just of our own personal human weakness, but from the effects of those elements of our environment that blur our vision of that New Creation. Cleansed and refreshed by the Sacred Word and Meal, we refocus our attention to the power of the commandment of love offered by the Risen Christ and the example of that power witnessed by the early Christian communities. That message should be ours. The Good News comes rushing upon us during these fifty days of Easter celebration. It is the time to reflect on the Paschal mystery. The Easter Preface to the Eucharistic Prayer proclaims, “By dying he destroyed our death. By rising he restored our life.” It is time to recognize that there is no Easter without Good Friday. There is no empty tomb without the cross. The vision is not a fantasy. It’s no magic stone. It’s the commandment of love.