Reflecting on Resurrection

The week before Easter is always an intensive time of story telling for the Christians that belong to mainline denominations.

We remembered a triumphal entry into Jerusalem with the crowds full of hope and expectation. We remembered the controversial clearing of the temple which left the crowds confused and the Jewish authorities determined to end a man’s life. We remembered this Jewish man sharing with some close friends in a festival meal. We remembered him washing their feet and reinterpreting the familiar symbols of bread and wine. We remembered how this man was betrayed and deserted by his friends. We remembered how he was tortured and killed.

We remembered the sense of loss, and fear that the friends of this man had and were quiet in that remembering.

Then into the darkness came light, a candle was lit and we began to sing songs of joy. We remembered a woman going to a tomb and finding it empty. We remembered her weeping and somehow the Jesus she had known became present to her, transformed into the Christ figure no longer limited by the boundaries of time and space.

In a literal and metaphorical way there is so much hope present in this story. Somehow in the mystery and grace of God, death need not be the end. In the mystery and grace of God, new life and new beginnings become possible. In the mystery and grace of God, no matter how great the injustice or overwhelming the darkness, the light of justice can shine. This is good news for a world all too familiar with bad news.

So, let us each live knowing that life is a gift; that new life is possible; and that unselfish love is the only thing that makes sense.

An Easter Prayer:

Holy and loving God, we thank you for the hope of resurrection in the daily nitty gritty of our earthly life. In the midst of disappointments, fears, hurts, sicknesses, and difficulties in sharing relationship, we ask for the grace to recognise and find new life. Then in the mystery of whatever happens after we die, we ask that you take care of us, in the same way that you took care of Jesus, our Christ. Amen.