It is totally understandable that Jesus' resurrection was a surprise to his first followers. How else could a frightened, despondent little group of apostles and disciples have felt when they realized that Jesus had conquered death itself?
Throughout the centuries, we have come to better understand what happened that first Easter morning. The inevitability of Easter has become clear. Easter has been there all the time.
Let's go back--way back. At the first moment of creation the newborn universe was dark and chaotic. Immediately, the Spirit blew over the dark chaos and in a flash, there was light. The newly evolving universe began moving from darkness to light, from death to resurrection. Easter had begun.
Note how the Bible describes the days of creation in terms of movement from darkness to light, from death to resurrection: "and the evening and morning was the first, second, etc., day." To the ancient Hebrews, darkness denoted chaos, and light denoted cosmos: order and beauty. (We use the word "cosmos" in our word, "cosmetics.") Every day is a movement from death to resurrection, as is the movement from winter to spring.
The ancient story of the flood is a story of stormy darkness and the resurrection of saving light. So is the story of Jonah and the whale. And especially, we have the starry night of Christmas, of Jesus' birth that made the bright morning of Easter inevitable.
Easter is our guide from hopelessness and despair, even in the world's darkest moments. In the Easter grace of Jesus' resurrection, we are able to evolve from our birth in imperfection, through our downfalls, to our own and society's constant resurrection in the loving arms of Divine Love.
Even now, in our space/time darkness, we already live in Easter. To put it more clearly, even now, the eternal glory of Easter lives within us. To those of us who have been blessed with eyes to see, the world, in fact the entire universe, is brightly alive with God's indwelling presence. Each Easter Sunday calls us anew to rejoice in Jesus' resurrected life and to work ever more diligently, one step at a time according to our talents and opportunities, to help make his wondrous, saving Spirit become more effective in ourselves, our families, communities, nations and the whole world.
At Easter time, we look into the world, and see the glorious joy of eternal life, thanks to Jesus' resurrection, within all the peoples of the world, no matter how deeply it may be hidden. In all of nature and in all the universe, we proclaim the Risen Jesus who is our eternal Truth and Life.
Throughout the centuries, we have come to better understand what happened that first Easter morning. The inevitability of Easter has become clear. Easter has been there all the time.
Let's go back--way back. At the first moment of creation the newborn universe was dark and chaotic. Immediately, the Spirit blew over the dark chaos and in a flash, there was light. The newly evolving universe began moving from darkness to light, from death to resurrection. Easter had begun.
Note how the Bible describes the days of creation in terms of movement from darkness to light, from death to resurrection: "and the evening and morning was the first, second, etc., day." To the ancient Hebrews, darkness denoted chaos, and light denoted cosmos: order and beauty. (We use the word "cosmos" in our word, "cosmetics.") Every day is a movement from death to resurrection, as is the movement from winter to spring.
The ancient story of the flood is a story of stormy darkness and the resurrection of saving light. So is the story of Jonah and the whale. And especially, we have the starry night of Christmas, of Jesus' birth that made the bright morning of Easter inevitable.
Easter is our guide from hopelessness and despair, even in the world's darkest moments. In the Easter grace of Jesus' resurrection, we are able to evolve from our birth in imperfection, through our downfalls, to our own and society's constant resurrection in the loving arms of Divine Love.
Even now, in our space/time darkness, we already live in Easter. To put it more clearly, even now, the eternal glory of Easter lives within us. To those of us who have been blessed with eyes to see, the world, in fact the entire universe, is brightly alive with God's indwelling presence. Each Easter Sunday calls us anew to rejoice in Jesus' resurrected life and to work ever more diligently, one step at a time according to our talents and opportunities, to help make his wondrous, saving Spirit become more effective in ourselves, our families, communities, nations and the whole world.
At Easter time, we look into the world, and see the glorious joy of eternal life, thanks to Jesus' resurrection, within all the peoples of the world, no matter how deeply it may be hidden. In all of nature and in all the universe, we proclaim the Risen Jesus who is our eternal Truth and Life.
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