The Bishop's Easter Message

2014     

None of us can claim to know completely or exactly what happened on that first Easter Day. But there are some common themes that run through the four Gospel accounts of the resurrection.

The first theme shared by the four Gospels is fear. The disciples are afraid when they first encounter the risen Christ, afraid of what might happen to them for being Jesus' friends; so they gather fearfully behind locked doors. The root of their fear was in their assumption that Jesus' death on the cross was the ultimate failure and there is nothing beyond failure and death. They gathered in fear believing that both Jesus and they had come to a dead end. What the Gospels tell us is that when we fear that we have come to a dead end in life, the resurrection promises us that we are standing on the edge of where Jesus is leading us.

A second theme is doubt. Doubt runs through all the Gospel narratives of Easter. Not only do the disciples doubt; so do the crowds and the religious and political leaders. The theme of doubt is crystallized in the account of Thomas's encounter with the risen Jesus. In that dramatic meeting doubt is replaced by confidence and trust. Thomas's story also tells us that reason and experience are means of knowing God - a very Anglican and Catholic approach. But however much we know of God, there is more to know. God is larger than any picture we can draw of God.

A third Easter theme in the Gospel narratives points to hospitality and community as the context in which Jesus reveals himself. This theme is perhaps best expressed in the account of two disciples walking on the road to Emmaus. Now, walking speed is about 3 miles per hour. Much too slow for us in our need for speed in this culture: faster computers, faster automobiles, indicators of our demand and impatience for speed. Jesus joins the disciples, walks and talks with them, and is invited to join them for supper. Gathered around the dinner table, the disciples suddenly recognize Jesus. This Easter theme indicates that the reign of God moves at about three miles per hour, and takes root around an hospitable table of shared food and fellowship to which the stranger and the "other" is invited.

The Easter proclamation is that death is not the end and failure is not the final word in God's reign. Through the resurrection of Jesus, death becomes a gateway to larger and eternal life and failure is transformed and redeemed through God's compassion and forgiveness. Christianity offers forgiveness for the past, strength for the present, power for living and hope for the future.

The Easter proclamation is that we can thank God that as Episcopalians and Anglicans we are part of a Christian tradition that encourages us to use our mind and ask questions. No one has all the answers about God. The freedom to question and explore is to exercise the ability to reason that is part of being created in the image of God.

Part of the Easter proclamation is that love always frees us from fear. Another part of the message is that God's time is not our time: we want to travel at the speed of light. The pace of the Reign of God is about three miles per hour. Slow down. God will show up, and often in very surprising ways. Christians can have confidence that God does not abandon, now or ever.

Alleluia! Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed!
Let us rejoice and be glad!