April 24, 2024

Wednesday Word:  Resurrection Scars

Do you still feel the pain of the scars that won't heal? – Elton John, Daniel

It’s funny, sometimes, how things come together.  Due to the interest of some people, I began hosting a discussion after the 10:00 service following coffee hour; I guess you could call it a “Rector’s Forum,” but it’s really a discussion covering a variety of topics.  Since we’re in the Easter season I thought I’d start with the various resurrection stories found in the four gospels and Acts. 

This past Sunday we looked at Luke.  There’s a scene where Jesus appears to the disciples and, in order to prove he’s really Jesus, he shows them the wounds on his hands and feet.  I said that, according to the gospel accounts, resurrection apparently doesn’t give you a shiny, new body, but it does allow your body to be healed of the damage that caused those scars.  My multiple scars tell a story, and that story isn’t erased at resurrection.

Last Saturday Joelene and I took a sightseeing drive and the above song played on the radio.  Sunday night those lyrics popped into my head in the aftermath of our discussion.  I wondered, “How many of us carry the wounds of scars that won’t heal?  How many of us live with the hope that resurrection will wipe it all away?”  If the gospels are to be believed, resurrection doesn’t erase the scars, but it does heal the pain.

On Monday, one of my online friends (who happens to be Jewish) posted a link to an article about Passover in which the author, Rabbi Shai Held, asks the question, “What do we do with our pain?  What, if anything, can we learn from it?” 

His answer:  The Bible offers a startling and potentially transformative response – Let your memory teach you empathy and your suffering teach you love.  I think this is actually a very Jesus-y thing to say, especially in light of how he suffered and forgave those who tortured and executed him.

Rabbi Held points out that, too often, we allow our pain and suffering to turn into rage and hostility.  “But,” he says, “Holy Scripture teaches another way, that we must allow it to teach us to forgive and care for others.”

This is the message of the resurrection:  that our scars aren’t wiped clean, but that our scars remind us of our pain so that in our resurrection we live a new life of forgiveness and love. 

May we take the first steps in the here and now to live into that life of resurrection where our scars help us to live with love and empathy.

April 17, 2024

Wednesday Word:  Vive la Difference

This past Sunday’s gospel came from Luke 24:36b-48.  In this particular post-resurrection story Jesus appears among the disciples and says, “Peace be with you.”  The disciples are terrified, and Jesus then says, “Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself.”  And after saying this, he shows them his hands and his feet.  He then commissions them to proclaim the good news beginning in Jerusalem.

The Sunday before this we heard from John 29:19-31.  In that post resurrection story, we see Jesus appear among the disciples and saying, “Peace be with you,” and he shows them his hands and his side.  After this he commissions the disciples by sending them out as the Father has sent him.  Thomas, though, was not with them.  We then hear the second half of the story when Thomas is with them, Jesus appears again, and shows him his hands and side.

These two stories are the same but different, and that’s important.

I was watching some crime show a few weeks ago and one of the investigators said, “If I’m interviewing several persons of interest and they all tell me the exact same story, they’re lying; because only lies which have been rehearsed are repeated verbatim.”

I’ve heard people say they don’t believe the gospel stories because they don’t match up.  Were there guards at the tomb or weren’t there?  Was it Mary Magdalene and Mary who went to the tomb, or was it Mary Magdalene, Mary, and Salome?  Or maybe it was Mary Magdalene, Mary, Joanna, and other women?  Or was it just Mary Magdalene?  Did they tell anyone or not?  And on and on and on.

But these differences tell me that there is a central Truth to the resurrection stories and the gospels as a whole.  Because if all four gospels agreed verbatim on the same story, then they, like the persons of interest above, would be lying.

So the next time you’re worried about the gospels not agreeing on every aspect of their story and wonder whether or not they are true, remember that stories that match up verbatim are often lies created in an effort to hide something.  In this case, the differences really do lead to the Truth.

Blessings,

April 10, 2024

Resurrection is Hard Work

Have you ever thought about resurrection?  Really sat down and thought about it?

I think for most of us, myself included, we go through Holy Week experiencing the somberness of Maundy Thursday, the trauma of Good Friday, the hopelessness of Holy Saturday, and the ultimate joy of Easter without really thinking about resurrection.

Sure, Easter comes and we have the celebration.  The church is decorated with flowers.  The hangings have been changed to white.  The crosses are unveiled.  The Paschal candle stands bright.  We say or shout, “Alleluia!” and sing hymns of joy.  Christ is risen!  The tomb is empty.  These are all good and joyful things.

But resurrection is hard.

In both Luke and John, Jesus asks for some fish which he eats in the presence of the disciples.  On the one hand, this was done to prove that he wasn’t a ghost or some other apparition.  These stories were also used to combat the Gnostics, but that’s another topic.  Besides proving he was real, I’ve always thought one reason for eating the fish was because resurrection was hard work and it took a lot out of him.  Consequently, Jesus was hungry.

But resurrection is also hard for us.  In baptism we say that we are buried with Christ in his death.  By it we share in his resurrection.  Through it we are reborn by the Holy Spirit.  We say that we are cleansed from sin and born again.  We believe that we are being changed from glory to glory.  And we agree with Paul who said, “our old self was crucified with Jesus so that the body of sin might be destroyed, so we might no longer be enslaved to sin.”

But actually living into that resurrection life is more difficult than we sometimes think.  During the Easter season we proclaim a life of resurrection, but we still treat others badly, we still refuse to be gracious to those who have offended us in some way, we still commit sins of omission and commission, we still insist on acting in selfish ways because we only see limited resources, and the list goes on. 

The tomb is empty.  Christ is risen.  We are living a life of resurrection.  But that is, apparently, not as easy as it sounds.

This Easter season, may you find ways to do the hard work of resurrection.

April 3, 2024

Alleluia!  Christ is Risen!

After the somberness of Lent, after the pain of Palm/Passion Sunday, Maundy Thursday, and Good Friday, after the emptiness of Holy Saturday, we arrive at the tomb on the first day of the week at early dawn to find it empty, and we are greeted with the question, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?”

In the darkness the fire was kindled; that light shone in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

Faced with an empty tomb, light in the darkness, the recollection of God’s saving deeds through history, and the renewal of our baptismal vows, the only proper response to be made is, “Alleluia!  Christ is Risen!  The Lord is Risen indeed!  Alleluia!”

This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad.  This is the day Christ broke the bonds of sin and death.  This is the day we celebrate promises fulfilled.  This is the day we know life is changed, not ended.  This is the day of Resurrection.  This is Easter.

Over the next month and a half or so, let us celebrate that victory.  Let us proclaim with a joyful voice that Christ is risen from the grave.  Let us rejoice that death is conquered and we are free.  Let us join with Christ, and invite others to join, in that wonderful heavenly banquet celebrating the vanquishing of hell and our new life.

Good Christians all, rejoice and sing – The Lord is Risen indeed!  Alleluia!