Today, we celebrate the happy ending to our tragic Good Friday story. Jesus has risen! Alleluia! We shout “Alleluia!” because we celebrate the greatest of all endings, Jesus has risen. We also celebrate the fact that each of us has been given a new beginning. Because of Jesus, we have been called to live what has been described as, Life on the other side, that is, life on the other side of Easter. Rejoice, because we are Easter people and Alleluia is our song.
Each of the three gospel options for Easter begins the same way: “After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning.” [Matthew 28:1] “On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala…” [John 20:1] “The very day, the first day of the week…” [Luke 24:13] All three writers wanted to make the point that something new had happened on the other side of Easter. There was a fresh start---a new beginning for us all, because it is “the first day of the week.” Just as God, on the first day, created light to pierce the darkness, so now God’s light has once again pierced the darkness of the tomb. Because of the first day of the week, life has dramatically changed and death no longer haunts us.
Life on the other side is more than just a vague connection with our post-resurrection world, and it is more than a place of perfect bliss. Life on the other side is a life transformed; a life reflected by the behavior of the first witnesses to the Easter event, the disciples of Jesus. They became transformed, not instantly as in Abracadabra, but because of a growing awareness of Jesus in their lives. For them and for us, this Easter mystery was not revealed by catechisms or creeds, but by a simple belief: We have nothing to fear, not even suffering and death. Jesus is here inviting us to share his life without end!
As Jesus passed through physical death, we will travel the same path. But until that time, we continue to struggle in a world that is sometimes light and sometimes dark, sometimes whole and sometimes broken, and sometimes joyous and sometimes tragic. We become aware “of how intricately and intimately Jesus is immersed in the circumstances of our lives, suffering with us, grieving with us, holding nothing back---not love, forgiveness or mercy. Our God is a faithful God, a motherly God, and a compassionate God.” [Elizabeth-Anne Stewart, Jesus, the Holy Fool, Sheed & Ward, 1999.] We return to our empty tomb striving to live the life of a beloved disciple, showing love to all, especially those whom we find difficult to love.
Peering into the empty tomb of our lives we ask: Who are the people in our lives whom we have not forgiven? When have we hesitated to get involved in serving others? What signs of death do we see that we must confront or turn away from? In the light of what we now see on this first day of the week, what new image of life do we experience and with whom shall we share it? We still live in a world where darkness has not disappeared, yet we can hold out the promise of a better life to the many among us who confront violence, poverty and sickness. We can invite them to after Easter life where Alleluia is sung and life has dramatically changed.
----Deacon Wilson Shierk