Easter 2023

 Alleluia Christ is Risen.  Christ is Risen indeed, Alleluia!

            Wow!  It seems like we’re really making a big deal today.  The brass quartet is here.  The bell choir is playing.  You are all here.  You’re all dressed up.  We’re joining together Trinity and Santa Cruz.  We brought all these flowers and put up all these decorations!  Why are we making such a big deal out of an event that happened thousands of years ago?  Why does this matter so much?

            Does it matter because of tradition, because that’s what grandma or grandpa think is important?  Does it matter because it brings up fond memories from the past?  Does it matter so that families can have an excuse to come together the way they always have?  Does it matter so churches can feel important?

            This story, this gathering, this day matters.

            It matters because the forces of evil, the forces of death and injustice still affect us.  Division, war, hunger, prejudice, and disease are still hurting people.  Death and fear still paralyze us.  Fear and death are part of our everyday pressures, just like they were in the days Jesus walked this earth. 

So this Easter story is what we need—it is a story of hope and new life in the face of fear and death.  This story of Jesus’ resurrection shows us there is something more powerful than death and fear—fear and death will not win.  God who made us and this world, loves us and God has a vision for this world for healing, relationship, and love for us and all creation.  This vision is more powerful than death.

This story tells us that to get to that vision, we need each other. The two Marys needed each other, needed to be together to go to see the tomb.  They needed the hope Jesus offers.  The angel needs the two women to go tell the other disciples.  The Disciples need these two Marys to tell them what is going on.  We need the Marys, too and the disciples to spread the word that Jesus is risen.  And we need each other.  We need our communities, Lutheran and Episcopal, to stretch us beyond what is comfortable to grow in our faith.  We need each other, Spanish speaking and English speaking, to learn from each other, to share our stories together.  We need each other regular church goers and Christmas and Easter folks, family members and guests, so the church doesn’t get too stuffy and too out of touch with the realities of people’s lives, so the church can relate to today’s culture, so the church doesn’t get our heads too much in the clouds but to keep our feet grounded in today’s realities and respond in love in this world.

Easter brings us together.  Jesus makes us family.  Jesus brings us together in love.  We need each other, to help each other weather the storms, to respond to injustice together, to grow in compassion, to work together toward the vision of peace and hope and justice.

Easter matters because it is about right here and right now.  Lots of times Christians can get overly focused on the afterlife and heaven and hell.  But Jesus is risen!  This is our current reality.  That’s why we say “is” and not “has.”  Jesus is risen right here, today.  He is rising in our lives, in our congregation, in our community and he rises with the gift of abundant life for all. 

What is abundant life?  There is life—the just getting by, the going through the motions, the daily grind.  Then there is abundant life—flourishing life, thriving.  Think of trees in the winter.  They are alive but sometimes it is hard to tell.  Now think of trees in the late spring or in the summer—leafing out and lifting their branches and turning the sunlight into energy and sharing their beauty with us.  A tree in the spring and summer is abundant.  Abundant life means being anchored and rooted in these stories that inspire us, in the hope that has kept people going for centuries, in the relationships that challenge us to grow and learn.  Abundant life means being connected in community and having people to relate to and share with.  Abundant life means having purpose to work to change our world into one that is more life-giving for people who are suffering and to share our fruit. 

Easter is happening every day, resurrection is happening every day, abundant life is available every day, and we get to be part of sharing that new life and receiving it.

Where have you seen Easter happening recently?  Why does Easter matter to you?