Easter – Season of New Life!
If we die with Christ, then we will surely live with Christ. This is the promise of Easter–resurrection, new life, everlasting–that we celebrate each spring. And springtime makes the believing easier as the world blooms anew in glorious blossom and fragrance.
Life can be very hard. The older I get, the more I see of the sadness, the struggles, the tragedies of life. All the more reason to celebrate–and celebrate well–the moments of birth and growth, of life and healing. All the more reason to recall the promise of our youth and the joys we have known. We celebrate not despite the losses and sadness of life, but because of them. Only those who drink deeply from sorrow’s cup can experience the joys of faith and hope–the joy of resurrection.
The church sanctuary that had been bare during Lent is filled with color, flowers, lilies, begonias, the altar is clothed in white, the music filled with alleluias, not heard all lent. All pay tribute to the new life that is ours in our risen Savior.
The readings for the Easter season abound with this joy. These accounts reveal the excitement, the mishaps, the persecutions of the early Christian community. The Acts of the Apostles relates the apostles’ fearless preaching, their many miracles, their journeys–even their adventures in jail cells! The gospel readings include tender accounts of Jesus’ surprise post-Resurrection appearances among his people. That first Easter season was a time of great excitement, joy, and peace amid persecution and trouble.
We live in a world that constantly seeks superficial pleasures, that is full of addictions that destroy our ability to experience the richness of death and rebirth and the deep sorrows and deeper joys that accompany genuine living. These meditations are designed to help you refocus your attention on the essence of Easter, to help you recognize, experience, and celebrate the life and the joys that are yours, joy that is not dependent on material things or events in your life but joy that springs from God’s life within you, an ever-lasting fountain of joy.
Happy Easter!
This post is part of a series of reflections on the Church year. click here to follow blog
Leave a Reply