Why
do Christians retell the story of the horrible death of Jesus every year during
Holy Week (the week leading to Easter)?
Aren’t there enough tragedies in the world today? I think it is
precisely because of so many continuing tragic stories of our time that we need
to continue to recall the story of Jesus’s death – and resurrection. The ritual of retelling the death of Jesus
exposes the unjust religious and political system that caused the persecution,
torture and killing of an innocent man whose purpose in life was to love and
invite us to love one another. The
follow-up story of Easter – the resurrection – undoes the fear that we have
about death, so that we can do something constructive about the injustices and
persecutions of the innocence of our time.
What
are we afraid of when facing the issues of our time? For example, what is the fear of the people
of the United States when we are dealing gun violence? What fear do we have in addressing “marriage
equality” for gays and lesbians? What
fear do we have in the midst of our continuing financial crisis? Holy Week invites us to face our fear and
take the difficult steps of linking our fear to its ultimate destination –
death. That is, what’s the worse that
could happen? It is the fear of death that
clouds our judgments causing many of us to refuse to have reasonable and civil
dialogue that can lead to resolutions.
Easter takes the fear of death out of the equation so that we can have
the courage to tell the truth about ourselves, and our communities. Emerging out of the shadow of death, Easter
empowers us to explore how we can address the systemic issues together as
people who live in communities made up of many diverse gifts and resources that
are not to be feared but to be embraced and utilized in order to create
sustainable communities.
2013
Opportunities to Study with The Sustainist:
April 15-19
Missional Ministry in the Grace Margin and Holy Currencies Orientation
Los Angeles, CA
July 15-19
Holy Currencies: Beyond Time, Talent and Treasure
Los Angeles, CA
August 19-23
Fundamental Skills for Building Inclusive Community and Holy Currencies Orientation
Rainbow Lodge Retreat Center, North Bend (near Seattle), WA
Register at: www.kscopeinstitute.org
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Reflection
Questions for Easter (Year C ):
Acts
10:34-43
How
do you testify to the resurrection of Christ in the world today?
Isaiah
65:17-25
What does it mean to dwell
in God’s new heavens and new earth?
Psalm
118:14-24
What
is the chief cornerstone of your spiritual life?
John
20:1-18
What
fear does the Easter story invite you to face in order to discover new hope?
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Eric H. F. Law
Kaleidoscope Institute
For competent leadership in a diverse changing world
www.kscopeinstitute.org
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