April 20, 2025: Easter Sunday
Gospel: John 20:1-9
On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him.” So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed. For they did not yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead.
Reflection
Another Easter.
“For they did not yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead.”
Another Easter and I remain in much the same place as the disciples. Realizing Jesus has risen from the dead should change every single part of my life. And yet, I remain with questions, doubts, wondering if I can negotiate a belief in a sort of symbolic dying and rising without going all in.
There have been years when that satisfied me. Now? The seeking to understand and believe feels different. I am tired of my habitual doubting and questioning. It would be good to be able to feel myself say “she saw and believed.”
Action
Consider a walk in a local cemetery. Allow yourself to remember a difficult loss in your personal life.
How did you experience your own “dying and rising” through that experience with loss and how can this awareness open your understanding of Christ’s dying and rising this Easter?
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I respect your honesty expressed here. You ask about my experiene of a difficult loss and my experience of dying and rising associated with the loss? There have been several such experiences in my life time. S. Connie Kramer recommended the booklet, “Healing After Loss.” I read it daily.. Today it was about nature transforming around us. But we might rather remain with winter. Just as the earth is transformed, we must believe that our loved one is transformed, and we are being transformed too. To your question about understanding Christ’s dying and rising? The Paschal mystery states that daily we suffer, die and rise with Christ. At this older age, I wonder like you. I can not remain in winter but do no other than believe in the Risen Christ Spirit with me understanding my doubts and weaknesses, also transforming, raising me up to continue my life journey. Alicee, thanks for your thoughts. Happy Easter to all!
Writing a reflection for Easter would seem a daunting task to me; but obviously not to you, Alice. You conveyed the essence of the mystery. Thanks and Happy Easter.
Alice, your reflections always have so much depth and at the same time are practical enough to understand. Thank you so much and may all 50 of your Easter days be blessed.