On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdalene 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, 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.
The women who went to that tomb found it
empty; almost surprised that it was empty. Like many of you
I’ve done a lot of soul searching this past Lent, and over
these past forty days. I’ve looked at my sinfulness and my
weaknesses. I’ve looked at my dirty feet as Jesus has
washed them. I’ve look at that wonderful sacrament that he
instituted on Holy Thursday night, the sacrament of the
Eucharist, offering us his body and blood for all time. And
I’ve even had to carry the cross, the burden, the emotional
feelings that come with the death of many friends throughout
this past year, and parishioners as well ; not the cross
that Jesus carried, but nonetheless a human life experience
cross, shared by so many other folks of different faith
expressions – and even those
closer to him than I. Today, I too, am drawn to that empty
tomb. For me the empty tomb holds the answer to the
question I ask them most. I see that it is real, that it
signifies my whole concept of life on this earth; that it
represents a real hope for all of us, the hope that life,
suffering, and death – are worth living for, because Jesus
made that possible for us, because he gave us all that hope
and his promise.
On Holy Saturday evening, at the Vigil
Service, people began the celebration by lighting a new fire
and from that fire, took the flame for just one candle, the
symbol of Christ – our living flame in the darkness. That
flame was spread outwards, one to another, and gradually the
church became full of light and folks saw more clearly, and
talked about the Paschal Mystery that was happening.
Throughout the service connections were made between what
has been happening and what might have been taught; the
readings and the prayers had all offered their special
insights, linking the events of the night with the teachings
of our belief.
The empty tomb is our hope. From it emerges
our faith. For those newly received in the faith, it will
become a moment of great joy and anticipation, of excitement
and awe. The faithful is full of energy and electricity; a
church that is thrilled for them, knowing that this occasion
of remembering the glorious resurrection of Jesus is proof
that we do believe, with them, that all of us will share in
His life!
So, we are immersed in time, fragmented in mind and our
heart’s desires – like Mary Magdalene and her companions,
rolled half with joy and half with fear. From our
baptism up till now, we must make this passage every year in memory
of him. Every time we come to this realization, we must
renew our death to sin and affirm our life for God in him,
aware of the tears that he cried, for they are the water of
baptism. He is with us on our every way to speak his word
of peace, to point us on ahead beyond our signs of water and
oil, of bread and wine, to the time when, like his friends
in Galilee, we will see him face to face, of course that
being our journey’s end. He promises us an eternal future
and gives us this Easter mystery as our hope.
Christ risen from the dead never dies again.
Every dawn holds the prospect of that first new day, in awe
of signs from heaven with dazzle and lighting. God’s
resurrected Son, now always present, will meet us brightly
on our way. What is so special about this day that we set
everything aside to celebrate this event? Did we change
like the caterpillar into the butterfly? Like summer green
into autumn gold? Like rain into snow? This is no ordinary
time. Like Tess, from the not too long ago TV series,
“Touched By An Angel” would say, “Baby, isn’t it awesome?”
This is the greatest moment in time. This is the meaning of
life. Jesus died so that we could share in eternal glory.
We must live it! We must touch it! This is a moment of
great change. We must embrace it! We must get excited
about it! We must become it!
How we live
our lives is nothing more than a joyous expression of that
belief. We have reason to be happy, to celebrate, to be
joyful – for this is the moment that we truly sing the
praises of God, and that we shout with feeling and emotion,
as we come to once again realize the greatest expression of
our faith –
ALLELUIA! ALLELUIA! ALLELUIA!! – Jesus has risen,
the promise of eternal life is here!
