As we said yesterday, life is rarely 100% happy. ‘The ancient biblical narratives about the resurrection of Jesus contain a mixture of ecstasy and despondency, an intermingling of delight and discouragement,’ Sally Welch writes. (‘Sharing The Easter Story’, P 215) Not surprisingly, this news, so alien to us all, caused confusion and doubt to some of the followers of Jesus, including those two disciples who walked on the road to Emmaus.
Matt 27:62-66 tells us how the tomb was sealed so that there could be no way Jesus’s disciples would ever be able to speak about a resurrection. Many of us live our lives in that Holy Saturday moment, trapped, held back by the lies of the world, unable to praise God. Yet Christ appears to us as He did to those two disciples, to the women who were grief-stricken; He appears ‘where two or three are gathered in his name.’ (Matt 18:20)
As we approach Easter Sunday, we are reminded that the gospel is indeed good news – but it can only be so if that news is shared. Sally Welch speaks of how we do this: through ‘simple conversations, cheerful sharing of hospitality, easy and sympathetic companionship.’ (‘Sharing The Easter Story’, P 216) Hope rises as we remind ourselves of the truth that Jesus is alive forever now.
