Colourful Dreamer

This is a fascinating piece by someone who claims to be an atheist. And yet her explication of the Easter story is better than most Christians could give. worth reading and thinking about.

Gate Pa: Easter Sunday 2013. Readings:             First Reading:              Acts 10:34-43                           Bible Page 895             Second Reading:         1 Cor 15:19-26                         Bible Page 936             Gospel:                         Luke 24:1-12                           Bible Page 860 What I want to say: *         Ask three questions of Easter: o    What image comes to mind when I think of Easter? o    What image of God am I given in the Easter story o    Who am I in the Easter story? *         Reaffirm our Baptism – statement that our self identity and self worth is found in the God who is love, who loves us as something of great worth and dignity by an act of such self giving, and who through this gives us the grace to love God in like fashion What I want to happen To grow in love of God and in God’s love The Sermon: Introduction: Introduce yourself to the person next to you, even if you know them

Hung side by side waiting for death. One filled with so much anger fear, bitterness and despair spat his last defiance in the face, life wrenched away alone waiting. Another wept his last, accepting this terrible fate, Rome’s peace would extract its heavy price. So much pain. Yet this third one dying fast, speaking forgiveness, shrouded in goodness and peace untouched by Rome’s brutality or the other’s hate. How can one such as he be here among the dead? “Remember me Jesus” “Today you will join me in paradise.”  (for Good Friday 2013)

Death, nothingness, life again. Easter is upon us! We join the women who mournfully and dutifully walked through their dark fear and grief to prepare Jesus’ body for the year where the body and all that represented fell away to leave just bones. Bones all knew would rise again on the last day clothed with a new body. We join in their shock at the loss of the body, at their surprise to find the “two men, light cascading over them” [1] and the good news they proclaim. How do we respond to this proclamation? With the women, trusting and believing; with the male disciples, disbelieving these foolish women; or with Peter, doubting, yet running to see for himself? Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians encounters and entirely different response. He is writing to people who found the resurrection superfluous. They believed their bodies held them captive, and that when they died their soul was freed and went to be with God for eternity. Who needs a future resurrection? No need fo