Easter Day – April 1, 2018
John 20:1-18
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes.
But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.
It is so lovely to finally arrive at this day and to celebrate this Easter Morning with you all. Happy Easter to you!
Right after college, thanks to my step-father’s college classmate who had been in the 10th Mountain Division during World War II and thereby had skiing connections all over the United States, I got a job at one of the most spectacular ski mountains in the United States. Through this connection, I got a job waitressing at the Alta Lodge in Alta, Utah where the average snowfall is somewhere between 35-60 feet, and you can ski, if you are willing to hike, until July. I am only telling you this detail to make you feel a little better about the Spring we have been having.
Some advice I was given when I moved to the mountain is that you must develop some survival skills – not so much to avoid avalanches but to survive living in an employee dormitory for such a long season and prevent a bad case of cabin fever. It took me a while to establish a routine but by December I had developed a strategy to arrange my schedule so that I could escape to Salt Lake City on Friday evenings to go to the symphony and on Sunday mornings I would also leave the mountain to go to church. Although my co-workers (ski bums) were fun and the skiing was phenomenal, I just needed some life beyond the slopes. The time I spent in the cheap seats of symphony hall and in church helped me reconnect to the divine to refresh my mind, heart and soul.
I was reminded of this last weekend. On Palm Sunday, I left church and headed to Boston to Symphony Hall. My daughter’s high school chorus was signing in a program with the Handle and Haydn Society. They sang the Gloria from Mozart’s Coronation Mass, but afterwards, we were invited to stay on to hear the Handle and Haydn Society sing Bach’s Mass in B Minor. This Mass is acclaimed as one of Bach’s crowning achievements – he completed it a year before his death, rewriting and reworking some of his most outstanding and sublime works of his career. Apparently, he never heard it performed.
After the intermission they sang the part of the Mass called “the Credo” – the words to which we say nearly every Sunday – the creed – which professes the heart of Christian beliefs. In the part of the Creed where they sing the chorus the Crucifixus – the words of which are “For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried”- the music turns somber, and the bass line is accentuated, and sung in E minor – one of the saddest of all keys. Roy – can you give me a few measures of the Crucifixus?
And then suddenly, when the chorus moves on in the creed to the et resurrexit, “On the third day he rose again in accordance with the scriptures” the music changes to the brightest of musical keys – D major – the trumpets sound and the music resembles what has been likened to a festive dance. Roy –could play the first few measures of the et resurrexit?
And now I am telling you all this about these two pieces of music because I think it helps to explain what is happening with Jesus and Mary Magdalene in our Gospel lesson for this morning. Mary is deep in the sorrow of the crucifixion – dwelling in that E Minor world – and Jesus recognizing this tells Mary Magdalene – do not hold on to me – don’t stay in that place of crucifixion – don’t stay in an E Minor world – you may think you want to hold on to me Mary – but don’t, I need to be resurrected and to be with my father so that you too can share in the resurrected life – that place not dominated by fear, sadness and despair, but that place that is filled with beauty, truth and love – a place of new life and joy.
And when we as Christians speak of the resurrected life – it has a two-fold reality – the first is the promise of everlasting life with God when the time of our mortal life comes to an end – and that we will be welcomed into the arms of God, and the arms of all those who have gone before us, into the Kingdom of Heaven.
But the resurrected life is also available right here, and right now. Although this life is hard, and we inevitably suffer, are challenged, and are fearful – Jesus promises that He came to bring us life, life in abundance – right here in the midst of our mortal life. (John 10:10)
Like the promise we hear in the hymn, this joyful Eastertide – (choir sings)
This joyful Eastertide
Away with sin and sorrow!
My love, the Crucified,
Has spring to life this morrow.
So how do we live this resurrected life? Well – I have a suggestion. A few weeks ago I met with another clergywoman and we were talking about Lent and she shared with me that she was thinking about introducing a new spiritual practice. In the same way that during Lent, we are invited to take on disciplines that bring us into a more mindful relationship with God through prayer, study, and alms giving – she said that this Easter she was going to dedicate herself to things that bring her joy – and so I recommend her practice to you –
Can you think of one thing you can do between now and May 20th when the official season of Easter ends with the Day of Pentecost to bring more joy, more life, and more beauty to your life. Listen to beautiful music, go to an art gallery, go to Fenway, come to church every Sunday, or stop into a church near your place of work during the week, or take up a hobby that you have always wanted to start up?
And then I would like to add one more thing – what can you do to bring beauty, love or joy to someone else? What can you do each day that might help others taste the sweetness of the resurrected life? It does not need to be a huge gesture – it could be as simple as a phone call or a letter. It could be complimenting a mother or father who is out in public and they are doing a great job with their children. Buy a stranger a coffee. It could be leaving 30% on a tip instead of 15 or 20%. Give to charity. Turning off your cell phone and putting it away when you are spending time with someone. Tell a flustered store clerk to take her or his time and that you are not in a hurry and not to worry.
There is a beautiful line in Paul’s Letter to Philemon. He writes to his acquaintance and he says:
Your love has given me much joy and comfort, my brother, for your kindness has often refreshed the hearts of God’s people.
May this be true of us – that we may so enjoy the resurrected life, that we become those whose love gives others much joy and comfort, because our kindness refreshes the hearts of God’s people.
Happy Easter.
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