Easter 2013

He is Risen

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the pivotal event in human history.

Before the resurrection everyone died. And, those who died ceased to exist in any meaningful way. Before the resurrection no human being who died entered into heaven.  There was no model in any of the ancient religions for the ascent of a soul into the realms of light.

Then Jesus came. Jesus unified in himself our humanity with God’s divinity. Jesus overcame the choice our species made to separate from God at the moment of his conception. He chose to unify humanity with divinity.

He chose to accept an unjust death on the cross in order to trap death in his own body. He stood in the place of separation with us. He took our sins into his ineffable holiness. He absorbed the fear, anger, hate, pride, despair and the will to power of humanity and by his infinite and eternal love transformed it all back into its original virtue.

He experienced the consequence of our choice to separate from God. He felt the depths of the Desolation of Abomination which our species summoned in pride and fears in despair. He met the void of non-existence head on and filled that void with light, and life and love.

As he experienced death he descended into the realm of the dead. He preached to the departed spirits of the dead. He offered them all reunification with the Father in Himself. Those who received this offer he set free from the land of the dead and brought into the land of the angels, heaven. This is not our final home. This is just the place where we can, if we choose, prepare to enter into the New Earth God will create for us.

Salvation is life because Jesus has swallowed up death and transformed it back into life by the Real Presence of his own eternal life.

Salvation is love because God is love. The One God eternally expresses Himself in the active dynamic creative and spontaneous inter relationship of the One who loves (the Father), the Beloved (the Son) and the very power of love himself (the Holy Spirit.)

In the resurrection Jesus represents to us the meaning and purpose of Creation. That meaning and purpose is love- infinite- eternal- active- dynamic- creative and so much more.

The resurrection is God’s assurance to humanity that death is not the final state for human beings. We can make a different choice. We can receive the gift of eternal life here and now. We can experience that gift here and now.

In the blessed sacrament of Holy Communion Jesus offers us himself. As he offers us himself he offers us light and light and love to live and move and have our being in joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness and self-control. Holy Communion is the Pascal Sacrifice of the Easter promise fulfilled and re-presented to us without fail on the seventh day of Real Presence.

Easter is the proclamation of the co-eternal Word of God that you, whoever your are- are loved with an everlasting love. Receive the gift. Live the gift. Share the gift.

The gift of God is the Great Mystery of Faith: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.