“But on the first day of the week . . .”


Luke Chapter 24 and Acts Chapters 1-2

As I sit down to write this blog, I am aware that it is the 50th Anniversary of the assassination of The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., another innocent man killed for the crime for daring to speak true to power.  Will we ever learn?

Alleluia! Christ is risen!  We continue our journey through the Gospel of Luke and the book of the Acts of the Apostles, following the reading plan of the Good Book Club (www.goodbookclub.org) sponsored by Forward Movement. I left off last week with Jesus’s death on the cross.  This week is jam-packed with Jesus’s “mighty resurrection and glorious ascension” – as well as Pentecost! It is almost unfair of all that is in these 3 chapters as it is the crux of our faith, our Church and our life together. We could spend YEARS on this material, so a quick reflection will not due it justice. Please take time to read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them for yourself.

The grief and devastation that Jesus’s followers felt on the day of his death did not go away immediately on the realization that he had been resurrected, even though Jesus told them what was to happen.  The unexpected always takes time to sink into our conscious understanding.  We can empathize with the women who found the tomb empty and then visited by “two men in dazzling clothes.”  Just like the angels that visit Zachariah and Mary at the beginning of Luke’s Gospel, there were – perhaps – the same two bringing a message of awe and wonder.  Their message was not believed either, although no one was struck mute like Zachariah.

I point out that the text states that Peter stooped to look into the tomb.  This is important because many depictions of the tomb make it look like it was a regular-sized room.  It was not.  It was about 4 feet tall and had an anti-room for preparation and smaller six-foot long spaces that bodies were placed in and then sealed up in order for the organic material to decay more quickly (death is not a pretty subject).  While it doesn’t change the result of the resurrection, it makes the image of it more truthful.
 
I don’t remember hearing about the story of Jesus on the way to Emmaus when I was a child, which is unfortunately because it is a wonderful narrative of the risen Christ.  Jesus doesn’t immediately go to his chosen disciples, but to other followers, wanting to know what they know.  It makes me wonder how we would explain what we know about Jesus to a stranger asking questions of us.  Could we succinctly offer our faith story in a way that would make sense to someone who didn’t know God, without judging that person?  (I think that is what the Easter season is all about, but I digress . . . )

I love that Cleopas and his companion have no idea that they are talking to Jesus until he breaks the bread at the table. Suddenly, everything becomes clear to them and they are able to recognize the risen Christ for the first time.  They are so overwhelmed, they run back to Jerusalem to tell Peter and the others, when Jesus comes and appears to them!  And the first thing he says is “Peace be with you.”  Imagine what this world would be like if the first thing we ever said to another is, “Peace be with you.” A new standard of relationship could be established, but it was what MLK tried to do, and we know what happened to him.  Ummm.

The end of the Gospel of Luke and the beginning of the Book of the Acts of the Apostles overlaps a bit so that the hearers/readers understand the connection between the two.  There is more to the story that needs to be shared!  Indeed, Jesus assures his followers that the Holy Spirit is coming in a new and powerful way, even has he ascends into heaven (tradition holds that the Risen Christ was present on earth for 40 days after the Resurrection, so Ascension Day is always celebrated on the Thursday of the Sixth week of Easter).  

It is interesting that even before the day of Pentecost, the disciples gathered in prayer and discernment about who should take Judas Iscariot's place.  What this says to me is that the Spirit was already present and working in the disciples lives.  They knew they needed to seek God’s wisdom in their decision making and took the time to do so.  It is a model the Church continues to use – and perhaps use more – today.

As I mentioned, this space does not allow the in-depth reflection on the day of Pentecost that I would like to offer, so I will invite you to join me and others for a workshop on April 28th at St. Barnabas from 9 am – 2 pm to learn more about what did and DID NOT happen on the day of Pentecost.  This might even change what you do on Pentecost during your liturgy (please, no reading of the Gospel in different languages!).

The miracle of Pentecost is not speaking but HEARING!  “And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? (Acts 2:8) It is my theory, which I have understood through the work of The Rev. Gerry Skillacorn, that Spirit was speaking through the disciples in Spirit language, and yet what people heard was something they could comprehend completely.  The Holy Spirit was able to work through people in a new and powerful way that allowed many to HEAR what the Spirit was saying. And from that, Peter was able to invite many more people beyond the Jews to share in the love of God. 

There is more that follows this, but you’ll have to come to the workshop to learn more about what else the Spirit offers us.  This, my friends, is what the Church is all about!  We need the Spirit to be alive in us and work through us.  Are we ready for that?  We’ve got 46 more days before Pentecost to work on it!

In Christ’s Spirit,
Rev. Valerie+

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