The Feast of the Resurrection of Jesus, Easter, marks the beginning of 50 days of joy and celebration in the life of the church. The seasons of the church year were formulated over the first few hundred years of the life of the Christian faith but the resurrection of Christ was observed from the earliest days. Initially Christians observed both the Jewish Sabbath and the day of Resurrection in sequence (Sunday would have been understood by Palestinian Christians as the first day of the new creation or the glorious 8th day). Over time, after the fall of Jerusalem and the diaspora of both Christians and Temple Judaism, Christianity adopted Sunday as the principle day of religious observance.
This year we are considering the resurrection account found in Matthew’s gospel. All of the canonical gospels devote the bulk of their text to the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. The focus of attention on an execution which could be viewed in no way socially redeemable in the Mediterranean world is testimony to an event of great significance to those in the Jesus movement. The linking of Matthew’s account with the testimony of St. Peter found in the book of Acts is a reminder of the significance of the early Christian message and one worthy to be considered in our own time.
In Matthew, two women demonstrate their love and faithfulness by visiting the tomb of an executed criminal. Encountering two men in dazzling garments they are asked the question “why do you seek the Living among the dead?”
Even this past week devastating footage was leaked of carnage among civilians in the US war overseas. While we discuss on the large scale how to eliminate nuclear weapons we still kill with little discernible cause. Our society remains committed to carbon based pollution and ever more subtle ways of discriminating against the weak and voiceless. We go to the tomb to enact the outward signs of our piety while not looking for the Living.
The resurrection of Jesus testifies to God’s commitment to Life. Oppression by the rich and powerful, injustice and hate were overturned. To embrace the open tomb means to no longer walk the paths of the dead.
In Acts St. Peter says “I truly understand that God shows no partiality…you know the message that He sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace…[Jesus] went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the Devil. It is important to understand that the Church has historically resisted the simple personification of the Devil but regards evil as those systemic forces of oppression and harm throughout our world.
Preaching peace, doing good and healing the oppressed. To invert this…speaking violence, doing harm, keeping the oppressed in bondage - this was the sentence of the cross, this is the path of the dead this is where our world has buried hope.
A small group of women, representatives of an ignored demographic in society, gave the first testimony that God overturned the tyrant’s verdict. Are you seeking the Living among the dead? If not then go forth…preach peace, do good, bring justice to the oppressed.
