An Easter message

By Staff
March 31, 2002
For Christians, Easter is the day of Christ's resurrection. After Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, after the betrayal, his arrest, his suffering on the cross and his death, he arises, he leaves his tomb, and there is a new reality, a new covenant. Through sacrifice and through love, there is newness of life. There is reconciliation with God. Humanity itself is resurrected.
Those who do not share the theology may share the sense of joyous rescue that the story conveys. After all, haven't we all witnessed how acts of love and care give birth to hope?
This country has seen a resurrection of sorts since Sept. 11. The terrorist attack was emotionally devastating for millions. There was the awful sadness of the lost lives, and there was also the feeling of vulnerability, as if what was once solid under our feet was now shaky. Some surely felt anger, but the more general feeling seemed to be a sapping of that extraordinary American confidence that has propelled us to so many great deeds. The confidence and what flows from it seem mostly back, and one of the reasons is that Americans reached out to one another with more kindness than usual, as neighbors and friends and patriots who were in this thing together.
Easter certainly to the faithful reaches in its significance beyond any particular historical event, but the message of resurrection through love can beneficently inform history at any of its moments.