by Waikato Diocesan
Crazy?
Rev Stephen Black — May 18, 2022
For a long time, Easter has become a kind of target. From about March, we find ourselves saying things like, "If I can make it to Easter it'll be ok." It's the promise of a long weekend; a final shot at decent weather before winter. If we stop and think about what Easter actually means - and that's a big "IF" - it is easy to shrug it off as 'crazy' and just focus (ironically) on having a holiday.
Of course, a 'holiday' is only that because it is a "Holy Day", and Easter is the Holiest of all. At Easter, we remember the triumph, tragedy and resurrection of Jesus Christ. A huge week culminates in the claim that God became human, was executed on a cross, and then rose from the dead. This is the foundational truth for Christians, and it is accepted by about one-third of the global population. Nevertheless, it sounds a bit crazy, and crazy literally means 'cracked' - like the patterns on ceramic.
So, some people hear the story of Easter and all they see is the cracks. And if all you see are the cracks, you can think that it's fragile and broken. But if you step back and see the cracks in context it changes everything. Suddenly the cracks become the intricate pattern of something beautiful and whole.
So, in these weeks after Easter, I invite you to step back and think about the whole. Consider what God has done in all of creation and how the resurrection is one crucial part of that. Reflect on what you would be prepared to give your life up for - and how much love that represents - because that's the whole that Easter points to. God's love for us is unlimited.
For too many of us, it's crazier to believe that we are loved without limit than to accept Jesus rose from the dead.
The Good News is both are true.
Reverend Stephen Black
Chaplain
