April 1, 2002

Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  We have come through Lent and Holy Week, and have entered the Great Fifty Days of Easter.  It is ironic that in many Christian churches, the 40 days of Lent command more attention and devotion than the Easter celebration that follows.  The glorious truth of the resurrection is at the heart of our Christian faith, and the liturgical calendar sets apart 50 days to celebrate it.  These fifty days reflect the time period described in the Bible: the risen Christ appeared to his disciples for forty days before ascending to heaven.  Then they waited ten more days until the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

In the weeks of Easter, we will hear Gospel stories about some of Jesus’ appearances after his resurrection.  On April 7, we will hear the familiar story of “Doubting Thomas.”  Jesus appeared first to the disciples when Thomas wasn’t there.  Thomas was skeptical. But Jesus didn’t make a command appearance to Thomas individually.  Thomas only experienced the risen Christ when he was together with the other disciples.  They were gathered together, and Jesus was in the midst of them.

On April 14, we will hear about two disciples traveling to Emmaus with a stranger.  As the stranger explained the scriptures, their hearts burned within them – but still they did not recognize him.  At table that evening, the stranger took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them, and they recognized that it was Jesus who was both their guest and their host.  They knew him in the breaking of bread.

The risen Christ still appears to us, and is known to us, in these same ways.  When we gather together, seeking him through worship and prayer, he comes among us.  When we break bread and drink wine together around the altar, he is present there also, known to us more fully through the breaking of the bread.

During these Great Fifty Days of Easter, let us celebrate the resurrection with even greater enthusiasm than we took to our Lenten observance.  And may we experience the power of the risen Christ, as we gather for worship, as we share Holy Communion, and as we grow together in faith. 

Faithfully yours,

Lydia Huttar Brown, Deacon