Christ is risen! Alleluia!
This Easter season has not felt like any Easter season I have ever experienced. It is more subdued. More sombre. We always talk about the joy of the resurrection, but it is harder to feel that joy when our lives have been disrupted by the pandemic.
When we are anxious about how long we will need to stay at home and practice physical distancing. When we are worried about our health or the health of loved ones. When we are worried about our finances for ourselves and our congregations.
It is in these anxious times that we need the good news of Easter more than ever. Think about that first Easter. Yes, some of the disciples went to the tomb and saw the risen Lord. But then what happened?
Two of them left for Emmaus. The rest shut themselves in a locked room. Their lives had been disrupted. They were worried that they might also be arrested and perhaps crucified. They were isolating themselves from others and fearful for the future.
Then what happened? Jesus appeared to the disciples in the locked room and said to them “Peace be with you.” He ate a piece of fish to prove to them that he was indeed alive. Then he opened up their minds to help them put things into perspective. (Luke 24:36–49)
To the two that headed out on the road to Emmaus, he appeared and walked alongside them. They did not recognize him. But he taught them and assured them. They urged him to stay and eat with them, and when he broke the bread, they recognized him. (Luke 24:13–35)
Jesus comes to us now in these difficulttimes. He joins us in our homes. He joins us in worship online. He walks alongside us when getting some fresh air outside (observing appropriate physical distancing requirements). And, he meets us at the grocery store.
In all these places where we meet, Jesus, he says to us “Peace be with you.”
God has promised us so many things. To be our rock, our shelter, our comforter, our healer. Most importantly. God has promised us to be present with us.
God is with us in our prayers. God comes to us in the kindness we receive from others. God calls us to show God’s presence to others in our words and our deeds.
This, more than ever, is a time to lean into the promises of God and the good news of the resurrection. Hour by hour. Day by day. Through this pandemic and for the rest of our lives.
Christ is risen! Alleluia! Christ is risen, indeed! Alleluia!
National Bishop Susan Johnson
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
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