Easter Day 2010
Father Fred Heard
St. Paul’s Cambria
John 20:1-18
The Lord is Risen! …
When I was a wee boy, I got up and walked to church on Easter Sunday. I understood that this day had something to do with Jesus’ death. I wore the darkest clothes I could find and set off to church. You know my name…I am Fred Heard and I am your rector.
But you probably do not remember the name Nikolai Ivanovich Bukharin. There was a time when he was as powerful a man as there was on earth. He was a Russian Communist leader. He took part in the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution and was editor of the Soviet newspaper Pravda. He was a full member of the Politburo. Bukharin’s works on economics and political science are still read today. There is a story told about a journey he took from Moscow to Kiev in 1930 to address a huge assembly on the subject of atheism. Addressing the crowd, he aimed his heavy artillery at Christianity hurling insult, argument, and proof against it. After he thought he had smashed the faith, he asked if there were any questions. One man approached the platform and mounted the lectern standing near the communist leader. He surveyed the crowd first to the left then to the right. Finally he shouted the ancient greeting known well in the Russian Orthodox Church and our own: "CHRIST IS RISEN!" En masse the crowd arose as one, and the response came crashing like the sound of thunder: "HE IS RISEN INDEED!"
This morning, I say to you: CHRIST IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED! This Easter Day, I have faith that Christ was dead and he was buried. That I believe. That wee boy from my long ago past does grasp that as fact, but, this too: He rose from the dead and will come again in glory.
For so many years Christmas, my birthday, and the 4th of July topped my list of favorite holidays…but somewhere along the way, that all changed; and now, I say to you--Today is Easter Day! I stand here on this day in this pulpit and proclaim this word. . . I cannot begin to tell you how this defines all that I am and all that I hope to be. So, how do I know that the resurrection is real? How do I know that we are not all doing a lot of work each year for nothing?
First, I would say that I believe in the resurrection because somebody on that long ago Easter Sunday told that small boy who thought he was mourning that, in fact, he was celebrating the greatest event in all of history. Well, some would immediately reply, that certainly isn’t very reliable. It may not be, but the truth of the matter is that most of what we know is simply because somebody told us about it. How do we know that Columbus discovered America in 1492? Were we there? No, we were not there. There were people who witnessed and wrote about it, and that is how we know about it. How do we personally know that a man has walked on the moon? Were we standing there to meet him when he stepped off? Well, you say, I know it because I saw it on TV. There are people to this day who insist that it was all done in a fake TV studio in Hollywood. Many of them would insist that the International Space Station is all a hoax. That may sound absurd, but the truth of the matter is I cannot prove it or disprove it, and neither can you. In the end, I guess I would have to say: I do believe that a man has walked on the moon, simply because a lot of people have told me that it happened.
We have thousands of pieces of information and sometimes gossip which we routinely accept as fact every single day. Why then is the historic testimony of countless persons throughout the ages who have declared the validity of the resurrection not as believable as the willow of the wisp news about the great events of history that we teach in our schools to our children every single day?
When Mary went to the tomb on that first Easter morning, she did so with a heavy heart. Her Master, her teacher, her friend had died. All of life was now in doubt. She stood at the entrance to that tomb weeping. And then, she met the gardener and the gardener calls her by name. “Mary,” he said. Can you imagine the look in her eyes as she turned and looked into his? Do you remember what she said? The joy of that first Easter can be found in her one word response, “Rabboni!” She yells. “Teacher!” And from what John tells us, she must have leaped into his arms. Jesus tells her not to hold onto him just yet.
Now comes the job description for the church. Jesus tells her: Go to my brothers and tell them. My friends I believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ because someone told me about it.
Undoubtedly, there are people who are bothered by the fact they cannot prove when Mary told the Disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” she spoke the truth. I will grant you. It cannot be proven. You will never have more proof than the testimony of those first century witnesses. There are no photographs, nor were there of the other historic events of that time and before. Resurrection cannot be proven, nor can it be disproved. And that is why there are many brilliant people who believe and many brilliant people who do not believe. It can not be proven either way. What we know is what people have told us about it, and the resurrection has stood the test of time.
A lot of things start off well but soon fizzle out. Athletes and singers and actors are catapulted to national attention and occupy sometimes the front pages of our newspapers, but soon they are out of the news and become faded memories. Even OJ Simpson is no longer in the limelight and quietly serving his time in prison.
Fame fades and new fads and fashions emerge. This is acceptable business encouraged by the music industry. The industry philosophy is, “You are only as good as your last hit record.” Songs come and go so fast you barely have time to learn them, but you take that song “Amazing Grace”…an Episcopal classic. Now there is a song that has stood the test of time. John Newton, that infamous British slave trader, was converted by John Wesley and subsequently renounced his slave trading and wrote this great hymn: “Amazing Grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I’m found, was blind but now I see.” Your great grandparents sang that song, and long after you and I are gone, people will still be singing that song. Why? It’s the real thing and it has stood the test of time.
The resurrection is genuine because it has stood the test of time. It was not something that was here today and gone tomorrow. As long as there is life on earth, there will be people talking about the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
I have experienced the resurrection. The first century disciples did not believe in the resurrection because they could explain it; they believed in the resurrection because they had experienced it. One whom they had known in the flesh and had seen die was now alive and with them.
During Communion, we invite people to come up to the altar rail and to kneel. After they have kneeled, they rise. Now why do we do that? Some of you might say, well it’s obvious why we do that. We get up because there are others waiting there to take communion, and you have to move. Well, there is a little more to it than that. This is a symbol of our participation in the death and the resurrection of Jesus. As we kneel, we are descending unto death, and when we stand we are experiencing the resurrection of new life in Christ.
Yet, as beautiful a sentiment and symbol as that is, there must be more to resurrection than that. You see? The best proof of the resurrection is not in what the disciples said that they saw, but in their response. They were frightened and they huddled together in a house with the door barred. That is the scene before resurrection. A powerful band of mighty witnesses thrust out into the world. That is the scene post-resurrection. It has been estimated that by the end of the first century over a half million people called themselves Christians. That is the power of resurrection.
It is never easy to disregard the testimony of witnesses who are ready to die for their words…end of life decisions. Eventually, of course, every one of the disciples met a violent death. People may lie to perpetuate a myth. But people are not going to die to perpetuate what they know to be a myth…well, maybe one. Maybe even two or three, but not all twelve. They were not men who had a death wish. They knew what they had seen. They believed in it so passionately that they were willing to put their lives on the line in their efforts to tell the story to others. They were resurrection people.
The Apostle Paul wrote: I have died to sin and have been raised with him. This is what I am talking about. The resurrection is an historical event—but so is the Battle of Waterloo and man's landing on the moon. The resurrection must become more than history to us. It is quite apart from history. The resurrection is an ongoing event, an event shared by every generation. More than that, it is an event in which we are invited to participate. We are to become resurrection people. It will be then that we each echo the words of Paul to the Philippians: “All I care to know is Christ, and the power of his resurrection." Once we understand this, we will fully grasp what it means to be called “Easter People.”
You recall the saying: The only difference between a grave and a rut is the dimensions. It is a folksy way of saying the resurrection is not just for the afterlife; it is also for this life here and now. Don’t get in a rut and miss the impact of the resurrection. It is power for the living of these days.
My friends, we can sing the great hymns of Easter, we can hear again the familiar stories of scripture, we can enjoy the lilies, and we can join in the Halleluiah chorus. Easter can be experienced in these ways. But the real power of Easter is the way that people's lives are moved from death to life, from sealed tomb to open doorway, from despair to hope, from the old ways to new opportunities. That is Easter. That is resurrection.
I believe in the resurrection because I have seen the God of resurrection at work. I have seen the risen Christ raise people from the death of despair to the joy of new life. The Risen Lord comes back to life… That is Easter. The Risen Lord assures the disciples that they are forgiven.
- Peter had denied his Lord three times.
- Thomas had doubted.
- All the disciples had forsaken Him.
Christ came back, forgave them, resurrected them. He came back to share with them… He comes today, this morning, to share with you the joy, the encouragement and the forgiveness of Easter.
Why do I believe in resurrection? I believe in it because somebody told me about it. I believe in it because it has stood the test of time. But supremely, I believe in it because I have seen it in the lives of others, and I have experienced it myself. It is why I can stand here this morning and shout: CHRIST IS RISEN! (the congregation will respond again: HE IS RISEN INDEED!) AMEN
Father Fred Heard
St. Paul’s Cambria
John 20:1-18
The Lord is Risen! …
When I was a wee boy, I got up and walked to church on Easter Sunday. I understood that this day had something to do with Jesus’ death. I wore the darkest clothes I could find and set off to church. You know my name…I am Fred Heard and I am your rector.
But you probably do not remember the name Nikolai Ivanovich Bukharin. There was a time when he was as powerful a man as there was on earth. He was a Russian Communist leader. He took part in the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution and was editor of the Soviet newspaper Pravda. He was a full member of the Politburo. Bukharin’s works on economics and political science are still read today. There is a story told about a journey he took from Moscow to Kiev in 1930 to address a huge assembly on the subject of atheism. Addressing the crowd, he aimed his heavy artillery at Christianity hurling insult, argument, and proof against it. After he thought he had smashed the faith, he asked if there were any questions. One man approached the platform and mounted the lectern standing near the communist leader. He surveyed the crowd first to the left then to the right. Finally he shouted the ancient greeting known well in the Russian Orthodox Church and our own: "CHRIST IS RISEN!" En masse the crowd arose as one, and the response came crashing like the sound of thunder: "HE IS RISEN INDEED!"
This morning, I say to you: CHRIST IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED! This Easter Day, I have faith that Christ was dead and he was buried. That I believe. That wee boy from my long ago past does grasp that as fact, but, this too: He rose from the dead and will come again in glory.
For so many years Christmas, my birthday, and the 4th of July topped my list of favorite holidays…but somewhere along the way, that all changed; and now, I say to you--Today is Easter Day! I stand here on this day in this pulpit and proclaim this word. . . I cannot begin to tell you how this defines all that I am and all that I hope to be. So, how do I know that the resurrection is real? How do I know that we are not all doing a lot of work each year for nothing?
First, I would say that I believe in the resurrection because somebody on that long ago Easter Sunday told that small boy who thought he was mourning that, in fact, he was celebrating the greatest event in all of history. Well, some would immediately reply, that certainly isn’t very reliable. It may not be, but the truth of the matter is that most of what we know is simply because somebody told us about it. How do we know that Columbus discovered America in 1492? Were we there? No, we were not there. There were people who witnessed and wrote about it, and that is how we know about it. How do we personally know that a man has walked on the moon? Were we standing there to meet him when he stepped off? Well, you say, I know it because I saw it on TV. There are people to this day who insist that it was all done in a fake TV studio in Hollywood. Many of them would insist that the International Space Station is all a hoax. That may sound absurd, but the truth of the matter is I cannot prove it or disprove it, and neither can you. In the end, I guess I would have to say: I do believe that a man has walked on the moon, simply because a lot of people have told me that it happened.
We have thousands of pieces of information and sometimes gossip which we routinely accept as fact every single day. Why then is the historic testimony of countless persons throughout the ages who have declared the validity of the resurrection not as believable as the willow of the wisp news about the great events of history that we teach in our schools to our children every single day?
When Mary went to the tomb on that first Easter morning, she did so with a heavy heart. Her Master, her teacher, her friend had died. All of life was now in doubt. She stood at the entrance to that tomb weeping. And then, she met the gardener and the gardener calls her by name. “Mary,” he said. Can you imagine the look in her eyes as she turned and looked into his? Do you remember what she said? The joy of that first Easter can be found in her one word response, “Rabboni!” She yells. “Teacher!” And from what John tells us, she must have leaped into his arms. Jesus tells her not to hold onto him just yet.
Now comes the job description for the church. Jesus tells her: Go to my brothers and tell them. My friends I believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ because someone told me about it.
Undoubtedly, there are people who are bothered by the fact they cannot prove when Mary told the Disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” she spoke the truth. I will grant you. It cannot be proven. You will never have more proof than the testimony of those first century witnesses. There are no photographs, nor were there of the other historic events of that time and before. Resurrection cannot be proven, nor can it be disproved. And that is why there are many brilliant people who believe and many brilliant people who do not believe. It can not be proven either way. What we know is what people have told us about it, and the resurrection has stood the test of time.
A lot of things start off well but soon fizzle out. Athletes and singers and actors are catapulted to national attention and occupy sometimes the front pages of our newspapers, but soon they are out of the news and become faded memories. Even OJ Simpson is no longer in the limelight and quietly serving his time in prison.
Fame fades and new fads and fashions emerge. This is acceptable business encouraged by the music industry. The industry philosophy is, “You are only as good as your last hit record.” Songs come and go so fast you barely have time to learn them, but you take that song “Amazing Grace”…an Episcopal classic. Now there is a song that has stood the test of time. John Newton, that infamous British slave trader, was converted by John Wesley and subsequently renounced his slave trading and wrote this great hymn: “Amazing Grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. I once was lost, but now I’m found, was blind but now I see.” Your great grandparents sang that song, and long after you and I are gone, people will still be singing that song. Why? It’s the real thing and it has stood the test of time.
The resurrection is genuine because it has stood the test of time. It was not something that was here today and gone tomorrow. As long as there is life on earth, there will be people talking about the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
I have experienced the resurrection. The first century disciples did not believe in the resurrection because they could explain it; they believed in the resurrection because they had experienced it. One whom they had known in the flesh and had seen die was now alive and with them.
During Communion, we invite people to come up to the altar rail and to kneel. After they have kneeled, they rise. Now why do we do that? Some of you might say, well it’s obvious why we do that. We get up because there are others waiting there to take communion, and you have to move. Well, there is a little more to it than that. This is a symbol of our participation in the death and the resurrection of Jesus. As we kneel, we are descending unto death, and when we stand we are experiencing the resurrection of new life in Christ.
Yet, as beautiful a sentiment and symbol as that is, there must be more to resurrection than that. You see? The best proof of the resurrection is not in what the disciples said that they saw, but in their response. They were frightened and they huddled together in a house with the door barred. That is the scene before resurrection. A powerful band of mighty witnesses thrust out into the world. That is the scene post-resurrection. It has been estimated that by the end of the first century over a half million people called themselves Christians. That is the power of resurrection.
It is never easy to disregard the testimony of witnesses who are ready to die for their words…end of life decisions. Eventually, of course, every one of the disciples met a violent death. People may lie to perpetuate a myth. But people are not going to die to perpetuate what they know to be a myth…well, maybe one. Maybe even two or three, but not all twelve. They were not men who had a death wish. They knew what they had seen. They believed in it so passionately that they were willing to put their lives on the line in their efforts to tell the story to others. They were resurrection people.
The Apostle Paul wrote: I have died to sin and have been raised with him. This is what I am talking about. The resurrection is an historical event—but so is the Battle of Waterloo and man's landing on the moon. The resurrection must become more than history to us. It is quite apart from history. The resurrection is an ongoing event, an event shared by every generation. More than that, it is an event in which we are invited to participate. We are to become resurrection people. It will be then that we each echo the words of Paul to the Philippians: “All I care to know is Christ, and the power of his resurrection." Once we understand this, we will fully grasp what it means to be called “Easter People.”
You recall the saying: The only difference between a grave and a rut is the dimensions. It is a folksy way of saying the resurrection is not just for the afterlife; it is also for this life here and now. Don’t get in a rut and miss the impact of the resurrection. It is power for the living of these days.
My friends, we can sing the great hymns of Easter, we can hear again the familiar stories of scripture, we can enjoy the lilies, and we can join in the Halleluiah chorus. Easter can be experienced in these ways. But the real power of Easter is the way that people's lives are moved from death to life, from sealed tomb to open doorway, from despair to hope, from the old ways to new opportunities. That is Easter. That is resurrection.
I believe in the resurrection because I have seen the God of resurrection at work. I have seen the risen Christ raise people from the death of despair to the joy of new life. The Risen Lord comes back to life… That is Easter. The Risen Lord assures the disciples that they are forgiven.
- Peter had denied his Lord three times.
- Thomas had doubted.
- All the disciples had forsaken Him.
Christ came back, forgave them, resurrected them. He came back to share with them… He comes today, this morning, to share with you the joy, the encouragement and the forgiveness of Easter.
Why do I believe in resurrection? I believe in it because somebody told me about it. I believe in it because it has stood the test of time. But supremely, I believe in it because I have seen it in the lives of others, and I have experienced it myself. It is why I can stand here this morning and shout: CHRIST IS RISEN! (the congregation will respond again: HE IS RISEN INDEED!) AMEN