Something Beautiful Remains and Something New is Born: An Easter Reflection

This is the fourth piece of devotional worship that I have put together for sharing, during the shutting down of worship due to the Corona virus outbreak. I am posting it before Sunday. If you would like to share it with myself and the two congregations I serve, please feel free to do so. We will worship together but physically apart, either at 10am or 11,30am on Sunday 12th of April. all you need is an open heart, mind, spirit and soul. A small candle will be helpful. All are most welcome. come as you are, exactly as you are, but do not expect to leave in exactly the same condition.

Invocation

In this time of physical separation, I invite us to join together in heart, mind, spirit and soul. We are connected in deep ways, even though we cannot be physically together, in a web of mutual love. In this spirit I invite us to still ourselves in silence and invite a loving presence to be here amongst us and to awaken within us…let us be still, silent physically separate but together in heart, mind, spirit and soul.

Chalice Lighting

We seek life’s meaning in the wonder of morning
In the freshness of springtime,
And in each others hearts and minds.
Yet still we hope for something more,
A break in the ordinary,
An infusion of the unexpected,
An explosion of glory,
A miracle,
Revealing more than we hope to understand.

Hymn 263 “Earth Awakes Again” “Hymns for Living” (Green hymn book) lyrics Samuel Longfellow Tune Llanfair 77.77 with Alleluias melody by Robert Williams

Lo, the earth awakes again — Alleluia!
From the winter’s bond and pain.
Alleluia! Bring we leaf and flower and spray — Alleluia!
to adorn this happy day. Alleluia!

Once again the word comes true,
Alleluia! All the earth shall be made new. Alleluia!
Now the dark, cold days are o’er, Alleluia!
Spring and gladness are before. Alleluia!

Change, then, mourning into praise, Alleluia!
And, for dirges, anthems raise. Alleluia!
How our spirits soar and sing, Alleluia!
How our hearts leap with the spring! Alleluia!

Prayer

I invite us to join together in a time of prayer. Following these words I invite you, if you wish to pray out loud the prayer that Jesus taught, the Lord’s Prayer

Loving God,

Help us to join together in heart, mind, spirit and soul, despite our physical separation

We join in humility,
Awed by the stone rolled back;
And the surprise of the empty tomb.

We join in defiance
Of the pain and the injustice that came before;
And of the pain and injustice that will likely come again.

We join in hope
That life can begin anew;
That our differences can be bridged
That the beloved community can arise at last.

We join in faith,
That the light shines in the darkness,
And the darkness does not overcome it.

We join in wonder
Of the beauty we can see;
And of the mystery of all we can never know.

Here in our physical separation but joined in heart, mind, spirit and soul

We pray for faith and strength
To stand for what is good;
To do what we must
To live lives of integrity and peace.

We pray in gratitude and joy
For the whole human community;
For the beauty of this day;
For the hope and love promised
In this ancient story,
In the stone rolled away.

Amen.

Lord's Prayer

Story

THE SUN, THE CLOUDS AND THE STARS

By Caroline Sedgwick

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there was a country where it was always raining, raining and raining; downpours of rain all day, every day, for years and years and years. And there lived a little boy, in a little house on the mountain, with his Daddy and his dog.

He was nine years old and every day of his life, it had rained and rained, all day and all night.

Can you imagine it always raining and always being wet?

People were always telling him that, before he was born, there had been such a thing as a sun; this was a big, round, yellow thing, which gave warmth and light to everything and everybody and it always had a smile on its big, round, yellow face. And to see that smile on the sun, people would look at it and smile back at it.

The little boy could not seem to picture the idea of a big, round, yellow, smiling face, as he had never seen one. And he couldn't believe that people could look at it and smile, because in his little village, nobody smiled; they all looked sad.

One day, the people began to comment that the skies seemed a little lighter. It was still raining and the black clouds were still there, hanging in the skies, but it did seem lighter.

The following day, people began to comment more, that it seemed to have rained less. The next day, it only rained for half the day. The next, it only drizzled and trickled. The next day, it stopped raining.

The following day, there were white clouds and not black ones. Next, there were bits of blue sky. Until suddenly, there were no clouds at all and a big, round, yellow thing sat heavily in the sky, giving warmth and light to everybody. And the people looked up at this thing and they smiled to see it because it had a big, beaming smile on its face.

And the little boy sat up in bed and saw a thing he had heard in stories: a big, round, yellow thing up in the sky, with a smile on its face. "That must be the sun!" exclaimed the little boy, smiling back. And he ran into the streets and saw that everyone else was smiling.

Hymn 76 “In Spring I saw the Easter tree” in “Sing Your faith” (Purple hymn book)

Lyrics Frances Simons tun “I Saw three Ships” L.M. traditional melody arranged by Martin Shaw

In spring I saw the Easter tree,
The Easter tree, the Easter tree;
In spring I saw the Easter tree,
The fairest gift in the garden.

Twas tall and broad and fine to see,
And fine to see, and fine to see;
Twas tall and broad and fine to see,
The fairest tree in the garden.

The tree it was an evergreen,
An evergreen, an evergreen;
The tree it was an evergreen,
The fairest tree in the garden.

Its fruits did taste of pure delight,
Of pure delight, of pure delight;
Its fruits did taste of pure delight,
The fairest tree in the garden.

And of its fruit all may partake,
All may partake, all may partake;
And of its fruit all may partake,
The fairest tree in the garden.

Gospel Reading

Mark 16 vv 1-8

16When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. 3They had been saying to one another, ‘Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?’ 4When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. 5As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. 6But he said to them, ‘Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. 7But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.’ 8So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.*

Secular Reading

Extract from “What Happens When We Stop Living?” by Nathan C Walker

The question is not,
“What happens when we die?”
Nobody really knows.
The real question is,
“What happens when we stop living?”

The stoicism we face on a daily basis
is a symptom of a larger illness
called a dually-dulled life.

Our lives can be hypnotized
by the monotonous commutes,
multiplied by the flickering florescent light
that falls upon the micromanaging boss
who thinks everything you do in your cubicle
is an extension of his or her power.

Who here is dying a slow and numbing death?

There’s no time to be lulled by monotony.
There is no time to be blaming
other people for our own feelings.
If you don’t like it, change it.

There’s no time for crying, or complaining,
or gossiping, or clinging to that fashionable grudge bag.

No. It is time to wake up, to rise up,
and to carry ourselves into a day worth living.

Let us live one day—this day—
with passion and a sense of collective synergy.

Let us live one day—this day—
by asking questions that truly challenge us
and make us feel alive.

For today’s question is not
“What happens when we die?” it is
“What happens when we stop living?”

“What Happens When We Stop Living?” excerpted from Nathan C. Walker (2014) Exorcising Preaching: Crafting Intellectually Honest Worship. St. Louis: Chalice Press

Meditation

I invite us to join together in heart, mind, spirit and soul despite our physical separation. We are joined by deep roots of love intertwining us all. Held together by the loving hand of life. Therefore in this spirit I invite us to still our minds, quieten our thoughts, connect to our bodies, to our breathing, to our breath…to that breath of all life, that connects all life…let us be still and silent together in heart, mind, spirit and soul…

Silence (5-10mins)

Music for meditation (Your choice)

Hymn 264 “Spring Buds of Hope” in “Hymns for Living” (Green Hymn Book) Lyrics William wolff, tune Lucerna Lausoniae 77.77.77. by David Evans

In the springtime of our year
Silver buds of hope appear.
Will they blossom? Will they grow?
We who plant the seed must know.
Will they blossom? Will they grow?
We who plant the seed must know.

Tender shoots thirst for the sun,
Surging with each day begun,
Banish darkness, hate and fear;
Golden fruit will soon appear.
Banish darkness, hate and fear;
Golden fruit will soon appear.

Welcome children, welcome here,
Silver buds of our late year.
May our harvest still increase
Joys of fellowship and peace.
May our harvest still increase
Joys of fellowship and peace.

Reading

Exultet for Easter Morning by Mark Belletini

I could say they are beautiful
those stars hemming the blue veil of morning
I could say it gives me pleasure,
that bronze and perfect Passover moon,
or I could say they make me glad,
those laughing daffodils along the lane.

Or, I could just as well say they are lit from within,
Divine, overflowing with what some long to call
Revelation, or even the growing vision of God.
But today, on Easter, I don t care which words I use to express my
wonder.
I just am glad to be alive, blest with such marvels.

I could say that the earth hanging in space
is an accident in the universe that just happened,
or I could say it’s one more miracle,
in a cosmos full of miracles,
one overflowing with divinity.

But today, on Easter,
For all of my education and life experience,
I cannot tell which word is which.
Accident. Miracle.
They both seem to see each other s face
in the mirror of my heart.
And so I rise in gladness again,
And sing the marvel that everything is!

When some argue for heaven,
And others argue for earth,
For the life of me I cannot comprehend the
seriousness of the debate.

After all, the heaven I see daily overhead
Never argues with me.
It just tumbles clouds through my eyes and yours
And paints the horizons pink and orange
Come evening or come morning.

And the earth I walk on never argues with me either.
It mostly just explodes with buds and petals
Like some out-of-control fountain.
Heaven and earth remain silent even when people malign
the ancient exclamation O God!
by fusing with violence and entitlement.

But now, on this Easter Day, everything grows
beyond words, beyond earth and heaven, into
a necessary vision of harmony and peace for all
humankind who rise into life that is alive.

Address

Today is Easter, let us rejoice and be glad, however we can celebrate the joy that is this day and whatever it may mean to us. This Easter is like no other that any of us have known before. Maybe in some ways it will be a delayed Easter, may we have to stay a little longer in our caves before we can rejoice once more on the returning of the rising sun, maybe, maybe not. For no matter the physical conditions of our lives, the spirit of Easter will always be born again and anew, in our hearts. Life goes. Spring is here, even if we cannot enjoy it as we would like, for now at least. Easter will come…We can still rejoice and sing Hallelujah!!! And what is Easter? Well it is different, perhaps unique for each and every one of us. What makes you want to rise up and sing Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah?

Easter is seen through many lenses, some are very clear and precise, they are certain of what Easter, what Easter means, what Easter is about. Others though see Easter through a kaleidoscope of ever changing colours and shapes. What comes to your heart and mind when you think of Easter?

In my eyes it is a deeply universal festival, I see layers to this mythos, that if we allow it to can touch all of us. In order to be touched by the heart of Easter you do not have to believe in the actual bodily resurrection of Jesus, you can believe in Easter without having to accept that this actually happened. In fact perhaps it loses some of its power if we focus purely on this. Maybe actually if we view Easter through this very clear lens we will miss much of what it can teach us. Maybe it is better to view Easter through a kaleidoscope or at least partially clouded glass, maybe we see more through the mystery than the seeming clarity.

What is clear to me is that Easter is about the Power of Love that grew from that empty tomb. Whatever we may think about bodily resurrection, something definitely lived on beyond the physical death of Jesus. While his body may no longer have remained in the empty tomb, some beautiful aspect of his life certainly remained.

I believe it is the same with every life and the love that life leave behinds, something beautiful always remain.

This brings to mind those beautiful words often shared at funerals by that famous author “Unknown”

“Something Beautiful Remains” – Unknown

The tide recedes but leaves behind
bright seashells on the sand.
The sun goes down, but gentle
warmth still lingers on the land.
The music stops, and yet it echoes
on in sweet refrains.....
For every joy that passes,
something beautiful remains.

Every life leaves its mark. Every life impacts in some way. We should never think that we are insignificant, that we do not matter. We impact on everyone and everything around us. Everything that we do and everything that do not do matters. There are those who I have known and who have loved me, who have been gone many years, who are still impacting on my life. Of their lives, something beautiful remains.

Easter is a reminder to me that even after death something beautiful remains. It is an acknowledgement of life’s sacredness. It is a reaffirmation of life that not even death can end. Easter for me is about birth and re-birth, again and again and again…

All around us life is being reborn. I see this clearly each morning as I take my morning exercise. After yoga I go for a run, which begins alongside the canal in Sale. The spring flowers are everywhere, the birds are singing more sweetly. I nod at the people as I pass them, I occasionally say hello and even wave once or twice. Some respond and others look with eyes of confusion and sometimes fear, always of course from a safe distance. It is hard not being able to communicate with people as I would normally do and yet there is some connection here. It is a beautiful to see life coming alive as I run, or at least try to run, I am not a natural runner. It is also lovely to see how people try and make those connections, even if they are just as we pass one another from a safe distance. It fills my heart to overflowing with a love for life itself and helps me connect to my true inner being, to all life and to that Greater reality that gives birth to and connects all life. It is amazing how love and light finds a way through, even in these dark difficult times.

I have come to believe that in each of us is written the essence and the spirit of Easter. In each of us is written the capacity to resurrect the Love that was at the core of the life of Jesus. We can bring that love alive once again. We can incarnate that love again. That love can seemingly die in the winters of our lives and come to life once again in our spring times, regardless of the time of year. It is we who can bring this love alive once again. We can become at one with that ancient tale. We can become the resurrection and the life. In so doing we will ensure that something beautiful will remain from our simple, humble lives.

Easter begins with the death and loss of the life of Jesus, with the seeming end of his life’s promise. As every single death means just the same. It begins with the despair of the empty tomb and the despair and terror of this very emptiness. This though is not where it ends, something else happened, something grew from this emptiness, this hopelessness, this despair. Something beautiful remained. Something new was born again. This despair was transformed into a new Hope. The death of Jesus, for those who followed him, was not the end it was actually the beginning, a new beginning.

This very same possibility of transformation and renewal exists for all of us. We see examples of this all around us. Not just in nature and the earth’s renewal but in the lives of ordinary folk too. People who have experienced utter despair, have lost everything precious to them and yet have transformed this into a loving new Hope. Yes they have known utter despair, but this despair has been born again in a new Hope. Resurrection is not some mysterious event from 2,000 years ago, but a promise to each and every one of us; Resurrection is a promise and a challenge for us all that represents the possibility of transformation for everyone and a real sense of a new Hope.

Even after death, something beautiful remains. If we live lives of love and beauty. If we become all that we were born to be if we bring to life from the empty tombs of our own lives the love that is at the heart of the Easter Mythos. A love that is eternal, a love that never dies, a love that I believe is our task to bring alive.

These are thoughts of mine about Easter, a universal festival for all people at all times, I believe. This is what it means to me, but what does it mean to you? Maybe this is something to consider in this time of physical separation, to ask ourselves what comes to our hearts and minds when we think of Easter?

We cannot fully celebrate it at this time. So maybe what we ought to do is to let the heart of Easter to settle into our being and consider what it means to each and every one of us in this time of physical separation as we stay at home, dreaming and preparing for the time when life will return to how we are used to being. That said I am not sure it will entirely return to how it used to be. This may not be a bad thing, we will be transformed by this time and when the sun returns once again we can give re-birth to this love, being born in the tombs of our hearts in new and wonderful ways. We must give birth to a new Easter, a new Easter of our hearts.

Amen

Prayer

I invite us to join together once again in a time of prayer…Let us pray…

“Being the Resurrection” by Victoria Weinstein

The stone has got to be rolled back from the tomb again and again every year.
Roll up your sleeves.

He is not coming back, you know.
He is not coming back unless it is we who rise for him
We who lay healing hands on the reviled and rejected like he did
on his behalf --
We who rage for righteousness in his insistent voice
We who love the sinner, even knowing that "the sinner" is no farther off than our own heartbeat

He will not be back to join us at the table
To share God's extravagant banquet
God's love feast, all are invited, come as you are
And so it is you and I who must feast for him
Must say the grace and break the bread and pass it to the left
and dish up the broiled fish (or pour the wine) and pass it to the right.
And treat each one so tenderly
as though just this morning she or he made the personal effort
to make it back from heaven, or from hell
but certainly from death
to be by our side.

Because if by some miracle (and why not a miracle?)
He did come back
Wouldn't he want to see us like this?
Wouldn't it be a miracle to live for just one day
So that if he did, by some amazing feat
come riding into town
He could take a look around and say
"This is what I meant!"

And we could say
it took us a long time...
but we finally figured it out.

Oh, let us live to make it so.

You are the resurrection and the life.

Amen


Final Hymn 44 “Give thanks for life” in “Sing Your Faith” Purple hymn book

Words Shirley Erena Murray Tune Sine Nomine 10.10.10.4 Ralph Vaughan Williams

Give thanks for life,
the measure of our days,
mortal, we pass
through beauty that decays,
yet sing to God
our hope, our love, our praise,
Alleluia!

Give thanks for those
who made their life a light
caught from the Christ-flame,
bursting through the night,
who touched the truth,
who burned for what is right,
Alleluia!

And for our own,
our living and our dead,
thanks for the love
by which our life is fed,
a love not changed
by time or death or dread,
Alleluia!

Give thanks for hope,
that like the wheat, the grain
that lies in darkness
does its life retain
in resurrection
to grow green again,
Alleluia!

Blessing

May the Love which overcomes all differences, which heals all wounds, which put to flight all fears, which reconciles all who are separated,

Be in us and among us now and always.

May we become that love, may it be born in tombs of our hearts and me we pour it out, when the time is right on a world truly needing it. And may we do so in all that we feel and all that we think and all that we say and all that we do…

Happy Easter

Amen