Why Easter is the best week of the year
+ ++ Based on a talk given to my colleagues at + Scott Logic for Maundy + Thursday, 2024. +
+ ++ As you might have noticed, it is Easter this week! So I'd like to take five or + five minutes of your time to share why I – and about two billion other humans + going about the place just now – think Easter is the best week of the year. And + it's got something to do with a special Christian ritual called Communion. +
+ ++ Communion, at its heart, is about as simple a ritual as you can get. You get + together with a bunch of other people. You share some bread, and you share some + wine. +
+ ++ And it’s because of this ritual that so many people regard Easter as the best + week of the year. I want to explain to you why that is, and more than that, I + want to convince you that Easter is the best week of the year for you, too! +
+ ++ If you’ve passed by The Hub at the top of Johnstone Terrace here in + Edinburgh recently, you might have notice the banner which is draped over + the railings just now – reading, ‘RITUALS THAT UNITE US.’ +
+ ++ Now, that might seem like an odd idea. But wouldn’t that be great, if we + actually had a ritual which could unite us? Because the world could surely do + with a bit more unity right now. The world seems so divided, and sometimes it + seems like there’s no hope for real unity. +
+ ++ We can see that in our politics. We’re divided about foreign policy, about + taxation policy, about trade policy, about environmental policy. +
+ ++ And the conflicts that we have in this country seem pretty trivial when we + remember the conflicts that are playing out in other parts of the world right + now. In Israel and Gaza. In Sudan. In Russia and Ukraine. +
+ ++ And there’s plenty of conflict happening on the small scale, too. Often it’s the + smallest-scale conflicts which hurt us the most deeply. Your landlord pushes you + around. That friend you trusted like no-one else in the world lets you down. The + partner or spouse you loved like no-one else in the world – you end up fighting. +
+ ++ It’s possible that you’re going to be reading this right now with a heavy heart + because of a broken relationship in their life. And doesn’t that hurt more than + anything else we know? +
+ ++ When the world is groaning so heavily under the weight of conflict, and some + banner on The Hub tells us a ritual can unite us, that seems so out of + proportion to the scale of the problem, doesn’t it? What can a ritual do? A bit + of old superstition? An excuse to divide people, maybe – what can a ritual do + to unite us? +
+ ++ Well, two thousand years ago, a man had a meal with his friends. Together, they + shared a meal of bread and wine – which, in that time and place, was the most + ordinary meal imaginable. +
+ ++ And yet, in that most ordinary event imaginable, something was happening which + was totally unimaginable. As this man, Jesus, shared the elements of this meal, + he made some extraordinary statements about what he was doing: ‘take, eat, this + is my body’ – ‘drink this, all of you; this is my blood of the new covenant.’ + (The word ‘covenant’ means a promise.) +
+ ++ He told them he wasn’t just giving them bread and wine, he was giving his body + and his blood, and a promise. +
+ ++ Before Jesus ate another meal, he was flogged and nailed to a cross. His blood + was spilt and his body broken, even to death. +
+ ++ And yet, that wasn’t the end of the Easter story. Because three days later, + mourners turned up at Jesus’ tomb to pay their respects, and found the tomb + empty, the stone rolled away. Then they became the first of crowds of + incredulous eyewitnesses to see Jesus, the same Jesus who was killed on a cross, + alive. +
+ ++ Some magic trick, right? But this matters a hell of a lot more than just some + magic trick. Because Jesus became the first person in history to prove that you + really can both have your cake and eat it. He gave his life, and lived! As a + result, we can have his life and our own. We can join with Jesus through the + ritual of Communion which he established, and thereby, through Jesus’ body, join + together with everyone else who takes part in that ritual, as one body. Then we + can start living our brand-new, full-fat, original-recipe life overflowing with + generosity where we too can both give our life to others and enjoy it ourselves. + Indeed, Jesus taught us and showed us that it’s precisely by giving our lives to + others that we get to truly live ourselves. +
+ ++ This is why, in spite of all the division which persists in the world today, two + billion people regard this week as the best week of the year. Two billion + people, from every nation on Earth, speaking thousands of languages, of every + age and culture and gender and race, who defy the divisions of this world to + insist on joining together as one body in Jesus. +
+ ++ That includes Edinburgh’s thriving and diverse Christian community, many of whom + will be taking part in the ritual of Communion at some point this week. And if + you want to hear more about how Jesus gave his life for us and why that matters + for all of us, I’m sure every church in Edinburgh will have their doors open at + some point this week and would be delighted to have you. My own church, + Bruntsfield Evangelical, will be having a service tomorrow, Good Friday at + twelve noon, and also at eleven o’ clock on Sunday – I’d especially recommend this + one if you’re new to church or haven’t been in a while. You’d be very welcome to + join me there! +
+ ++ Because Jesus’ new covenant, his promise to all of us, is that in an apparently + hopelessly divided world, there exists real hope for unity. And that’s why + Easter is the best week of the year. +
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