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Life After Death

by Vicar Lisa

I have a little book entitled The Church Year Makes Sense, authored by John G. Williams. I found the following excerpt interesting.

If I were simply making up a story about Jesus rising from the dead on Easter morning, I should make it a very different story from the one in the Gospels. Anybody would, if they’d been merely inventing a story like that. I should write it up in a more startling and dramatic way.

I shouldn’t make this terrific thing happen quietly in the early morning before anybody was about, so that people only heard about it one by one ad in hushed whispers – no, it would all have happened in broad daylight in the presence of great crowds of people including Pilate and Caiaphas and the people who’d cried “Crucify him!” with thunder and lightning and perhaps an earthquake to make it even more impressive.

That’s how people would make up that sort of wonder story – and that’s just why I’m so positive that nobody did make up the story you read in the Gospels, because that’s just about as simple and straightforward and matter of fact as anything could be. A quiet garden in the early morning; some frightened women finding the stone rolled away from the door of the tomb; Peter and John running and finding the grave-clothes ling on the ledge; Jesus coming to them in that secret upper room at night behind barred and bolted doors. No earthquakes and lightning flashes – just a plain simple account of something that really happened. It rings true.

April 27, 2nd Sunday of Easter

10 a.m. Sunday Worship with Communion

Announcements

  • Fellowship Time: Join us after worship in the Fellowship Hall for Coffee and Conversation.
  • First Call Retreat: Vicar Lisa is attending her First Call Retreat this week. If you need assistance during her absence, please contact council president Mike McNeil, Admin. Jo Moss, or send an email to Zionsluth@gmail.com. We are grateful to Robert Hoenike for agreeing to preside at worship next Sunday, April 27.
  • Weekday Bible Study: Continues at 1 p.m. on Thursday, April 24, and again at 10 a.m. on Saturday, April 26. The studies explore Biblical allusions in everyday life. The same themes will be explored on both Thursdays and Saturdays, so participants can attend either session, or both. The Rev. Dr. Becky McNeil will lead us in our inquiries. Bring a Bible and your curiosity.
  • Special Thanks: We are grateful to the flower team for their work in beautifying the sanctuary for our Easter worship. We also send thanks to everyone who helped with the Spring-Cleaning project in the Sanctuary and Fellowship Hall on April 12.
  • 5-Loaves Help Wanted: Volunteers are needed to help prepare 5-Loaves meals on Friday, April 25, and to deliver lunches on Saturday, April 26. If you can help, please let Norine Hazen, Terri Watson or Jo Moss know.

E-formation – 2nd Sunday of Easter, April 27

The church keeps Easter for eight Sundays. Early Christians referred to Sunday as the eighth day, as if the extraordinary day of the resurrection could not fit within the normal week of seven days. The resurrection begins a new recording of time. The fifty days culminates at Pentecost. Each Sunday, individually and communally, we meet the risen Christ in word and sacrament.

John 20:19-31

The church continues the pattern alluded to in John’s gospel, of assembling on the first day of the week to receive the Spirit of the cross and resurrection and to exchange the peace of Christ. As we expect of John, the narrative in chapter 20 testifies to the identity of Christ as Lord and God. For Christians, to touch Christ is to touch God, and we do this in the flesh of our neighbor’s hand at the peace and with the bread of Christ in our palm at communion.

Acts 5:27-32

Throughout the Sundays of the fifty days of Easter, passages from Acts proclaim the ongoing power of Christ’s resurrection, which is not a single day’s event, but is the continuing power of God in the believing community. In this excerpt, the believers continue the ministry of Christ by testifying publicly to his death and resurrection with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

Revelation 1:4-8

During the 50 days of Easter in year C, the second readings are exultant passages from the book of Revelation. It is as if in the resurrection of Christ, we all are already gathered around the heavenly throne with all the saints and angels to praise the victory of the Lamb. Yet at the same time, we look forward to the end of time, when the agonies described in Revelation will be no more, for believers will follow Christ to be born again from the dead. This creedal excerpt sets the stage for the subsequent six selections.

Zion's Lutheran Church

A Reconciling in Christ Community

zionsluth@gmail.com

719-846-7785