Happy Mother's Day

Very few of us wear a corsage on Mother’s Day. When I was a child I remember going to church on this day and seeing a myriad of women and children wearing either a red or white flower. A red flower meant your mother was alive, a white flower meant your mother had died. My mother passed away years ago, but I still feel her presence whenever I follow in her footsteps and do what she would do: cook one of her recipes, go places that she and I frequented together, spend time with family, send thank-you notes or plant flowers in the spring. Ironically, I can sense my mother’s spirit now more than when she was alive.

Perhaps this is what Jesus was trying to get across to his disciples in today’s gospel, that he would continue to remain with them even after his death. Jesus assured them the presence of his Spirit, but only after his death and ascension to the Father. The disciples didn’t quite understand. They wanted his physical presence to remain close to them. But Jesus promised something greater. Once unbound by time or space, his Spirit could dwell not just with his disciples in a particular time and place, but with the entire human race until the end of time. This is why he said, “Whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these, because I am going to the Father."

So whenever we follow in the footsteps of Jesus and do the works he would do: feed the hungry, care for the sick, show compassion, be merciful, or give of ourselves, we know the Spirit of Jesus is alive and well, working through and within us.

Alleluia!

The Hallelujah Chorus is traditionally performed throughout the Christian world as part of the celebration of Easter. The Hallelujah Chorus is part of the Messiah, an oratorio composed by George Frideric Handel in 1741 with a Scriptural text by Charles Jennens. The Messiah is written in three parts. Part one is the Christmas story. Part two, the crucifixion and resurrection, is the Easter story. Part three covers redemption and Christ’s final victory over sin and death. Part two--the Easter story--culminates with the Hallelujah Chorus.

The Hallelujah Chorus is the part of the oratorio that brings people to their feet. Allegedly this tradition began when King George II came to the London premiere of the Messiah. When the Hallelujah Chorus rang out its first notes, the king rose to his feet and remained standing throughout the entire chorus. According to royal protocol, when the king stands, everyone must stand. So the entire audience stood for the duration of the piece, initiating a tradition that continues today.

The word Hallelujah is a transliteration of a Hebrew word that literally means “Praise God.” The word is found throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, mostly in the psalms. To utter the word Hallelujah is to boast in God, to rise up with resounding praise, to shout for joy.

The word Hallelujah was translated into Greek and then Latin, resulting in the word Alleluia. Like our Hebrew ancestors, early Christians also used this word as an expression of joy, thanksgiving, hope and triumph.

The Alleluia is used in our liturgy as the Gospel acclamation and it is so important that it is only sung—never spoken! During the more reflective season of Lent, the Alleluia is replaced with another acclamation of praise.

The Hallelujah Chorus isn’t the only music that brings people to their feet. The Alleluia, as the Gospel acclamation, bids us to rise to greet the God who lives among us. To sing the Alleluia is to anticipate hope, to welcome joy, to encounter divine grace. Alleluia! Christ is Risen!

The Paschal Candle

Lumière, the suave and vivacious character in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, isn’t the only prominent candle drawing crowds these days. I, the paschal candle, am also attracting large numbers of people. Like Lumière, I too am a talking candle, but I speak the language of sign and symbol.

Lumière’s name comes from the French word meaning light. My name comes from the Hebrew word Pesach, meaning Passover and the Greek word Paschein, meaning to suffer. I make a new appearance each year around the time of Passover and my body is carved with the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, alpha and omega. These letters refer to Christ as the beginning and the end and they have their scriptural roots in the Book of Revelation: “I am the Alpha and the Omega,”* says the Lord God, “the one who is and who was and who is to come.”

Like Lumière, I provide light. I get my light from the blessed fire on the night before Easter. I symbolize Christ, the light of the world, who overcame the darkness of sin and death, of gloom and despair.

Like Lumière, a servant to the prince, I too am a servant and I serve the people of God. As the symbol of Jesus, I serve the way Jesus serves, I stay by your side. When you are baptized, I am at your side. When you die, I am at your side. Each time I offer you my light, part of me dies so that you may live in new light. I am an eternal flame of hope burning not only beside you, but within you.

The First Day of the Week

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John disagree on the circumstances surrounding the Resurrection of Jesus, but they all agree that the Resurrection and post-Resurrection appearances took place on the first day of the week.

After the Sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. Matthew 28:1

Very early when the sun had risen, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb. Mark 16:2

When he had risen, early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene. Mark 16:9

But at daybreak on the first day of the week they took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. Luke 24:1

On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark,  and saw the stone removed from the tomb.  John 20:1

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” John 20:19.

On the first day of the week, Jesus encountered the disciples. He broke open the scriptures for them and ate and drank with them. It naturally flowed that the first day of the week, later to be called Sunday, became the day for Christians to worship.

More than 2,000 years later, we too gather on this, the first day of the week. On this day, as he did with the first disciples, the Lord reveals himself to us. On this day, he breaks open the Scriptures. On this day, he eats and drinks with us. This is why every Sunday is called a little Easter. This is why we cry out with the psalmist, “This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad.” On this day we are reminded that we are to live in the light of Christ and in the newness of the Resurrection, not only on Sundays, but on every day of the week.

If a Palm Tree could Talk

My real name is arecaceae, but most people call me palm. I love warm weather and sandy beaches so I grow best in the tropics or near a coastline. Many people only notice me when they vacation in Florida or California. Because I am an icon for travelers, I get my photograph taken a lot--mainly for postcards. These pictures give the illusion that I live in paradise but that’s only part of my story.

My family is 80 million years old—older than the human race! Because I have been around for so long, my family tree is larger than the average hardwood’s. I have thousands of cousins all over the world. From the beginning, I was recognized as symbolic. People saw my branches as a sign of victory. That’s why my branches were given as a sort of trophy to ancient Romans who won battles and competitions. The writers of Scripture knew me well. They rested at my feet after a long journey in the day’s heat and I gave them shade. They satisfied their hunger with my fruits. Because my trunk stood strong and tall amidst the forces of nature, they likened me to persons who were honest and good: “The just shall flourish like the palm tree, shall grow like a cedar of Lebanon” (Psalm 92:12). This is one of the 30 times I am mentioned in the Bible. My most familiar Scripture story is the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. My branches were cut and strewn along the road as a welcome mat. They were also held high in the hands of believers to greet the Christ with festive joy. That was a great day but I knew that day was only part of the story of Jesus.

I had known Jesus since he was a child. He too rested in my shade and ate my fruits. Jesus was a giver. He gave of himself to others until it finally killed him. Like Jesus, I too know what it means to give for the sake of others. I endure the pain of stripping and carving and cutting and burning and of having others draw out my sap. I know the pain is only temporary. Once the pain is past, I become something new: baskets and furniture and food and oil and wine. When this happens, I get a new name, a new identity, a new purpose and I live on in ways new and unimaginable. That’s why I am overjoyed to be held in your hands this weekend, to be sprinkled with holy water, to be shaped into a cross or to be wrapped around the cross that hangs in your home. May I be for you a symbol of the victory of grace over sin, a symbol of goodness and truth and self-giving, that you may be strengthened to write the rest of your story.