Mom’s First Resurrected Easter

Field Notes From a Religion-Less Christian

The Resurrection of our Lord 2023

Mom’s First Resurrected Easter

Early in her life, 1924, my mother was introduced to the Dream, and then she lived it out in justice work, education work, family work, community work, all while playing J.S. Bach on the organ and piano and singing songs of hope.

I no longer believe that Jesus’ resurrection means we live on. Actually, I never did. I just knew that narrative and it wrestled me to the ground and blessed me with something new. I believe now that Jesus’ resurrection means only that Jesus lives on and when we die his life continues (as it had before we were born and did not exist and after we were born and did indeed exist) to embrace us.

Perhaps, like me, you have the natural question of how in the world (literally!) there could be a resurrection. I know. Really? We only have circumstantial evidence – the experience of the first encounters, told (see the entire New Testament) and the experience of 2000 years of those who actually were done in by God’s unconditional love and gave their lives away in small ways (“I’ll run to the store for you. What do you need?”) to large (when the grenade was thrown he threw his body over it and the explosion ripped him apart and saved his fellow soldiers).

So, there we have it. Circumstances. What will that mean for us? What will that do to us?

Hope is set loose and running wild today.

Mom, 98, died last September and Dad, 99, the September before that. They could not be more at peace. Resurrection!

We, given the landscape in need of love, have things to do.