Easter Is Now

When is Easter this year? That’s an easy one! Sunday, April 16th. Unless you are an Orthodox Christian. For the Orthodox, the celebration of Easter is Sunday, April 23rd. Um, wait a minute, though. If you go to the Great Vigil of Easter, then it falls on Saturday, April 15th.

Well, just when is Easter?

In our Anglican understanding, each Sunday is a celebration of Easter. That’s why, during the season of Lent, the rules only apply during the weekdays—because Sunday is always to be a day of celebration. So Easter is on every Sunday.

Well, maybe it is more than that.

A few years ago—on Easter Sunday, in fact—I brought to the congregation’s attention this little poem by Jelaluddin Rumi:

I called through you door,
“The mystics are gathering
in the street. Come out!”
 
“Leave me alone.
I’m sick.”
 
“I don’t care if you’re dead!
Jesus is here, and he wants
to resurrect somebody!”
 

This poem from Rumi reveals an amazing truth: Every breath, every moment, bristles with the promise of Easter. Yet many, like that poor soul who cries out, “Leave me alone,” allow this moment, this breath to pass by unnoticed.

Some prefer to live in Lenten moments, carrying heavy weights and hearts bearing self-accusations and self-imposed sentences of sadness. Some go for the flashy, totally-overwhelm-me-with-stimulations route, thinking that living is basically a matter of physical sensations. But then there are those who, dragging themselves from the sickbed of ego, crawl into the street and find Jesus eager to raise them up.

And Easter happens.

So when is Easter? Every breath and every moment is a potential Easter. Whenever you or I drag ourselves from the sickbed of the ego, we notice light pouring into our anxious tombs and hear agitated footsteps outside as Christ pads back and forth, ready to call us out to Easter celebration.

Easter? Easter is now.

Joel t