Coming Out of Our Tombs

There were stories and myths about resurrection in many cultures long before Jesus showed up. What makes him so different, so special?

The earlier myths of death and resurrection were often associated with fertility rites. The “king” had to die and be buried so that the land would become fertile. He would then be resurrected in the form of life-giving crops that grew for his people.

Of course, when this fertility technique was enacted literally, it had the adverse affect of debilitating the top tier of leadership. Stand-ins were used for a while. Finally, a likeness of the king would be buried in order to forgo human sacrifice altogether.

For me, the story of Jesus is very different from the old mythologies. He didn’t die to make the land fertile; he died to expose how deeply sin had become entrenched in people and institutions. Jesus focused not on croplands but on the barren land of the soul and the wasteland of institutional cruelty.

And just as he threw a glaring light on oppression and on physical, mental, and emotional violence throughout his life, in his final act of dying and rising, he put the spotlight on twisted human values.

Consider this: Torture, whipping, and crucifixion were perfectly legal in the Roman system of justice. The Romans could pick up any poor soul (as long as he wasn’t a citizen) and do as they pleased with him. However, it was illegal for someone to rise from the dead. According to Matthew 27:65, Pilate was so concerned about Jesus breaking this “law” that he ordered the tomb to be made as secure as possible by a guard of soldiers. But it takes a lot more than a handful of soldiers to cause God to reconsider making a valid point about our ethics and mores.

When you think about it, those Romans were pretty twisted. Aren’t you glad things have changed now that we take seriously Jesus’ commands to “Love your enemy, do good to those that hurt you” and “Do not repay evil for evil”?

Our world did pay attention—didn’t it?

Obviously, violence and evil still torment the world. But the light of Jesus is strong enough to illuminate how twisted capital punishment, pre-emptive war, and the oppression of poverty are. Jesus rose from the grave to make a very strong point: It is time to evolve beyond the level of animal existence and claim our place as God’s own children.

We are all called to rise to new life. So shall we join in a crusade against the “evil ones” (whoever they are)? Or shall we become missionaries and try to convert “those people” who are always causing so much trouble in the world (you know who “they” are)?

If this is the tack I take, then “they” is me!

The first place I have to look for twistedness is within my own soul. I have to wade into the deep dark of my own tomb and bravely face the evil that lurks there. There is no need to fear, for One is with me who has been there before.

Once we step from our tombs, we can carry the light of the world into the world. The point isn’t to condemn the world but to expose evil so that it can be cast out. Carry that light with you wherever you go, and office by office, classroom by classroom, kitchen by kitchen, all twistedness and evil will give way to the fertile way of Love.

We rise from our various deaths to make fertile the way of God. We expose evil not to condemn but to love.

May your rising this Eastertide be glorious!

Joel t