This Sunday’s readings are all about Jesus as the sacrificial Lamb, as well as the Good Shepherd who leads us to eternal life.
As the apostles continued to preach the Gospel, they went first to the Jewish people, because the Jewish people are God’s chosen—God spoke through them and to them first, and it was through the Jewish people that we got “Jesus people” (remember, Jesus was Jewish and so was pretty much everyone who hung out with him).
Recently, an Evangelical minister promised a money back guarantee to his congregation: that if they did not receive blessings in their lives, they could have their tithe back. This sparked a fury of commentaries from Christians everywhere—sarcastic and funny responses about the fact that everything is a blessing and that this guy was totally missing the point. While I’m not sure any other pastor has previously offered such a guarantee, this concept is unfortunately not new. We are bombarded with a “prosperity gospel” in the evangelical world and its popularity is evident.
The first reading’s account of the first Christians in the Acts of the Apostles reminds us that the Resurrection is only the beginning of our Christian story.
Throughout the Easter Season, our first reading comes from the Acts of the Apostles instead of the Hebrew Scriptures because it tells the story of the first Christian Community—the continuation of the story of the Resurrection. Because, our story doesn’t end with the Resurrection, but only just begins.
“Always.” It’s a word that we overuse. (“I always say ‘thank you.’” “You always eat all of the cheese sticks.”) Most people, in reality, don’t do things so consistently.
But when Professor Severus Snape said “always,” not only did he use it correctly, truthfully, and lovingly, he used it in the most perfect way possible. It was a most profound statement that I believe resonated with readers everywhere.
My family, being on Easter Break together, decided, after much of our vacation had gone wrong, to have a family movie night. I wish I was writing about Batman Vs. Superman, but even when I’m on vacation, I don’t get out much. Going through the “on demand” section, we came across Pan, a movie that most of us had wanted to see when it came out last year. So, we hunkered down, settled in a gave it a go. The movie diverted us from our troubles for a while, so it served its purpose. It also gave my kids a couple of opportunities to make fun of me for crying “over every little thing.”
