An Easter Reflection
Easter 2009
There’s an old Norwegian saying that goes like this: “The woods would be silent if only the best birds sang.”
Easter is not only the principal holy day of our Church year, it’s also the festival of the Resurrection – the season of new life, new love in Christ. Easter is what Christianity is all about.
For in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, God showed the universe and us just how much God loves us. Easter is God’s love song for us and the world. And, our calling as Christians is to listen to God’s love song and to sing the song that the risen Christ puts into our hearts and on our lips as our love song to God. We’re also called to sing our song joyfully and the best we can. For indeed, the woods and the church would be silent if only the best birds or best voices sang.
One of my friends in our House of Bishops, was a classmate of mine at Virginia Theological Seminary over forty-five years ago. In our first year at Seminary, all students had to tape record a hymn a capella. Since I had sung all my life, this was not a challenge for me, but my friend couldn’t carry a tune. So, he asked me to help him learn to sing the hymn. That was a challenge, but our friendship survived and he made a joyful noise to the Lord as he learned to monotone the hymn. I learned then and there that the song we Christians are called to sing is always in our hearts whether or not we could carry a tune. For it’s a song of faith.
The truth is that all of us Christians have a song in our hearts. And our Church would be silent if only the best voices sang. Our calling is to sing the songs of our faith, separately and together this Eastertide and year round as we respond to the Easter Message and to God’s call to all of us to minister to God’s people and to rebuild our Diocese of Pittsburgh for God.
“Alleluia, Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia!”
May this Easter season be full of hope, joy and gratitude!
+Robert H. Johnson, Assisting Bishop
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