Many years ago, we were described as Easter people. It was one of those new catch phrases to come out of Vatican II and it remains a beautiful and valid expression about the core of our faith.

The Resurrection is the focal point of faith for every Christian denomination around the world. It is a powerful reminder of the unconditional love that God has for each one of us. As Easter people, we are responsible for continuing the saving work that Jesus initiated two thousand years ago.

The celebration of Easter, and all of our Holy Days throughout the year, while they are important, pale in significance to the daily saving work for which each of us is responsible. While we truly enjoy the festive nature of our feasts, the greatest work we do as Disciples of Christ is no less important and it is the work of everyday life in keeping with our discipleship.

It is my hope that Easter will be a glorious and faith filled celebration for us all, that it will also be a potent reminder,  as is every Sunday, that our true nature is the lived experience of our Christian faith each and every day.

May God bless you and your family on this beautiful Easter day and may the work of the Lord be shared and lived in the vineyard of your lives.
 

The parable of the Prodigal Son needs no in depth explanation. It speaks for itself and reminds us that forgiveness doesn’t always come easy. The parable is a brief snapshot of a broken family coming together and rejoicing that a lost son has come home.

The father is overjoyed and readily forgives his errant son of his bad behavior. His brother, on the other hand, is furious that his careless and uncaring brother is so easily forgiven by their father. I think that every family has grappled with some family crisis along these lines. The beauty of this parable is that it leaves us to wonder what happens next. The core teaching of the parable is forgiveness, but there is much more to it than that and that is…what’s left up to us.

Forgiveness has to be followed by profound discussions about trust, integrity and responsibility. Such discussions, no doubt, took place between the father and the two sons the next day, but it is up to us to fill in the blanks as it pertains to our own experience of forgiveness.