Easter Sunday

Year B:  April 8, 2012

First Reading: Isaiah 25:6-9

The Conch Bearer by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

(Written for ages 9-14)

Comment: In this text there is a vision of the hope that sustains us when we are journeying through a valley full of suffering and death.  The Conch Bearer, is a moving tale of journey from a world of suffering to a place of worship where things will be made right. In his travels to return the Conch to it’s rightful place, Anand faces unimaginable experiences, tests of inner strength, and painful moments of sacrifice. As the story ends, Anand is named Keeper of the Conch. “He, Anand, the butt of Haru the tea-stall owner’s gibes and jokes, the boy whom the rich, school-going children laughed at as an ignorant lout…” (Chapter 19) Readers see that Anand has been transformed. This is really the message and hope of Easter, according to George Bryant Wirth, “that God transforms suffering into the promise of salvation…” (Feasting on the Word, Year B, Volume 2, p 363)

Second Reading: Acts 10:34-43

We Dream of a World…by The Gifted and Talented Students of Pershing Accelerated School in University City Missouri

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: “If we are to learn from Peter’s experience with the Holy Spirit, we should let go of our assumptions and live our lives aware that the Holy spirit comes breathing new life into us, pouring the Good News into our lives and communities in ways we cannot anticipate.” (Feasting on the Word, Year B, Volume 2, p 363) In her commentary on the text, Debra Carl Freeman goes on to ask questions that inspire readers to dream of how a world filled with the Good News would look. Similarly, we find inspiration from the children who wrote We Dream of a World… As we join together in worship to celebrate the Resurrection, we are called to think about the ways God inspires us to dream of a world transformed by grace. As we go out into the world, we are invited to live into that dream.

Gospel Reading: John 20:1-18

When the Wind Stops by Charlotte Zolotow

(Written for ages 4-8)

Comment: Each year we hear the stories of Holy Week and Easter. Each year we experience Christ’s dying and rising. We, too can experience the anxiety and sadness expressed by Mary.  The world as she knew it has been turned upside down. The life of her beloved teacher has ended, and while seeking to grieve, she finds his physical body gone as well. Mary’s experience is not so different from our own. We also worry about endings. A little boy expresses these worries in When the Wind Stops. His mother eases his anxiety by explaining that all endings are new beginnings. Like Mary and the young boy, we can find comfort in the new beginnings and hope in the promise that life goes on and on.

Lectionary Links: Easter Sunday, April 8, 2012 by Storypath is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.