Thought for the Week

by the Rev Rob Hilton, Christchurch, Ilkley

APPROACHING Easter, I remember Christmas! Easter is about spring time, the chocolate and daffodil approach to life. Christmas is about winter. Gathering warmly with family and friends around gifts and food.

The Christian story of Easter is about real and raw human reality. It has love and hate, mob crowds, women weeping, men fighting, politics being played, and at the centre of the story a man dies. The Christmas message is that God has become human and entered into our human experience. The Easter story faces the real consequences of that move on God’s behalf.

I am increasingly aware of Christians who question a very ancient myth about the virgin birth, and a miraculous story of a body raised from a tomb. Yet these same Christians still give their time and energy to refugee aid, charity work, and celebrating humanity. They also go to worship singing and praying.

The ancient myths within the Christian story contain a message I believe we desperately need to hear in our world today. When we love, and weep, and grieve, we need to know life has a point to it. When we hate, kill, fear, and manipulate, we need to understand our passions, disentangle our confusions and find peace, understanding, forgiveness and grace. When our politicians lead us we need to know they have integrity, truth, and honour in their hearts.

As far as history goes, there’s as much evidence that Jesus was real as there is that Julius Caesar was real, or Shakespeare actually existed. The stories about Jesus give a message that he totally got what life was about. He opened the way for people to really live it properly, find freedom, and love. The people who wrote the Bible knew the raw realities of life as they were persecuted and imprisoned. Their stories have bequeathed to history inspiration to rise above hatred, fear, and even death itself.

After winter comes spring. After Christmas comes Easter. After family and friends comes the whole world in need of transforming Love. That, I believe, is the point of the life of Jesus.