In the death and resurrection of Jesus is a call from God to life in Christ. It is a call from despair to hope, from evil to goodness, from shame to freedom, from sorrow to joy. We see this call as Mary Magdalene goes to the tomb and finds it empty. Weeping for what has been lost, she sees a gardener who calls her name, “Mary”. Immediately, she recognises Jesus and is called out of her sorrow and back to life.
Recently, I gathered with other women leaders in the Uniting Church. We reflected together on what it means to have life in Christ. Rev Juliette Maua’i recalled a Samoan saying, “O Uo i aso uma, ae Uso i aso vale”, which means “there will be friends for each day, but it will be siblings (or kinsfolk) in days of adversity”. For Juliette this saying is a reminder of the assurance that Christ is with us always, in times of hope and joy, and in times of grief and hardship.
Across our communities right now, there are many who encounter sorrow, despair, and adversity. People are struggling with rising costs of living, without the means to simply get by. As a nation, we are consumed by the threat of war, choosing armament rather than seeking ways to peace. Members of the LGBTQIA+ community, including LGBTQIA+ Christians, have been confronted by ideologies of hate and acts of intimidation. These fail to recognise God’s grace present in each of us. We see racism and a system which denies First Nations people of this land the right to self-determination and equality. Many people continue to experience violence and fear in intimate relationships, in spaces where they should know trust and safety.
The Easter story is a reminder, that in all of this, Christ is with us. Christ is our sibling in our days of adversity. We are not alone.
The Easter story also calls us to become participants in the work of Christ in the world. Christ calls us to be bearers of hope and justice. We see this call in Peter, who in sharing a meal made by the risen Jesus, is called from the shame of betrayal to a life of loving service. Jesus calls us to seek a new way of living which makes space for all people, so that all might know they are loved. We are called to transform racism into justice, to seek relationships of understanding and trust as a way to peace, to replace fear with safety and love.
The gift of resurrection life is the hope that we have in the transforming power of Christ and the assurance of new life in our own lives and in our world.
This Easter may you know life in Christ and may it bring the blessings of joy, peace and hope!
– Rev Sharon Hollis, Assembly President
Uniting Church in Australia
