Easter

It's Easter, and I couldn't be happier!

This was my Facebook post this morning:

1 hr · 

Happy (Easter*) Sunday from West Haven, CT! The S(u/o)n is rising... smile emoticon

*for those who celebrate

At 6:15, I set out for Bradley Point, which is about 15 minutes south of New Haven.  I stumbled upon a sunrise service and stood as a participant for a bit, watching the sun break through the morning fog. It was cold, but I was glad to be out.

Holy Week has been very meaningful and rather emotional for me.  For Holy Thursday, I was up in Maine on a personal retreat.  I stayed at a monastery and got to do Mass with Lithuanian Franciscans, followed by Adoration (until midnight--but I only lasted until 10:15).

For Good Friday, I was back in New Haven, at my home church.  I was asked to do a Scripture Reading, and I did so with joy.

Last night was the Easter Vigil at Bethesda Lutheran Church, where I currently live.  It was absolutely wonderful!  One of the oldest Christian traditions/rites, it gives Holy Saturday a meaning that Evangelicals often gloss over.

My soteriology has expanded lately.  A friend mentioned the book, A Crisis in the Life of God.  I haven't read it yet, but I according to my friend, it suggests that Jesus was sent to atone not for human sins, but as God's apology to humankind.  

In the same conversation, another friend mentioned Process Theology, which posits that God is learning and developing along with creation.  Thus, we co-create the narrative with God.  I would be very interested to learn more about this!

Even as my academic interests have broadened to accept and accommodate ideas that some might label heretical, my personal relationship with Jesus has only grown deeper.  This might seem like a paradox, but for me, it's a dialectic.

During Holy Week, I wrestled with reaching a new level of surrender in my life.  I can't say I'm there yet, but Easter Sunday certainly feels much more triumphant than Good Friday did.  Jesus, I'm yours, and I'm going to follow you wherever you lead me.  Give me the grace to do so--and thank you for what you have done and are continuing to do!