Dear All
Since last Easter, my life has changed. My granddaughter, Phoebe, has just turned one and my grandson, Harrison, was born 11 weeks ago. Both remind us of new life and total dependency. Yesterday, as our families gathered for a meal, I walked Harrison so others could eat. He slept quietly in my arms, making me anxious about his stillness, until Liz reassured me that he most likely felt safe.
Later, as Phoebe played with Liz and me, her mother, Sarah, left the room. Phoebe searched for her and began to cry; despite our presence, she felt alone and unsafe.
Easter reminds us of the trust we are called to place in God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. The story unfolds in two inseparable parts: the Crucifixion and the Resurrection. Though the Gospels differ in detail, the heart of the story remains the same. It is also striking that women played a central role in both events. While the men withdrew at the cross, the women remained. On Easter morning, it was women who went to the tomb and became the first witnesses of the risen Christ.
Easter Sunday is meaningless without the cross and the cross is meaningless without the Resurrection.
In our own time, many people feel alone, fearful, and unsupported. Geopolitical instability, fractured societies, rising living costs, ongoing conflicts, resurgent nationalism and deepening environmental crises all contribute to a widespread sense of anxiety and vulnerability. It is easy to feel abandoned and overwhelmed.
Yet Easter assures us that God enters fully into our suffering. On the cross, Jesus experiences abandonment and anguish, standing in profound solidarity with all who know darkness and silence. In that moment, Christ shares our deepest pain, assuring us that even when we feel forsaken, God is present.
The Resurrection does not erase suffering, but it transforms it. It offers hope that, in Christ, we are never truly alone, even when despair feels overwhelming.
The Resurrection stands at the heart of our faith: not only as a historical event witnessed at the empty tomb, but as a living promise of God’s victory over death and evil. It proclaims that new life is possible, even when all seems lost, and that suffering and fear are not the final word.
Just as Harrison trusted he was safe in my arms, and as Phoebe showed how deeply we long for presence and reassurance, so we are called to a childlike faith. In our vulnerability, we trust that God holds us, even when we cannot see Him. Jesus himself said, “Let the little children come to me,” pointing us towards a simple, open trust in God’s abiding presence.
As we reflect on the cross and the Resurrection, let us remember that God’s presence is often most profound in times of pain and doubt. Easter invites us to hold fast to hope, trusting that God’s love endures and that His promise of healing and restoration is for all.
May Easter renew our hearts with the assurance that, through Christ’s resurrection, we are never truly alone, and that God’s promise of hope stands firm for each of us.
Have a very happy Easter.
Eric.