Read: 1 Corinthians 15:1-11

“Now I would remind you, brethren, in what terms I preached to you the gospel, which you received, in which you stand, by which you are saved, if you hold it fast—unless you believed in vain.” – 1 Corinthians 15:1-2

Funerals are important for many reasons, but one of the biggest is that they give us a chance to take the major memories of a lost loved one, celebrate them, put them in a box with a bow, and set them on a prominent shelf in our souls. Those memories keep them alive in our hearts and in our communities.

In this passage, St. Paul reminds the Corinthians to remember what they have been told. Paul has proclaimed to them a series of stories, memories of one who was no longer in this earthly physical life. He urges them to remember, but in this case, it’s a little bit more than just keeping someone precious alive in our hearts and communities. They have found that in remembering these stories, the one who they lost is present in unexpected ways, life-giving ways, even what some would call miraculous ways. So powerful are these stories that even those who had never met him in life find that he is with them.

Easter is the great celebration of the amazing power of the story of Jesus, his teaching, his miracles, his self-giving, his death and resurrection. That resurrection lives on in those of us who, like the Corinthians, find that in recalling his stories we find that he is with us again in unexpected ways that are life-giving, even miraculous.

Loving God, this Easter day, we thank you for the gift of life you gave us in your son, Jesus Christ. May the telling of his story continue to transform us, our community and our world. We ask this in his own name, just as he taught us to do. Amen.
-Fr. Paul Moore

Read: 1 Peter 4:1-8

“The end of all things is at hand; therefore keep sane and sober for your prayers. Above all hold unfailing your love for one another, since love covers a multitude of sins.” – 1 Peter 4:7-8

It is Holy Saturday today, and I am headed to a Celebration of Life. Julie, who I told you about yesterday, is originally from Everett, and her family organized a Celebration of Life here in Washington so that non-Montana folks could get together and talk about her. I am admittedly a bit nervous because it has been 14 years since I have seen Julie’s husband John, I have met her daughter only once, and I am shy at times like this.

The irony of the Celebration of Life being on Holy Saturday is not lost on me. Holy Saturday is the day when Jesus was in the tomb, and nobody outside of heaven knew that the resurrection was about to happen. Having a Celebration of Life today is a foretaste of what we will experience tonight at Easter Vigil: the surprising news that Christ is no longer in the tomb and hope is alive.
The end of all things *IS* at hand—the end of how things used to be. We know now that Christ will rise from the dead and death will no longer be final… but we do not officially know that yet, so we will still spend today quiet and remembering that day almost 2,000 years ago when it seemed like hope was gone.

O God, Creator of heaven and earth: Grant that, as the crucified body of your dear Son was laid in the tomb and rested on this holy Sabbath, so we may await with him the coming of the third day, and rise with him to newness of life; who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (BCP, p. 283)
-Jen McCabe