By the end of Easter 3, the Sunday lectionary has covered all the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus recorded in Luke and John; so at Easter 4, the church makes a shift in the assignment of Gospel readings to those of our Lord’s teaching about the new life of the kingdom of God under his reign…
Today in the Spirit: Easter 3B
We continue in the Easter season with readings appropriate for the celebration of the resurrection of our Lord. The assigned Gospel reading from Luke 24:36-49 appears to be Luke’s version of the initial post-resurrection visit by Jesus to his disciples, which we heard last Sunday from John 20. If that is the case, Luke’s narrative…
Today in the Spirit: Easter 2B
The seven Sundays after Easter Day (including Pentecost Sunday) is the space the church uses to walk the believing community through Jesus’ resurrection appearances as revealed in the NT or his important teaching delivered before his death about living life by his resurrection power. The bulk of this material is found in Luke and John,…
Death, Be Not Proud: A Reading of John Donne’s Holy Sonnet X
“Death, Be not proud,” also known as Holy Sonnet X, is John Donne’s great poem in mockery of Death. Composed in 1609, the poem was published posthumously in 1633. It is fitting that Donne got the final word, laughing at Death from his grave. The power of the poem is its reversal of our experience….
Today in the Spirit: Easter Day B
“Alleluia! Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!” At no time is the thrill of shouting out this acclamation greater than on Easter Day. “Enter then, all of you, into the joy of your Master. First and last, receive alike your reward. Rich and poor, dance together. You who have fasted and you…
Today in the Spirit: The Sunday after the Ascension A
The Sunday after Ascension Day is the seventh Sunday of the Easter season (just as Pentecost Sunday is the eighth Sunday of Easter), but you will find that nowhere in the BCP 2019 is this Sunday referred to as Easter 7. The designation Sunday after Ascension Day is a change from the BCP 1979 back…
Christ is Risen! A Guide to the Easter Greeting
From the first Easter morning to the present day, Christians around the world have hailed each other with the Easter Greeting: Alleluia! Christ is Risen! The Lord is Risen Indeed! Alleluia! Jesus Christ is not dead, he is alive! Through his miraculous resurrection, sin and death have been defeated, and we have been reconciled to…
The Liturgical Home: Surprised by Easter
I was surprised by Easter! Sure, I knew it was a time of great joy and celebration for Christians around the world. I knew that during Easter, we reflect on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ and the hope that his resurrection brings to our lives. But there was so much I did…
The History of the Easter Week Collects
Easter is a long season of feasting, lasting a full 50 days. And the celebration is especially pronounced in the first week after Easter, often called Easter Week or Bright Week. For more on the season of Easter, check out our Rookie Anglican Guide to Eastertide. In this post, we outline the history of the…
Ecstasy at the Empty Tomb
The Empty Tomb All four gospels depict the women’s surprise when they find the empty tomb. However, the Gospel of Mark gives the most specific and intense description of the women’s emotional response: And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone,…
The Way of the Cross: An Invitation to Holy Week
Holy Week is the high mark of the church’s liturgical year. In it, we celebrate Jesus’ final week in Jerusalem, from his arrival on Palm Sunday to his death on Good Friday. Then, we celebrate his resurrection on Easter Sunday, with all the momentous events in between. There are many ways to commemorate the week,…
Online Worship Ideas for Holy Week & Easter (Webinar Recording)
Earlier this week, the Evergreen Project hosted a panel of Rectors from Anglican churches in the US and Canada to talk about how they are navigating online worship and plans for this coming Holy Week & Easter. The webinar began with greetings from Archbishop Foley Beach who prayed for our Rectors and joined us for…
