Happy Easter! This is your friendly liturgical reminder that the celebration of Jesus’ resurrection is a 50-day season, and not just a day. I whole-heartedly invite you to avail yourself of the the resources below for this season (and all liturgical seasons), in our “Seasons and Sundays” section.
One of the unique quirks of the 50-day Easter season (note: longer than the 40-day preparatory season of Lent) is a Sunday lectionary change. In place of an Old Testament reading we will hear from the book of Acts. Why such a tilt forward into Acts? Wesley Hill, author of Easter: The Season of the Resurrection of Jesus says this:
“During Eastertide . . . we follow the narrative of the early church’s mission . . . ACTS is the story of the aftermath of Easter . . . how [can we] explain the disciples’ almost overnight transformation from a fearful huddle…to a barn-burning band of fearless preachers and ministers who were ready to defy the empire?” (p.63-64)
How indeed? What does a life following Jesus in “the aftermath of Easter” look like — today, tomorrow, a decade from now? Like the early church, we believe and preach Jesus, empowered by His Spirit, integrally participating as members of His family the church. What can we glean from the Acts of Jesus through the church by the Spirit?
This Sunday, bring your Bibles and an appetite to lean into questions like these as we focus our preaching on our Acts readings throughout Easter (and beyond).
God’s peace on your home,
Michael+