Dear friends, 

Passover, Holy Week, and Easter are upon us (Chag Pesach Sameach to those who observe!). Spring is slow to come around this year and we keep getting glimpses, but the holy days of this season have arrived to remind us, whatever the weather, that liberation and resurrection are always possible. Even in the most unlikely places. 

Both sacred stories told this week – Passover and Easter – are powerful. In one, we see a group of enslaved people (the Israelites) led out of Egypt under Pharaoh’s rule and into freedom. In the other, we find a 33 year-old Middle Eastern activist and faith leader crucified by the Roman Empire. Only for his grave to be found empty and those left in shock to conclude “he is risen!” 

Who knows what actually happened? Does it matter? Personally, I find myself guided by the words of Barbara Brown Taylor: “It’s not that facts don’t matter. It’s just that they don’t matter as much as the story does, and stories can be true whether they happen or not.” 

What would it look like for us to take the truth from these stories–that liberation is possible, and that justice and life can rise up from the ashes of state sanctioned violence and hate–and LIVE them. What would it take for us to live out these truths as the practice, the spiritual center, of our lives? 

If you plan to bring Easter flowers (no lilies, please, for allergy reasons!) to decorate our sanctuary in honor of a loved one (passed or still living), please send me an email before Sunday AM so I can include their names in the pastoral prayer. Flowers can be dropped off on the Joys & Sorrows table before worship begins. 

I hope to see each of you as we celebrate together what it means to be a people who practice resurrection. 

In faith,

Rev. Tara