When We Celebrate Easter

Easter is the time we recall the tragic events of two thousand and nineteen years ago when a Jew, a man from Palestine, was spied upon, betrayed, persecuted, falsely charged, vilified, abandoned and arrested. It started in a mock trial that handed down the death penalty for the man from Nazareth, the Son of Man, a Son of God, Jesus.

We also celebrate the resilience, the determination and the belief and hope of the persecuted and oppressed to rise up and speak out and challenge the forces of their oppression.

They that suffer on a cross of oppression can rise to a new life .These are the brave and courageous  seekers of truth and freedom and live in hope of justice and true democracy and equality.  

Jesus overcame the power of death and his spirit lives among us, inspiring and encouraging all to put his values into action for social and political transformation to create a just society however distant that reality may be. He was a simple teacher of values. He taught by stories and he was a social activist who spoke against the evils of the authorities, spoke truth to power and he paid the price. He was a critic and a threat to the authorities having exposed their hypocrisy, ill-gotten wealth and evil ways.

The followers of Jesus of Nazareth were falsely accused and the corrupt authorities spread black propaganda against them. The nation’s leaders called him and his followers ‘enemies of the state’ to be crushed, killed and eliminated. Today, many seekers of justice and truth suffer the same.

There was widespread persecution of Christians then and even in these modern times. Why is this so when all they are doing is good? The early Christians led by Jesus were teaching moral values, social justice, equality, the dignity of women and children, just wages for workers, feeding the hungry, healing the sick, challenging the rich to share with the poor and to create a just society and giving hope and happiness to many people.

The authorities and corrupt elite were guilty of stealing from the temple coffers and nation and they spied, harassed and condemned Jesus, an innocent critic condemned to death while they, the corrupt elite, were wearing a mask of pious virtue and draped in a cloak of hypocrisy. Much is so true today.

They declared they were saving the nation and that Jesus should be executed to save the nation.To save it from what social justice, love, healing and compassion and forgiveness? Today, like him, human rights workers, church people, outspoken truth-seeking clerics are vilified and condemned.

Jesus grew up, the son of a carpenter, a humble but very wise man, a prodigy some say, with incredible insight, compassion, understanding, and knowledge of human nature. His dramatic message was that of equality among all, the rich had to share so the poor would no longer be poor and social justice would reign and oppression would end. Today, societies are far from this standard.

He challenged the ruling powers in Jerusalem. The people lived in fear of the tyranny of the rich elite. Yet even today, despite this same oppression and persecution, true Christians and believers in the principles of justice and the rule of just law have the courage to take a stand for life. They fight for human rights and dignity, the environment, the poor and the indigenous people. People are resisting peacefully and taking a stand.This is the only real meaning of being a true Christian or a person of principle. Let's be one with them.

Attending the Easter rites could be a spiritual experience yet it is more of a cultural event as Catholicism ever closer adheres to rites that most people don’t understand. We ought to be making a spiritual and practical commitment to act for the values of the Gospel and the struggle for social justice that Jesus promoted and died for.

Before the arresting officers arrived to take away this good loving person to torture and crucify on a cross, he left behind a simple reminder of the values that he lived and died for. He had a Jewish Passover meal, which he turned into a simple meal of friendship with his followers and friends. Do this in memory of me, he said.

He is still alive and his spirit is upon us who believe. When we do join in the Last Supper, let us recall, he was a washer of feet, a servant to all and he gave us human dignity and the chance to serve the people in need.

The Love That Can Change the World

What brought about the shameful torture, humiliation and excruciating execution, as a criminal on a Roman cross is what we need to ask and answer everyday not just during Holy Week.

Hundreds of thousands of true Christians around the world suffer persecution, torture and death these days because they are disciples of Jesus of Nazareth and put into practice his spiritual values that give meaning to life itself.

Why is there such opposition to a message, a way of life that espouses; love of the outcast, freedom, human rights and dignity, equality and the defence of children and a better life for the poor and the oppressed people of this world?

The Man who was called by some a great prophet who had come back to life, a wonder worker, a spiritual teacher, a man of compassion, a peace-maker, a defender of children and women and a social revolutionary brought these values into the world by his simplicity of life and his living out of these values.

He was welcomed into the capital Jerusalem one sunny April morning two thousand years ago by adoring crowds waving palm branches who were inspired by his teaching, healing and prophetic voice for the poor and the downtrodden. He stood with the marginalized outcasts and victims of social injustice. He was a hero and inspirational spiritual leader that day and everyday since. 

The man from Nazareth was far ahead of his time, in fact ahead of all time. He said simply that he was a Son of Man. One who was just like everyone else, but ready to serve and help anyone in need. He was a man without power and influence, had no servants or slaves and one who even washed the feet of his students and followers as an example for us all. The people said he was a Son of God and a descendent of the great king David.

Perhaps the combination of these titles, their political overtones and the widespread belief that he would take political power in Jerusalem fuelled the fears of the ruling powers that there would be a popular uprising to declare Jesus King of the Jews. That title was mockingly nailed to his cross, the instrument of execution.

When his disciples aired these sentiments and asked for big jobs in his supposed new Kingdom of God he rejected their suppositions and told them that he was amazed that he was with them a long time and still they didn't understand his mission. It was not a political movement he wanted but a moral revolution of the heart whereby goodness and love for everyone and by everyone would dominate.

In the new social relationship, universal goodness, equality, and justice would pervade the community and there would be an end to violence, rejection, and exclusion.

A most profound vision and an ideal world that may never be, yet one that is worth striving for in our own faith communities. The ideals are for everyone, disciples or not, Christian or not.

We all need to love and be loved as Jesus taught and practised. His words to his friends at his farewell meal echo today when he says the greatest love we can have is to sacrifice ourselves for others. That today is giving and not taking from a community, a family, a friendship. It means the well off are challenged to give back and share their wealth. It means bringing goodness to the needy and the vulnerable. Of course his message was challenging and many left him.      

It was his fiery challenging message to the hypocritical corrupt authorities, the cheating traders and unjust judges of his day that aroused hatred, anger and fear among these rich elite. They ruled with gross indifference to the plight of the poor. Jesus called them stinking sepulchers, painted white outside but full of dead bones inside. That was strong language indeed. 

His words are as true today as they were then. A similar social and economic situation prevails today in many developing countries. Particularly in the Catholic Philippines where the powerful 140 or so super rich families and their cronies in congress and the military and police rule the 100 million people with a benign smile and a machine gun in gift wrapping.

They control the many by the tactics of the few. Immediate assassination, imprisonment and execution of the modern day prophets, the human right workers, media practitioners, the social activists, oppositionists, priests and pastors.

Just like the man from Nazareth they are risking all, their good reputation, their name, their family, even life itself. They are working and calling for true justice and respect for human rights and the ouster of the corrupt politicians and judges and prosecutors. They get charged with wrongful accusations, baseless allegations and legal cases to destroy their credibility and smother their cry for justice. They want the kingdom of Jesus to be real and present in order to end the human trafficking, jailing of children, sex tourism, and the disgusting coddling of criminals, child abusers and rapists.

So after the first exciting public arrival of the messenger of God to the city where he was a marked man and his every word and act was noted to be used against him in false accusations, to trip him and block his mission and bring him down in disgrace. They shamefully succeeded only too well, but only for a while. His words and presence lived on, his life lit up the world and set it on fire with idealism for the kingdom and today it is still there for us. We only have to reach out and embrace that same mission and do our share to change the world and ourselves.