Having already experienced Lent, Palm Sunday, Holy Week and Good Friday in Chapel this term, we celebrated Easter Sunday in our Act of Worship this week. To this end, Bella W (9W), Annabelle K (9W) and Katriel A (8S) read from the Gospel of Mark (chapter 16, verses 1 to 8) which Reverend Kate explained is a simple and restrained telling of the resurrection, discovered when some of the women in his life came to care for the body of Jesus, their friend and teacher.

Reverend Kate invited us to imagine the young women in this story who, in the unbearable pain and hopelessness of their grief, turned up at Jesus’ tomb to do what they could, only to discover that he had been raised by God. Reverend Kate then challenged us to think what we might do if this happened today: perhaps reach for a mobile phone, take a selfie with the young man who had given us the news, post the story on social media, ring a friend and tell them what had happened or perhaps type something into Google such as what to do when told something that both scares and amazes me?

Reverend Kate told us that the Easter Story is to the Good Friday story what life is to death, hope is to despair, forgiveness is to sin: it is God at work in our lives doing what we fear is impossible: healing, restoring and transforming.

Wondering whether our Easter Sunday might involve using a mobile phone, posting on social media, talking to friends or using Google, Reverend Kate suggested that Easter Sunday this year might instead be a day for following the example of the young women in the Easter Story by turning up for our friends and family, responding authentically to situations in which we find ourselves and saying nothing or very little. Caring, being present, valuing the space created by silence, Reverend Kate said, may not fit with our image of a day of celebration but, as it was for the young women in the Easter Story, it might be a way to fully experience God at work in our lives so that we can begin to think about how God may want us to join in.

Reverend Kate wished us a Happy Easter and a lovely holiday.

We prayed and so please join us:

Loving God,
We give thanks that you have the power to do the impossible and in this knowledge we pray that you will help us to be present to ourselves, to you and to others that we may fully experience you at work in our lives.
Amen