Each Easter there seem to be conversations which throw new lights on the Easter story. Children can be a rich source of questions.
My brother told me of a recent chat he had with his 9 year old grandson Charlie while walking round some gardens . He asked what happened at Easter. My brother explained how Jesus and his friends had a very nice meal together and then went into a garden. Jewish leaders came and Jesus was accused of something called blasphemy and he was taken before the Roman ruler the next morning. The ruler asked Jesus questions but He said nothing. Ultimately he had Jesus beaten and then taken off to be crucified and Jesus died. A man called Joseph of Arimathea had a tomb available and offered that for Jesus so His body was placed in the tomb and a very big stone placed to seal the tomb. On Sunday morning some women who knew Jesus came to the tomb and found it was open which was very unexpected particularly as the stone was so big. Jesus had been brought back to life and only the bandages remained.
Charlie wanted to know what happened to the bones. I hope the story has sunk in a little and in time he will want his grandfather to tell him more.
As often happens I was sent a little video. This time it was of a 3 year old girl who was very confused about chocolate at Easter. How come for all the year she was told she must only have a little chocolate and yet at Easter she had more than she could eat. What was the bunny doing? Did the bunny lay eggs? Did Jesus like bunnies? Were they friends? Her father could offer no suitable response .
My brother and I sometimes discuss climate change and I thought he was opposed to the whole idea. He certainly is irritated by many of the campaigns. I was stressing to him what we learned at school about carbon cycles , photosynthesis, value of trees etc thinking he was missing the point but he asked who was in charge of all this and the planet’s temperature and climate. Of course it is Almighty God. My brother gave the example of an erupting volcano which spewed out lava which in turn proved to be fertile soil for growth and development. We have responsibility for our planet but God is in control and whatever we do we need to make sure it is in line with His plans.Interpret that as we will we need to be in teamwork with Him and not relying on our own efforts.
Did you hear the Prince of Wales reading Gerard Manley Hopkins’ poem ’The Grandeur of God’? Many of us will have sung that in various arrangements. It was very uplifting and reminded us of who is in charge.
Those of you who are Radio 4 afficionados may have heard an interview with David Suchet . He talked of coming to faith in 1996 as a result of reading Romans 8. He has recorded the entire Bible and over Easter read John’s gospel for a podcast. The reading I heard was mellifluous and inspiring as one might expect. I have always enjoyed his portrayal of Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot. His Bible reading such as I heard was uplifting and inspiring.
Jill Pipe