Easter reminds us of hope

The drama of human life is woven into the account of the death and resurrection of Christ

EASTER, the most important and oldest festival of the Christian Church, is all about the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

It also reminds Christians of the values in which they believe and the hope they have.

Fundamental to our belief as Christians is that in death “life is changed, not ended” (Roman Missal, Preface of Christian Death I). Earthly death is but a rebirth to the possibility of eternal life and so, in the words of St Paul, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?” (Romans 8:35). Even the things that we consider the most devastating can be transformed by God into blessing and new possibilities – simply put, to use the words of St Paul again –“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Romans 8:37).

It is pertinent at this time to remind ourselves of the gift of hope. There seems to be a dense cloud of negativity and uncertainty lurking throughout the world, perhaps because of the rise of populism in many places, perhaps simply because traditional values are being eroded and for some, at least, it feels as if the ground is slipping from under their feet.

There is a lot of gloom in South Africa – we love to complain. This is not always unjustified.

There are worries about unemployment, the economy, lack of transformation, homelessness, crime, conflict. As we approach the May elections, our cynicism grows as angelic-looking politicians denounce and deny corruption, promise heaven on Earth, suddenly start attending Church services and portray themselves as the most sincere, innocent people around. No doubt, many of them are exactly that – sincere, innocent of wrongdoing and motivated by a desire to serve the country. But our experience of so many broken promises, the lack of action against the corrupt and the general sense of self-serving public officials, has made us mistrustful of all the posturing. Perhaps the worst scenario of all is when the resources of the state are used to destroy the uncorrupt, the whistle-blowers and those who strive for clean government.

It is the loss of our own innocence brought about by betrayal on many fronts – political leaders, unethical business practices, manipulation of facts by the media and by “image managers”, and indeed, betrayal by Church leaders. This sense of betrayal is not new. I recently watched a series on the Vietnam War. One comment by a person who lived through the Kennedy/Johnson era summed it all up. In words to this effect he said “we were the last generation to believe that our government would not lie to us”.

Trust is the basis for all human relationships. Sound relationships, co-operation, justice, unity, harmony, peace and stability cannot be attained unless there is trust. When a people cannot trust their leaders – whether they be political, business or Church leaders – the fabric of society itself disintegrates into hostility, conflict, self-interest and violence. Trust itself cannot be attained unless there is honesty. We deserve honest political leaders. By the same token we have an obligation to vote for those who we believe are honest – this is the most basic of requirements, and we need to give serious consideration as to where we place our “X” on election day, and not to vote unthinkingly.

Easter captures so much of this. The Passion of Jesus Christ brought out the worst in people. Leaders of the time falsely accused him, others abandoned honesty for expediency. The “masses” were manipulated and deceived. Those closest to him were defeated by their fear and they deserted truth. But it also brought out the best in people: the women who wept for him, Veronica who wiped the sweat and blood from his face, his mother and others who stood at the foot of the cross in spite of the bullying and intimidation.

So much of the drama of human life and interaction is woven into the account of the death and resurrection of Christ. We know on which side we should be. We know that we need to have the courage to stand up against lies and manipulation, to face the bullies head-on. We know that the values of honesty, truth, integrity and trust are fundamental to sound human relationships, that peace and well-being are impossible without them. Not only must we vote for, and keep accountable those who have these values, but we have to commit ourselves to living by them as well. The cynical side of us will declare this impossible. The Resurrection of Jesus contradicts that and says that no matter how bad things are, they can be changed and transformed.

I wish you and your families a Blessed Easter. Also – please do vote, and vote listening carefully to your conscience.