I WAS RECENTLY impressed with the words of New Testament scholar N.T. Wright, quoted by Elder Gary E. Stevenson in the April 2023 General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
He said, “We should be taking steps to celebrate Easter in creative new ways. This is our greatest festival. Take Christmas away, and in biblical terms you lose two chapters at the front of Matthew and Luke, nothing else. Take Easter away, and you don’t have a New Testament; you don’t have a Christianity.”
That’s a powerful statement.
It has caused me to ponder about the place of Easter in my life. In our culture, Christmas takes a prominent place.
Lights are put up on homes.
The downtown is festive.
We decorate trees.
There are parties.
We take long vacations.
We have family get-togethers and exchange presents.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas!
However, it is interesting that Easter has not culturally and personally taken such an elevated position.
I have been considering ways to prepare for and celebrate the miracle and blessing of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, which is the purpose of the Easter holiday.
Music plays a big part in most Christian worship services at Easter. In fact, Handel’s Messiah was originally intended for Easter and debuted in Dublin on April 13, 1742.
For me, and countless others, it has become a wonderful Christmas tradition.
In my faith, Easter services have beautiful music with talks and scriptures centered on Jesus Christ.
A beloved hymn was written by Samuel Medley, “I know that my Redeemer lives. What comfort this sweet sentence gives! He lives, he lives, who once was dead. He lives, my ever-living Head. He lives to bless me with his love. He lives to plead for me above. He lives my hungry soul to feed. He lives to bless in time of need.”
In John 10:16, Jesus said, “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice.”
Here the Easter story is magnified by the record of The Book of Mormon.
In 3 Nephi 11, you have a people gathered in the land called Bountiful, somewhere on the American continent shortly after Christ’s resurrection.
They heard a voice speaking from heaven three times.
On the third time, they understood it. They looked toward the sky from where the voice was coming.
They heard, “Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name—hear ye him.”
Then Jesus Christ descended from heaven, clothed in a white robe, and came down among them, saying, “Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world.”
The entire multitude fell to the earth. Jesus then invited them to come and “feel the prints of the nails in my hands and in my feet, that ye may know that I am the God of Israel, and the God of the whole earth, and have been slain for the sins of the world.”
Each of them, one by one, saw the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ with their own eyes. They felt with their own hands. They saw and bore witness to the Resurrection, just like Mary Magdalene, Peter, Thomas, John, the apostles and other disciples.
The New Testament documents the resurrection of Jesus Christ with multiple accounts of people seeing Him.
To Thomas, Jesus said, “Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed” (John 20:29).
Handel’s beautiful music and words in The Messiah declare “Hallelujah! for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth and He shall reign forever and ever. King of kings, Lord of lords.”
May we all expand the importance of this Easter week and give thanks to the Lord of lords, for He is truly risen.
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Issues of Faith is a rotating column by religious leaders on the North Olympic Peninsula. Bishop Jason Bringhurst is the leader of the Mount Pleasant Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Port Angeles. His email is jasonbring@gmail.com.
