2910 East Morgan Evansville, IN  47711 (812) 474-1704

According to the Christian tradition – a man named Jesus died for the sins of human beings. It is probable that that understanding of who Jesus was, why he lived and why he died came many years after his death.

Initially there was just Jesus not a religion and not a church. And he was, as far as we know, an itinerant who went around speaking. He had a number of men who went from place to place with him and he seemed to attract quite a crowd who listened to what he said. We can imagine that his followers had a great deal of respect for him and some put a great deal of hope in him.

Many believed that he might be the Messiah for whom the Jewish people were waiting. The one who was to liberate them from the Romans. There is some evidence that he was a critic of legalisms and moralizing and appealed to those who were on the margins. It is likely that they hoped he would bring about a significant change in their lives.

And then he was killed.  Perhaps we can understand something of their loss because many of us felt this kind of loss when Martin Luther King Jr. or John or  Robert Kennedy or Paul Wellstone were killed. They were men who were special to many – many people had hopes and dreams that were fueled by these men. And then they were gone.

The Easter hope is different than the Christmas hope. At Christmas we are hopeful that the coming year will hold promise.

The Easter hope is the hope of the hopeless; the hope that spring will follow winter; that when all looks bleak, a phoenix will again rise from the dead. 

Since my return to Evansville, I have ventured over to Audubon Park each week to watch the return of spring. The first time there was a lacy green feel to the woods. Trees had tiny leaves some still curled and getting ready to burst into bloom. The next time there were some dashes of blue here and there as the flowers started to bloom. This week the woods was filled with violets, the dogwoods were in bloom and the turtles were out on logs soaking up the sun. Their necks were all stretched out and their heads all faced the same direction – I wondered if they were listening to a sermon.

As I have moved among you these past few weeks since my return; I find that many of you are suffering from depression, sadness, restlessness, discontent. Some of you have told me of others – people getting divorces, people who are exhibiting all sorts of odd behavior at work.

I recall that when I was in graduate school in Illinois – long about the end of February one of my professors would interrupt his lecture to say, “Now many of you are tired and many are angry with your spouses and all of you are disgruntled about something and I want to tell you that this will all end soon. Soon you will all feel better. So don’t do anything rash – don’t get divorced, and don’t say anything unkind to your partners. The truth is, he would say, I see this every year – the endless grey of winter gets to folks – and I want you to know that it really will be over soon and you will all feel a whole lot better.”

I wish it was only the grey of winter that was getting to you and that I could promise you that soon it would be sunny and warm and that everything would be all right. But my sense is that that is not the case. For some of you that might be true. However, for many of you it is not. Somehow 9/11 and then the war, a long cold winter, the dis-ease of the economy, and the never ending elevation of fear and anxiety with which the media bombards us as well as aging and illness and the natural calamities of life have really sent people reeling.

You might ask, Where is hope to be found?

Many people look to others for hope.

The Hindu’s believe that when the moral order of the world declines and things get really bad Vishnu, the name they give to the forces of the divine that act for righteousness, Vishnu will enter the world in bodily form. These forms are known as avatars. Some of the avatars you may have heard of are Krishna and Buddha. 

Many Christians as you know find hope in the belief of the resurrection of Jesus and an afterlife to come.

Unitarian Universalists may or may not believe in an afterlife but we still look for hope today in the here and now.

And many of us still pin our hopes on something outside ourselves. Perhaps, this president or the next president will straighten everything out. Perhaps a new job and a new boss will be just what you need. Perhaps a new home or a new spouse will make everything all right.

Most often we look about for people leading exemplary lives. At times like this we ask, where are they? Who will be the heroes? Children look to athletes and rock stars. Adults often look to politicians and religious leaders. 

Sometimes when we are down we ask, where are the exemplars?  Where is Buddha or Vishnu, or Jesus, today?

And the truth is - they are all around us. 

I went to see the movie the Pianist last week. It is the story of Wladyslaw Szpilman a pianist who was also a Polish Jew who lived in Warsaw and was sent to the ghetto when the Germans took over Poland. The movie takes us through the horrors of the Jewish experience of that time. It also points out that there were Poles who helped the Jews; people who risked death to give bread to a hungry Jew. Jewish police who on occasion rescued one of the others from the death trains. Poles who harbored Jews and hid them from the Germans. And even a German officer who did not reveal the location of Szpilman when he found him hiding and gave him food to eat and a coat to keep him warm.   

Szpilman survived because he was resourceful, courageous and there was some spirit within him that refused to be broken, that kept him going but also because there were people who helped him and risked their own lives to do so. 

We need hope this year.

Can you find it in yourself to practice resurrection?

Resurrection is about living passionately and compassionately in such a time as this.

It is death defying.

It is ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

We practice resurrection:

Every time we do something life giving.

When we forgive someone, when we forgive ourselves.

When we bring hope to someone.

 “We practice resurrection when we live joyfully even though we have considered all the facts.” (Wendell Berry, Manifesto) 

 We practice resurrection:

Every time we confront injustice

Every time we listen to someone and affirm them and their life

Every time we pray for others.

And it is through practicing resurrection that we live again.

I hope that the Iraqi people get what they need to rebuild and thrive

I hope that the Palestinians and Israelis can find an end to their conflict.

I hope that each of you finds a way to peace and joy in the midst of all the strife.

It is my hope for you and for the world. But I know that I cannot control the outcome.

And so I continue to find people to laugh with –

Time to be silent and to meditate or pray –

And time to walk out doors and watch the ineffable renewal of life and rebirth.

I take time to practice resurrection.

And to notice that others do too.

And that brings me hope. And renews my spirit.

Even Unitarians can believe in Resurrection.

I hope that those of you, who “have wintered enough, mourned enough and oppressed yourself or others enough, those of you who are waiting to rise from the dead, will find love, good spirits and wonder blooming in your hearts again.” (adapted from Jane Rzepka, hymnal #510)

And may it be soon.

Amen and may it be so!

 Both the Berry and Rzepka pieces were read in their entirety as part of the service.