A Holy Week note from Pastor Travis 4/1/21
Dear FUMC Family and Friends,
In his book Ethics, Dietrich Bonhoeffer coined that well-loved phrase that “Jesus’ resurrection is God’s yes to the new human being.” Bonhoeffer called it “God’s ultimate, splendid yes.” He went on to write “Humanity does indeed yet live in the old but is already beyond the old. It does indeed yet live in the in a world of death but is already beyond death. It does yet live in a world of sin but is already beyond sin. The night has not ended but the dawn has already begun.”
As we journey though Holy Week having experienced a year of living in a world unsettled and turned upside down by Covid-19, I find that I am drawn to Bonhoeffer’s words. We live in a world broken by natural disasters and diseases. We live in a world marred by hate and prejudice. We live in a world of loss and grief. But, we also live in a world which has experienced the redemptive love of God through Christ. We live in a world in which God’s love transforms and “makes all things new” (Revelation 21:5). That is the conclusion of our Holy Week journey. It is a journey of promise that doesn’t stop at the cross but continues to the empty tomb. It is the Good News in which we find hope. It is the joy of our lives in God. It is that in which we “live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28).
I look forward to journeying through the rest of Holy Week with you and celebrating Easter virtually, but still together.
Peace and Grace,
Pastor Travis