Resurrection!
1-2 Early in the morning on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone was moved away from the entrance. She ran at once to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, breathlessly panting, "They took the Master from the tomb. We don't know where they've put him."
3-10Peter and the other disciple left immediately for the tomb. They ran, neck and neck. The other disciple got to the tomb first, outrunning Peter. Stooping to look in, he saw the pieces of linen cloth lying there, but he didn't go in. Simon Peter arrived after him, entered the tomb, observed the linen cloths lying there, and the kerchief used to cover his head not lying with the linen cloths but separate, neatly folded by itself. Then the other disciple, the one who had gotten there first, went into the tomb, took one look at the evidence, and believed. No one yet knew from the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead. The disciples then went back home.
Last week we all wrote our articles without reading each others'. This week I have read both other articles before writing this. I feel pressure to present a different adventure for you to choose as that is in part the point of this exercise. When I read scripture, I try and ask good or at least useful questions, so I will list my questions:
What is the first day of the week?
Who is the unnamed disciple?
What were the first century rules for moving bodies?
Why does the unnamed disciple not enter immediately but only Simon Peter does?
What did Simon Peter think?
What Scripture is being referred to?
Where is "home"?
Now allow me to leave these questions to you and avoid them entirely. What I want to write about is theology. What happens theologically in the resurrection of Jesus? Obviously this is a huge and defining moment in the Christian faith - perhaps the moment. One thing that occurs is that death is defeated. Where as previously people had been raised from the dead but died later and we have a couple examples of people who didn't die (Enoch and Elijah), Jesus is the only case where death both occurs and is then fully defeated. This is the only story in which death has a say but not the last say; the grave is not the final word; the story doesn't end in the tomb. This is then my understanding of the Christian hope: that the grave is not the end, that God has the last word, and the God's word creates life.
I would now like to draw a connection I was made aware of on our recent trip to Israel.
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| Gates of Hell - Caesera Phillipi |
Matthew 16:18
I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it
In this passage Jesus makes this famous declaration. The word for hell is the Greek 'hades' and is the place of the dead, Sheol, or the grave. Therefore, our instructor suggested, a better understanding is to understand Jesus to be declaring victory over death rather than demonic hordes. What is it that the gates of hell do? Well they keep people in of course! Nobody comes back from the dead! Nobody escapes hades! There is no way back after crossing the river Styx! Jesus' church will not be stopped by death but triumph over and beyond it.
It is also interesting to note that the Gates of hell was also a physical place as depicted above and the location of pagan worship including, more specifically, the emperor cult. Therefore, one could also understand this to be a reference to the Roman empire, and the emperor in particular, not prevailing against Jesus building his church (which is certainly true in retrospect).
In either case, Jesus' resurrection is the down payment of power, the deposit of new life, the game changer, the final twist, the surprise ending. God's word brings new life, Jesus defeats Empire, Jesus defeats death, defeat is swallowed up in victory...
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