Happy Easter for tomorrow, everyone.
I know that for many people, Easter is all about bonnets, bunnies and chocolate eggs. The importance of the day for Christians has been diminished by the idea of parades and egg hunts in the gardens. But it's much more than that, regardless of one's race, religion or creed.
The fact is that, for Christians, Easter Sunday is much more important than Christmas. That is why it is often celebrated in a much more downbeat manner. It is a time of serious reflection. For Christians, it's a time to re-dedicate their lives to God. All religions have such a festival, this one just happens to be for Christians. But its message is truly universal.
The message of Easter is often lost by the focus on the magical (or miraculous depending on the terminology) of the whole returning from the dead, rolling away the stone, ascending to heaven in a beam of light, thing. In fact, let's take it as a parable not history. And then it doesn't matter if you are Muslim, Hindu, Jew or any other religion - the message of Easter is as important for you as it is for Christians.
Let's put all of that mysticism on one side for a moment. What Easter is really all about is this: no matter how fouled up your life, no matter what weight you are labouring under (the "cross you have to bear" in biblical terms), no matter what is being done to you, one day you will be free of all that misery, suffering and pain and, just when you thought it was all too much to deal with, when you give up, when you want to lie in a hole and pull the earth in over you, that it's true - it is darkest before the dawn, and there will once more be light, you will be able to rise above it and to find your way to happiness. All you have to do is believe and it will come true, even if you have to change your wishes for the future.
I don't care what religion anyone follows, pick any of them apart and the core is the same anyway - it's the will of man that creates divisions between religions and even sects of the same religions. The law of God is the same for all men (including those who claim atheism - the rules and consequences are the same).
The true message of Easter is not about the precise details of the story. It is a story of success not of defeat.
And it's about you, your hopes, wishes and dreams and how, even when everything seems hopeless, one day you (we) will rise above it.
From Starfish and me, a Happy Easter - whatever you call God and however you worship Him.
- Jefferson Galt, Easter 2015, http://www.jeffersongalt.com/a...