Easter: The Promise of our own Resurrection!

For Christians all over the world the sunrise on Easter morning signifies the celebration of the triumph of life over death, as we confirm our faith in the resurrection of Jesus!

During Lent we had the opportunity to become reacquainted with a God who began to reveal Gods self to a people and the Easter liturgy leads us through the account of salvation; stories of broken covenants and of a just and merciful God.  It does not depict quick getaways but of a painful exile, a molding of a people, of testing in the desert and prophetic denunciations up to the point of the new covenant sealed in the passion and death of Jesus.

On Easter we Christians do not participate in a magical but temporary diversion from the raw reality of life and the dangers of our moment in history. On the contrary, our Easter commemoration can help us more clearly identify ourselves and the potential of our historical moment.

Our hope as Christians is rooted in (Christian) realism. That hope is resilient; it survives the devastation of all expectations. Hope can confront a future that can never be clearly predicted nor can it be fully controlled. Easter allows us to look towards possibilities rather than guarantees.

Jesus’ victory over death, gives us the assurance that all will be well. It will all come together even when it looks like everything is out of control.  Just as our personal lives can achieve their full promise, even if our actions sometimes contradict our best intentions, the final word in our personal pilgrimage and in the story of the human family will be a word of light and love. As expressed by the Israelites in Deuteronomy, the word of God is an ever present now “today you hear his word” affirming it to be a lasting challenge for us.

Those of us, who are Christian, hold firm to the belief that Christ’s resurrection does not only mean everlasting life after death, but also that from death life can rise again. “…But if the grain falls and dies it will bear fruit…” This passage from John 12:24 highlight our human condition; a continual dying of self to achieve perfection, and yes even when we eventually take our last breath.

A life not lived in communion with others is not worth living, when we share with others, our lives take on a deeper meaning particularly when all we seem to see around us is negativity. The way we can rise above this is be being people of service reaching out to those who have lost their foundation.

Easter affirms our belief that life comes after death and that life comes out of death. The promise of eternity awaits us at the end of our time here on earth, and the pledge of new life is present in the daily dying of a life lived in love. Christ rose from the dead and has gone to prepare a place for us. There is no need to fear!

Kevin Bellot C.Ss.R is a Dominican and a third year theology student at Boston College.

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24 Comments

  1. March 18, 2013

    I was deighted to read Kevin Bellot’s article on the resurrection. Thank you Kevin! Nothing excites me more then the glorious truth that HE IS RISEN! Kevin is a Roman Catholic priest in training. I am a veteran Pentecostal evangelist. We stand together at the entry to the empty tomb and declare to the world that JESUS IS LORD! May I share a thought or two, maybe three? On the cross at Calvary Jesus Christ paid the price in full for the salvation of all mankind. When He hung on the cross He cried “It is finished” according to John 19:30. These words could also be translated from the Greek “It is paid in full”. They carry the thought of discharging a debt. If God the Father in heaven had not accepted the sacrifice of His Son’s death as payment in full for the sins of all mankind He would not have raised Him from the dead. But the resurrection of Christ was God’s way of saying, “I accept this sacrifice of my Son’s death.” As Jesus stepped out of that tomb is is as if the Father dipped the pen of divine justice into the crimson flow of blood and wrote PAID IN FULL across your debt of sin and mine! Because our salvation has already been paid for it is a gift we only need to receive. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) The resurrection of Christ is the best attested to fact in human history. Here is something the skeptics should consider. The accounts of the resurrection in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, and Paul’s record of the resurrection in 1 Corinthian 15, along with the account of Paul’s miraculous converion on the road to Damascus in Acts 9 were all written during the first century A.D. while most of the people who had actually witnessed the event were still living. Consider now the fact that the Jewish religious leaders AND the Roman government wanted Jesus dead. They would have done anything to discredit the story of His resurrection. Had the New Testament stories of Christ’s resurrection, His post resurrection appearances, and Paul’s encounter with the risen Saviour not been true, you can be sure a significant number of witnesses would have come forward and exposed these claims to be false. Yet not a single article has come down to us from the first century that contradicts the New Testament writers. Indeed there is no knowledge of such a statement ever being written in the fist century. I invite you to visit my website http://www.livinghopeministries.ca In the left margin click onto SERMONS then click onto my sermon MANY INFALLIBLE PROOFS. Listen as I share the evidence for Christ’s resurrection! I will give you the names of modern lawyers who have said that the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ would stand up today in a court of law. One of these men was NOT a Christian when he began to research the resurrection story. The evdence that confronted him made him a believer and a zealous disciple of the risen Lord. Sincerely, Rev. Donald Hill. Pentecostal Evangelist.

  2. Ako
    April 27, 2011

    A very well written peace. Clearly some people are bend on analyzing verbatim what was written and they miss the excellent message that is being communicated. Thanks Kevin, well done.

  3. Not bad work but missing the real meaning
    April 27, 2011

    Obviously all would agree that easter signifies the cruxificion of Christ . However , if one only holds on to such view is not wrong but will miss the real essence . It really wa his victory and conquering the legacy of death and dominance of sins reign over mankind . Paul in Romans 8:1 [There is] therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

    2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

    3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:

    4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

    5 For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.

    9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

    10 And if Christ [be] in you, the body [is] dead because of sin; but the Spirit [is] life because of righteousness.

    11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

    12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.

    13 For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

    See the works of the flesh as was given in Galatians 5:19-21
    19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are [these]; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,

    20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,

    21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told [you] in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

    which are commonly practiced by many who claim to know Christ because some person or religious leaders made them believe so , aren’t taught to repent ( meaning total surrendering and deciding never to do those things which dishonors God ) and live a life which is seperate from all which is seemingly evil as Paul said to Christians at corinth 2 Corinthians 6:14-18
    14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?

    15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?

    16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in [them]; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

    17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean [thing]; and I will receive you,

    18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

    This seperates Christianity from the worldly religious self righteous and sacramental salvation . Easter becomes pagan when it’s spoken of in the view of carnalism . When religious leaders who claim to know Christ yet are associated with the same group which pierced him , accused him and further martyred Paul , Peter , Andrew , Matthew and other Apostles and disciples of the same Christ who they assume to cry to misleading and continuing to mislead ignorant people who don’t read their bible and many who don’t even have one , yet you see them walking to what they call church with bear hands some just a misal , and hear a man so-call preach his own ideas into them and they can’t tell what it is cause like Paul in 2 Timothy 2:15
    15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

    19 Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity.

    20 But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honour, and some to dishonour.

    21 If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honour, sanctified, and meet for the master’s use, [and] prepared unto every good work.

    22 Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

    The word of God must be accurate in all manner of teaching and if we claim to support Easter and speak of lent as a moment of reflection , then we should hold on to righteousness and not have to deliberately hurt him as if we’re crucifying Christ a new which is impossible according to Hebrews 7
    25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

    26 For such an high priest became us, [who is] holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;

    27 Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people’s: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.

    And ofcourse my dear writer many Dominicans don’t have that heart for God , cause as few were at church many were just waking up from a night of revel and sin , and many preparing to go sin . such rubbish and what doth their religious leader teach them ?

    God help us .

  4. Proud Catholic
    April 26, 2011

    Good job…Frater Kevin. :) Wait…are you still a frater? Anyway, praise God for people like you, who can enlighten Dominicans. Mid.ray, if you don’t believe, make no comments.

  5. Life's Like That
    April 26, 2011

    There is not much comment because many people are confused by what some say is and some say isn’t. But because this is such a sacred issue they prefer to leave it alone and not sully the occasion.

  6. Sunday's Child
    April 26, 2011

    I love this article. It is very eloquent, very well-wirtten.

    My favorite paragraph (in terms of its compostion):
    “That hope is resilient; it survives the devastation of all expectations. Hope can confront a future that can never be clearly predicted nor can it be fully controlled. Easter allows us to look towards possibilities rather than guarantees.”

  7. Roots man
    April 26, 2011

    Amen my brother!!! there is still still hope for the young people of Dominica, and your article is a testimony of that, keep the fire burning for the lord.

  8. mac
    April 26, 2011

    You all are not christians, thats not the way christians suppose to live. Remember the Ten Commandments, brake one brake all, it is wrong for you ppeople to say you follow in jesus footsteps
    You are not Christions you all are just into a fashon like every thing else just a fashon

  9. wiseman
    April 25, 2011

    you see not much comments on this topic. let it be nastiness and you’ll see the bombardment of comments. we need more spiritual news/lectures.

    • Happiness Ka Fan Cho Mwen!
      April 25, 2011

      they just like salopte’

  10. That's My Boy!!!!
    April 25, 2011

    This reflection appears to be the simplist yet the most effective. How wonderful that there are men like you who are instilled with this passion for positive works and find time for inspiring others. I am proud to call you my beloved brother and may God keep you and bless you this Easter season and always. :wink:

  11. icecold
    April 25, 2011

    Very good Mr Bellot. I myself have seriously decided to make God/Christ the center of my being, and am going to enjoy or find the positives in each and every moment here on earth.

  12. mid.ray
    April 25, 2011

    not all christians believe that christ ressurected on easter sunday?? I AM A CHRISTIAN AN I BELIEVE THAT CHRIST WAS RESURRECTED(not on easter sunday) AND HE WILL SOON RETURN. the bible never stated the day of his ressurection neither the day of his birth.. and man has just been making days when we should celebrate it! WHY NOT CELEBRATE CHRIST RESSURECTION EVERYDAY? god is so good, he gave us life and we should worship him and celebrate his ressurection everyday and not just on

    • Happiness Ka Fan Cho Mwen!
      April 25, 2011

      …and what’s your point……with your weak theological insight. We the CHURCH know everything you are talking about. Yes! We know that! When is Easter Sunday? or Easter Saturday? Please you need to go beyond the literal meaning of what the writer is trying to say. I am catholic and I know that we do not know esp when is / was the first Christmas or when was the Easter (resurrection day) or when; when and when… We are easter people and the church makes it known to us. It’s like being born of February 29..when do u celebrate your birthday…It;s a movable date. But the whole point is a day set aside…………….So, your weak counter claim will get you NO where! No matter what route we take….we end up to the God above

      • mid.ray
        April 28, 2011

        you wasnt thinking of it when u were jumping up in carnival and revelling in march???

        • Are you serious?
          April 28, 2011

          It is very obvious that who ever you are need to Grow up!! If you wanted to present an argument you could have sat down well and think first before you typed. now u sending mapwee !! that’s not Christian now is it?

    • Very nice!
      April 25, 2011

      I am not sure if it accured to you that Jesus of Nazareth did exist and his death was documented and yes historians at the time did record the death of Jesus ! It is because of his resurrection that he is the Christ of faith ! A community of faith ( the majority of Christians ) set aside the day of the lord Sunday as the day to worship just as easter is the day to commemorate his resurrection as a community
      As the man said in his reflection we are to continually die to self in working together and the graces would be for us personal resurrections (from my understanding) we don’t need to be soponfed all the time read between the lines and stop being on the defensive!! By virtue of the face that he doing his masters in theology puts him in a great position to break open the word because he is learning the formalities of his craft ! So give de young man a chance and encourage our young people to do good what ever it is !! I hope I can meet him and shake his hand someday.

    • Sunday's Child
      April 26, 2011

      No need to get up in arms, my dear. Yes we have a special of the resurrection on Easter Sunday. I’m sure you notice that Easter sunday is a different date every year. As christians, we celebrate Easter every day of course and than we commemorate it on a special day. I see nothing wrong with that.

    • LawieBawie
      April 26, 2011

      Nobody is saying that these are the day he was born, crucified or resurrected my friens. All we are doing is creating a special day for the observation of these events in the life of Christ.

  13. mid.ray
    April 25, 2011

    not all christians believe that christ ressurected on easter sunday??

    • Proud Catholic
      April 26, 2011

      :) I don’t like prophets of doom, because they are usually false prophets whose aim is to side track the people of God. May the risen Christ be with you and may the Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Go in peace to love and serve the Lord. :wink:

    • Lizavier4Jesus
      April 26, 2011

      The reason for the misbelief is because of the day the some Christians believe Jesus died and was buried–which is Friday.

      Hence the resurrection of Sunday, following a burial that could not take earlier than midnight Friday, does not fulfill the sign of Jonah, that Jesus would remain in the grave for 3 days and 3 nights.

      Jesus did die on a day of the passover week, and that did allow Him 3 days and 3 days nights in the grave. For He was indeed the passover lamb which would take away the sins of the world once and for all. The question is what day of the passover week did Jesus die?

      • From the Writer of the above Article!
        April 27, 2011

        As a young Catholic Theologian in the making, I am going to correct your “PROUD MISEDUCATION” ! let me give you a free theology Class. (have your BIBLE and notepad too)

        The Gospels plainly tell us that the day on which the women discovered that Jesus’ tomb was empty was Sunday morning. The Gospels say that the women came to the tomb “at dawn on the first day of the week” (Matthew 28:1), “very early on the first day of the week” (Mark 16:2), “on the first day of the week, very early in the morning” (Luke 24:1), or “early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark” (John 20:1). To summarize, the women came to the tomb around dawn on the “first day of the week” (or Sunday), and found it empty. It appears from these accounts that Jesus was raised sometime during the early hours of Sunday morning.
        The following question remains: On what day of the week was Jesus crucified and buried in the tomb? Those who believe Jesus was crucified on Wednesday refer to Matthew 12:40. This verse has Jesus saying: “For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” Proponents of a Wednesday crucifixion say that this statement means Jesus was exactly three days and three nights – or 72 hours – in the grave. Thus he was buried near sunset Wednesday evening and resurrected Saturday evening.

        However, if we read the 20 other places in the New Testament in which Jesus and the apostles refer to the length of time he would spend in the tomb, we would be forced to conclude that they do not teach a literal three-day stay in the tomb. You may check the following verses where the length of time between Jesus’ death and burial, and his resurrection, is mentioned: Matthew 16:21; 17:23; 20:19; 26:61; 27:40, 64; Mark 9:31; 10:34; 14:58; 15:29; Luke 9:22; 13:32; 18:33; 24:7, 21, 46; John 2:19, 20; Acts 10:40; 1 Corinthians 15:4. In 20 places indefinite expressions such “on the third day he will be raised” are given as the length of time between these events.

        Those who believe in a Wednesday crucifixion disregard the inexactness as to time in these passages and interpret them by Matthew 12:40 in a literal manner, as exactly 72 hours. But this line of reasoning creates a contradiction. For example, Matthew, who used the phrase “three days and three nights” to refer to the length of Jesus’ burial, also has him saying: “The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised to life” (17:23, emphasis ours).

        Taking the phrase in 12:40 “three days and three nights” as denoting exactly 72 hours creates an internal problem with 17:23 in the Gospel of Matthew. Here’s why. The elapsed time between being killed and then rising “on the third day,” as described in 17:23, is longer than the time between rising after being buried, as discussed in 12:40. Yet, 17:23 uses an expression (“on the third day”) that implies a shorter period of time – if we demand that Matthew 12:40 (“three days and three nights”) must be a literal 72 hours. For something to occur “on” the third day is for it to happen in less time than at the point when three literal days have passed. But Jesus was killed some time before he was buried. How, then, could the time between his death and resurrection be “on the third day” (or less than three literal days) but the time between his burial and resurrection be after three days or 72 hours?

        Therefore, to demand that the phrase “three days and three nights” must be taken literally as a 72-hour period creates what appears to be a contradiction within the Gospel of Matthew. The 72-hour theory also causes Matthew to be in conflict with what Mark, Luke, John and Paul say about the duration of time between Jesus’ death and burial, and his resurrection.

        Yet, proponents of a Wednesday crucifixion still say that we should take Matthew 12:40 literally. Their view is that Jesus said he would be resurrected after three days and three nights in the tomb, and that is how we should read him. But, must we or should we take Matthew 12:40 literally?

        Perhaps the source of the confusion over Matthew 12:40 occurs precisely because we try to read it in a literal fashion, as though it referred to a time period of exactly 72 hours. What we may be doing is reading our modern views of time exactness into an ancient figure of speech that didn’t contain it, or imposing our sense of precise time-telling on the ancient Jewish sense. In fact, Matthew 12:40 may be consistent with and reflect the way people thought of time in their day, not in our era.
        Are there any biblical examples where “after three days and three nights” may not mean exactly 72 hours? Yes, 1 Samuel 30 is an example. The account in this chapter is about David and the Amalekites, and certain events in the village of Ziklag. Verse one tells us that, “David and his men reached Ziklag on the third day” (emphasis ours throughout). Upon arriving at Ziklag, David encountered an Egyptian, the slave of an Amalekite. He told David, “My master abandoned me when I became ill three days ago” (verse 13). The account also says that the Egyptian had not eaten or drunk for “three days and three nights” (verse 12).

        “On the third day” is not necessarily three full days. In fact, it would be less than 72 hours. “Three days ago” is equally vague, as it could be less than three full days. Yet, this time is equated with “three days and three nights.” It’s certainly possible, or even probable, that we are not dealing with a full 72-hour period here. If that is the case, then “three days and three nights” could be an idiomatic expression that would refer to parts of three days. 1 Samuel 30 indicates that “three days and three nights” was an expression that did not necessarily mean a full 72 hours. Other examples where variants of the expression “three days” are used includes the following passages: Genesis 42:17-18 (“for three days” = “on the third day”); 2 Chronicles 10:5, 12 (“three days later” = “in three days”) and Esther 4:16-5:1 (“for three days” = “on the third day”).

        Do we lose anything meaningful about Jesus’ death and resurrection if Matthew 12:40 is an inexact reference to the time lapse between these two events? The New Testament references mentioned above are inexact as measured by our time-telling standards, but they still establish the fact that Jesus was in the tomb for a long enough period of time that there would be no question he was dead. Being in the tomb parts of three days, perhaps about 36 hours (which a Friday crucifixion-Sunday resurrection would allow) is enough to demonstrate this.

        However, proponents of a 72-hour burial say that how long Jesus was in the tomb was the sign that he gave of his messiahship. But is this true? While the apostles referred in a general manner to the length of time Jesus was dead and buried, they never used the chronological measurement as the proof. They used such expressions as “after three days” or “on the third day,” but they did not attempt to prove an exact length of time. The apostles spoke of the resurrection itself, not the length of time, as the proof that Jesus is the Messiah. It stands to reason that the fact of Jesus’ death and resurrection is what demonstrates him to be our Savior. Whether Jesus was in the tomb two days, three days or ten days has no bearing on the issue of his messiahship.

        In summary, if we remember that the phrase “three days and three nights” is an expression of the disciples’ culture, rather than scientific exactness, then we should have no problem with understanding Matthew 12:40. The “sign” that Jesus gave was not the length of time that he would be in the tomb, but it was the fact that he would die, be buried and be raised to life. We need not be concerned about the exact time Jesus was in the tomb, for our salvation does not depend on that. What is important is that Jesus died and was resurrected to become our Savior (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). Class is dismissed !

  14. Very nice!
    April 25, 2011

    It is nice to know we have young men studying theology ! This was a very good reflection ! I hope you get to come home to us in Dominica to preach the word anew. Blessings to you as you continue your studies and I will continue to pray for all young men and women doing something positive with their lives!!
    Your family must be proud!

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