Sunday, April 12, 2009

Christ Our Lord is Risen Today...

I have been waiting to sing this song for 50 long days! We begin preparing for Easter on Ash Wednesday. We spend Lent reflecting on the sacrifice that Jesus made for US.
The entire Lenten season is waiting and preparation for the celebration of Easter.
We even sing different songs (or at least different versions of regular songs) during Lent. We also refrain from saying Alleluia which is a regular response right before the gospel reading. Then, on Easter Sunday, we SING and say Alleluia!! Christ Our Lord is Risen TODAY!
I have been singing since Friday.... I couldn't wait.
We have mass on Holy Thursday, Good Friday and then a long Easter Vigil service on Saturday night. After Mass on Friday, we had a live 'stations of the cross' (or a reenactment of the passion).
It was incredible. The man who played Jesus was amazing. He really did a fabulous job. They even had a huge cross that he carried as we followed him all around our churchyard. They had a way to "hang" him on the cross that was quite realistic and made me look twice to be sure he was okay. It was incredibly moving. The girl who played Mary did an amazing job too... Now that I am a mom I have such a better understanding of what Mary must have gone through. I always get choked up at that part when watching The Passion when Mary sees Jesus fall and she imagines him as a little boy. I just bawl. Of course, I cry through most of it. I am awed by the gift we have been given. Watching this live.. is really powerful. I hope that this is a new tradition at church. (This was the first year that they have done this.)

So... today we celebrated Easter! Yes... the Easter Bunny came too.. but we know the real reason to rejoice today. Christ our Lord is Risen today!! A-a-a-a-a-le-lu-ia!!
Rejoice in the Lord!

1 comment:

Milk & Cookie Party said...

That sounds like a fabulous experience at your church. I love Easter actually more than Christmas. Christmas is grand as we celebrate Christ's birth, but Easter is the best part of it all- with the exception of actually being in heaven. But this is ultimate love. The ultimate gift. And He rose again!

Funny story- I was teaching my 4 year old class today with Resurrection Eggs. Have you seen them? 12 eggs with 12 elements of the story. Each child got one and then I would have them come up and open their egg. One little girl really liked her egg and had plans to keep it and take it home. She put it in her pants. Yes, in her pants. It was an odd moment, but we just kept moving along with the story.

Love you!