Easter or "Resurrection" Sunday

Risen with Healing in His Wings

Carl Heinrich Bloch, The Resurrection (Wikmedia Commons)

 

Because Easter is not a biblical term (and has pagan origins), some suggest that "Resurrection Sunday" would be a better term.  The actual word "Easter" only appears once in the King James Bible, at Acts 12:4, where is is better translated as "Passover." So significant was the event of that Sunday morning that Christians since have celebrated it as "the Lord's Day," and it has become our weekly sabbath, replacing the Saturday of the Old Testament. Still, for millennia the term "Easter" has come to be synonymous with resurrection, hope, and the joyful refrain "He is risen!" 

With the rays of the morning sun, the agony of Thursday, the pain and grief of Friday, and the separation of Saturday suddenly melted away in the joy of the first Easter.  For millennia the term “Easter” has come to be synonymous with resurrection, hope, and the joyful refrain “He is risen!”  So significant was the event of that Sunday morning that Christians since have celebrated it as “the Lord’s Day,” and it has become our weekly Sabbath, replacing the Saturday of the Old Testament.  As a result, while the week leading up to and including Easter is a wonderful time to commemorate and reflect upon the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus Christ, it is something we celebrate as a church family every week. Indeed, the covenants that we renew each Sunday enjoin us to remember him always.

The Herodian family tomb west of the Old City provides an idea of what Joseph of Arimathea's tomb would have looked like

The accounts of the resurrection in the four gospels serve as the foundation of our understanding of the rise of our Lord from the tomb.  They paint for us a dramatic story as the women found an empty tomb and heard the testimony of angels. The story crescendos as Peter and John confirm that the tomb was empty.  First Mary, then the other women, and then two disciples converse with Jesus on the way to Emmaus.  Finally the ten of the remaining eleven apostles see the Risen Lord.  These and subsequent appearances confirm that Jesus in fact rose from the dead “with healing in his wings,” and though he ascended again into heaven, the gospels leave us with the assurance that in a very real way he remains here with us.  (From God So Loved the World, 107–108) 

Scriptural Accounts: Matt 28; Mark 16; Luke 24; John 20:1–18

William Bouguereau, The Three Marys at the Tomb, 1876.

Episodes for Personal Study

• The Women and the Empty Tomb (Mark 16:1–8; parallels Matthew 28:1–10; Luke 24:1–11)
• Mary Magdalene, Peter, and the Beloved Disciple at the Tomb (Luke 24:12; John 20:1–10)
• Mary Magdalene and the Risen Lord (John 20:11–18; Mark 16:9–11[Longer Ending])
• Two Disciples on the Road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13–35; Mark 16:12–13[Longer Ending])
• First Appearances to the Disciples in Jerusalem (Luke 24:36–48; parallel Mark 16:14 [Longer Ending]; John 20:20–25)
• Jesus Later Appears to Thomas (John 20:26–29)
• The Purpose of the Gospel according to John (John 20:30–31)
• For my fresh translation of the day's texts, see Readings for Easter Sunday

Holy Week Lectionary: A collation of the New Testament gospel texts for each day from Palm Sunday to Easter morning.

For a complete document with all of my translation of the critical Holy Week and resurrections texts, go to Celebrating Holy Week through a New Look at the Gospel Texts

Suggestions for Families

• If using an Easter Wreath, light the purple, red, and finally, the white Easter candle.
• Read one of the resurrection stories, such as Luke 24:1–12. Then bear testimony of the resurrection; sing “Christ the Lord Is Risen Today” (hymn no. 200), “He Is Risen” (no. 199), or “Jesus Has Risen” (Children’s Songbook, 70); and have family prayer.
• Read or sing C. Austin Miles’ “In the Garden,” which recounts the experience of Mary of Magdala at the empty tomb (see discussion below).
• Talk about the reactions of the different characters to the evidence provided them that first Easter: the stone rolled away, the empty tomb, the witness of angels, and finally appearances of the Risen Lord. How do we react to the news of the resurrection of Jesus? How does our testimony start with small evidences, is reinforced by the witness of others, and finally solidified by personal revelation?

 

Ideas, Traditions, and Activities for Younger Children

• Traditional Easter activities, such as egg hunts and gathering Easter candy are not out of harmony with the spirit of Easter as long as the spiritual focus comes first and the “fun” second. Make an effort to explain some Easter symbolism, such as eggs representing the tomb, the new birth of resurrection, etc.
• Charles Colson et al., “The Resurrection,” Christ in Easter, [53‒63].
• Janet and Joe Hales, A Christ Centered Easter, 11‒12, 30‒34.
• Wendee Wilcox Rosborough, The Holy Week for Latter-day Saint Families, 57‒63; note their “Conference Sunday: When Easter Comes during General Conference,” 65‒71.

 

Some Inspiring Art

• Caravaggio, “Supper at Emmaus” and “The Incredulity of St. Thomas.”
• Carl Bloch, “The Resurrection” and “The Doubting Thomas.”
• James Tissot, “The Resurrection,” “Mary Magdalene and the Holy Women at the Tomb,” “The Disciples Running to the Sepulchre,” “Noli Me Tangere: Touch Me Not,” “The Pilgrims of Emmaus on the Road,” “The Appearance of Christ at the Cenacle,” and “The Disbelief of St. Thomas.”
• Frans Schwartz, “Christ Showing Himself to the Disciples on the Eve of Easter.”
• William-Adolphe Bouguereau, “Women at the Tomb.”
• Eugène Burnand, “The Disciples Peter and John on the Morning of the Resurrection.”
• Harry Anderson, “Mary and the Resurrected Lord” and “Behold My Hands and Feet.”
• Minerva Teichert, “Touch Me Not.”
• Simon Dewey, “He Lives.”
• Greg Olsen, “He Is Risen” and “The Road to Emmaus.”
• Walter Rane, “He Is Not Here.”
• J. Kirk Richards, “Garden Tomb” and “Road to Emmaus.”
• Liz Lemon Swindle, “He Is Risen,” “Why Weepest Thou,” “Hope,” and “Emmaus”.

 

Uplifting Music

• Handel, Messiah, Part III.

 

Walter Rane, He Is Not Here

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Please consider taking an hour to watch the Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square's 2019 concert, "He Is Risen!" In my 15 years with the organization, it is one of our best Easter offerings.

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Brief Discussion of the Events of Easter Sunday

See the much longer discussion in God So Loved the World, 107–119. All four gospels begin their resurrection narratives with an account of the empty tomb, preserving the wonder and awe that filled the women who came to the tomb that early morning to find the stone rolled away.

And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun. And they said among themselves, "Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?" And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great. And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted. And he saith unto them, "Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him."  (Mark 16:1–6)

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Scriptural and Musical Reflection: "In the Garden"

Eeugen Burnand, The Disciples Running to the Sepulchre, 1898.

The experience of Mary Magdalene in finding the tomb empty is much expanded in the account of John.  In the account of Jesus' burial in John 19:41, the sepulchre is specifically described as being in a garden.  It is in this garden that Mary's touching experience with the Risen Lord is then described in John 20:1–18.  In this account Mary came to the garden tomb alone, and, finding it empty, she ran to tell the disciples that Jesus' body was missing.  Upon hearing this news, Peter and another disciple, usually assumed to be John, ran to the garden, stooped to enter the tomb, and found in it only the linen cloths with which Jesus' body had been wrapped. (John 20:3–10).

The disciples then left Mary weeping alone in the garden.  Soon she saw two angels in the tomb at the spot where Jesus' body had lain.  When they asked why she was crying, she said it was because she feared that someone had taken the Lord's body.  Then, turning, she "saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus."

Jesus saith unto her, "Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou?" She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, "Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away."  Jesus saith unto her, "Mary." She turned herself, and saith unto him, "Rabboni," which is to say, Master.   Jesus saith unto her, "Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God." (John 20:15–17)

Harry Anderson, He Is Risen

Mary thus became the first person to see the Risen Lord, and, obedient to his direction, she went and told the disciples all that she had seen and heard.  In this Mary serves as a model witness for all believers, but especially to women.  As I wrote in God So Loved the World, 114, "Given the restrictions on women in that time and culture, which allowed them to do very little without the permission, guidance, or direction of the men in their lives, Mary’s ability to gain a testimony on her own—without father, brother, husband, or guardian—provides an important and empowering image for women today. Just as the Beloved Disciple gained his testimony standing at the foot of the cross and in the empty tomb, so can Woman gain the surest witness possible directly from the risen Lord."

Yet Peter and John too serve as examples for believers, even when our witness is less secure than that of Mary.  When she had told them that the tomb was empty, they did not walk, they ran to the garden to see whether her report was true.  And though they did not see the Risen Lord at that time, seeing the tomb empty and the burial clothes lying there, they nonetheless believed.  Do we too run to find out whether the testimony of the resurrection that we hear and read from others is true?  And are we able to accept on faith its reality even when we have not yet seen the resurrected Christ?

The experiences of Peter, John, and above all of Mary provided author and composer C. Austin Miles (1896–1946) inspiration for a touching hymn that has become a Christian classic.  In April of 1912 Miles was reading from John 20 when he felt that he was drawn into the garden scene.  In what he described as a vision, he saw Mary and then the other two disciples as they discovered the empty tomb.  But above all, he saw Mary as she heard the voice of Jesus, turned to look at him, and cried out "Rabboni!"  It was under the influence of this vision that Miles wrote "In the Garden" (Osbeck, Amazing Grace, second edition, 113).

I come to the garden alone, while the dew is still on the roses;

            And the voice I hear, falling on my ear, the Son of God discloses.

He speaks, and the sound of his voice is so sweet the birds hush their singing;

            And the melody that he gave to me within my heart is ringing.

I’d stay in the garden with him tho the nigh around me is falling;

            But he bids me go—through the voice of woe, his voice to me is calling.

Watch and listen to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and the Orchestra at Temple Square as they perform Ryan Murphy's arrangement of "In the Garden."

Through the words and the melody of this lovely yet simple song, we can picture ourselves in that garden scene, imagining what it will be like when we also have the privilege of seeing the Risen Lord.

With Samuel at the Garden Tomb, Holy Week 2011

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Christ is Risen!

An early Greek tradition was to greet people Easter morning with the expression Χριστός ἀνέστη, meaning "Christ is Risen!" to which one responds Ἀληθῶς ἀνέστη, "Truly he is risen indeed!"  Common now throughout the Eastern Orthodox world, it has been adopted by many Roman Catholics and Protestants in Western countries.

Even if this is not a custom in your family, the favorite Easter hymn, "Christ the Lord Is Risen Today," certainly catches the feelings of joy  that we share with Christians the world over at the Easter miracle.

Christ the Lord is ris’n today, Alleluia!
Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!
Sing, ye heav’ns, and earth reply, Alleluia!

Love’s redeeming work is done, Alleluia!
Fought the fight, the vict’ry won, Alleluia!
Jesus’ agony is o’er, Alleluia!
Darkness veils the earth no more, Alleluia!

Lives again our glorious King, Alleluia!
Where, O death, is now thy sting? Alleluia!
Once he died our souls to save, Alleluia!
Where thy victory, O grave? Alleluia! (Hymn 200)

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Subsequent Appearances

• Jesus and Thomas (John 20:24–29)
• Jesus Meets the Disciples in Galilee (John 21:1–14)
  • Jesus and Peter: Three-fold affirmation of Peter’s love (21:15–19)
  • Jesus and the Other Disciple (21:20–23)
• The Forty Day Ministry (Acts 1:1–5)
• Apostolic commission (Mark 16:15–18 [still in Jerusalem?]; Matt 28:16–20 [Galilee]; Acts 1:6–8)
• The Ascension (Mark 16:19–20; Luke 24:49–53; Acts 1:9–11)
• See also Paul’s list of post-resurrection appearances in 1 Corinthians 15:3–9 (Peter, the rest of the Twelve, over five hundred, James the brother of Jesus, "all the ‘apostles,’" and, last of all, Paul)

 

The Gospel accounts make it clear that the risen Lord was seen, heard, and felt. To these accounts one can add Paul’s list of post-resurrection appearances in 1 Corinthians 15:3–9 (Peter, the rest of the Twelve, over five hundred, James the brother of Jesus, "all the ‘apostles,’" and, last of all, Paul). Much later the apostle John, referring both to the reality of the Incarnation and Jesus’ continuing physical reality wrote:

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. (1 John 1:1–3)

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Reflection

With my mother at the Garden Tomb, December 2011

Each of the resurrection narratives carries beauty and power, confirming our own testimonies that Jesus indeed rose from the dead and lives today. The fact that the first to actually see him were Mary Magdalene, the other women, and the two disciples on the road to Emmaus suggests that all disciples, not just the Twelve, can receive sure testimonies that Jesus lives. Nevertheless, we are grateful for such special witnesses, "to whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs [Greek tekmēriois, "sure signs" or "tokens"]" (Acts 1:3).

For my final Easter message, however, I want to share the implications of his resurrection for us. Inasmuch as Jesus has overcome death, all shall live again . . . and as the Book of Mormon teaches, all will be restored to a perfect frame with imperfections corrected and challenges overcome (see Alma 11:42–44).

Mounting examples in this life of those who struggle with physical, developmental, and other challenges—including those of my own precious son—have caused me to see a new need for the hope of renewal, rebirth, and healing that are so marvelously illustrated in the reality of the resurrection of Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus’ own resurrection healed hearts as "grief turned to joy":

"A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world. And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you." (John 16:20–21)

Mother, my daughter Rachel, and my niece Lindsay

The hope of the resurrection continues to heal many grieving hearts as well as bodies, giving new meaning to the prophecy "but unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings" (Malachi 4:2). Significantly, Jesus’ final commission to the apostles included the important injunction that they go forth not only to teach and baptize (Matt 28:19–20) but also to lay hands on the sick that should recover (Mark 16:18, 20). Certainly part of our discipleship should be that as Christ brought hope and healing, so should we work for these ends in our own small way.

"He is not here, for he is risen!"

Beyond this, however, is the hope of a glorious resurrection for those who accept him and are true and faithful to the covenants that they make with him. In recent years the deaths of grandparents, my father, my mother-in-law, and now last year my dear Mother have brought new meaning to this Easter message. Because He lives, so shall we . . . accordingly I close with the words of Paul that I shared at Dad's funeral:

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For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (1 Thessalonians 4:14–17; see D&C 88:95–98)

 

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Marking Easter

Although every Sunday is “the Lord’s Day,” commemorating Jesus’ rising from the tomb and serving as our Christian Sabbath, Latter-day Saint certainly ought to join with the rest of the Christian world in celebrating Easter Sunday. As President Hinckley taught,

Of all the victories in human history, none is so great, none so universal in its effect, none so everlasting in its consequences as the victory of the crucified Lord who came forth in the Resurrection that first Easter morning . . . No force beneath the heavens could now hold back the power of the Son of God. It was as if His Almighty Father could stand no more. The earth trembled. The guards fled. The stone was moved. The Lord of heaven and earth arose from the bier, shook off the burial clothes, and stepped forth to become the first fruits of them that slept. The empty tomb bore testimony of this greatest of all miracles.[1] §

 

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[1] Gordon B. Hinckley, “The Easter Tomb Bore Testimony,” Ensign (May 1988): 66‒67.

  

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For Further Reading

Richard Neitzel Holzapfel, A Lively Hope, 168‒191.

Eric D. Huntsman, God So Loved the World, 106‒115.

Julie Smith, The Gospel according to Mark, 820‒35.

——. “The Resurrection,” New Testament History, Culture, and Society, 377‒90.

Richard Neitzel Holzapfel and Thomas A. Wayment, “The Resurrection,” From the Last Supper to the Resurrection, 378‒97.

Robert J. Matthews, “Resurrection: The Ultimate Triumph,” in Jesus Christ: Son of God, Savior, ed. Paul H. Peterson, Gary L. Hatch, and Laura D. Card (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 2002), 313–33.

George S. Tate, “The Resurrection as Olive Branch: A Meditation,” Behold the Lamb of God: An Easter Celebration, 165‒184.

Herman du Toit, “Picturing the Resurrection,” Behold the Lamb of God: An Easter Celebration, 185‒200.

 

 

 

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Easter Quicklinks

Preliminary Materials

Ideas for Celebrating Easter  | A Working Chronology  |  The Raising of Lazarus | The Symbolism of Jesus as Anointed King and Priest: The Anointing in John 

The Passion Week and the Resurrection  

Palm Sunday  |  Monday  | Tuesday  |  "Spy" Wednesday:  |  Holy or "Maundy" Thursday  |  Good Friday  |  Saturday  |   Easter Sunday