Lazarus Rising

This Sunday, April 10, we'll be dealing with a more in-depth reflection on the Resurrection than we can afford on Easter Sunday. The Gospel lesson is John 11:1-45 (the raising of Lazarus). The First lesson is Ezekiel 37:1-14, the vision of the Valley of Bones.

This text is richer and deeper than might appear on first reading. The power and grace of God are awesome!

If you'd like to journey with me as I prepare for this sermon, here are some links:



"Jesus wept and Lazarus awoke!" (above) This is a clip from the movie, The Gospel of John, with Henry Ian Cusick as Jesus. It is a word-for-word rendering of The Good News Translation, formerly called the Good News Bible or Today’s English Version.


"The Lazarus Effect" (below) It's a film about the power of anti-retroviral meds at work in Africa. The film opens with a cadaverous woman speaking: "The story of Lazarus is a story of hope. Jesus pulled Lazarus' dead body out of his tomb, and said, 'Lazarus, wake up.' Miraculously, Lazarus came back to life." According to the film, 3,800 people in Africa die each day of AIDS, but 3 million are living with the help of ARVs, which can produce a remarkable "Lazarus effect" in as few as 40 days.




"Lady Lazarus" (a profoundly disturbing and simultaneously elevating reading by Sylvia Plath of her poem).


 And (below) an English rendering of the Eastern Orthodox chant for the Feast of Lazarus:

Rejoice, rejoice, O Bethany! 
On this day God came to thee;
and in Him the dead are made alive, 
as is right since He is the Life!

When Martha went to receive Him, 
grieving loudly with bitter tears,
she poured out the sorrow of her heart to Him, 
with great sadness wailing her lament.

She at once cried out unto Him: 
“My Most Compassionate Lord! O my Lord!
At the great loss of my brother Lazarus 
my heart is broken. Help me, O Lord!”

Jesus said to her: “Cease thy weeping; 
cease thy grieving and sad lament!
For thy brother, My most beloved friend 
Lazarus, very soon will live again!”

Then at once the Faithful Redeemer, 
made His way unto the tomb,
where He cried unto hum who was buried four days, 
calling him forth saying: “Lazarus arise!”

Come with haste, O ye two sisters, 
and behold a wondrous event,
for your brother from the tomb has turned back to life. 
To the Redeemer now give ye thanks!

Unto Thee O Lord of creation 
we bow down and worship Thy might,
for we all are dead in our sins, 
through Thee O Jesus we are made alive!

Rejoice, rejoice, O Bethany! 
On this day God came to thee; 
and in Him the dead are made alive, 
as is right since He is the Life!

--Jack Lohr, Interim Pastor

FYI: According to Orkin, the gestation of a house fly egg is 24 hours. Larvae emerge from their eggs and begin feeding. Using their egg site as a source of food, the larvae, commonly called maggots, eat for four days in order to store nutrients for metamorphosis.After the larval phase, maggots migrate to find dryer, dark locations within which to pupate. During this phase, the worm-like maggot undergoes a complete transformation, sprouting three pairs of legs and a pair of wings. When the housefly emerges after four days of transformation, it will be fully formed. Within a few hours, females are capable of reproduction. Some have nominated the maggot as the symbol for Easter's message of resurrection.