Friday, March 25, 2005

resurrection thoughts from A Religious Liberal Blog

This post from A Religious Liberal Blog caught my attention today, which touches on the question of the meaning of resurrection, particularly if belief in a bodily resurrection is not a focal point of one's theology. The questions raised are ones that I've been pondering as well.

Some excerpts:

"As Easter approaches there are a number of voices, both on the blogs and in many churches across the country that will triumphally assert the bodily resurrection of Jesus, proclaiming it as the basis for Christian faith. My question is this: can Easter be religiously significant for those of us who are not likely to think in such terms?

I admit that I'm agnostic about the afterlife so what could a phrase like 'conquering death' mean for someone in such a situation? ...

...as 1 John 2:17 puts it this 'world is passing away with all its allurements, but he who does God's will stands for evermore' I'm apt to believe that the faith of Easter is found here, in the hope that despite the array of forces against it, reconciling love has the final word. It wasn't killed at the crucifixion but rather continues when disciples everywhere break bread together.

And that somehow when we participate in this, we're participating in something which is larger than us and will continue on. 1 John writes of eternal life not as a spatial location but rather something which 'dwells' within us, when we love one another. It is through one's acts of love that we touch something of immortality."

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