March 27: But That's Not All
♫ Music:
WEEK EIGHT
March 27 - April 2
King of Kings and Lord of Lords
The future of God’s kingdom is laid out in the synoptic gospels and in apocalyptic texts in both Old and New Testaments. These biblical passages affirm Christ’s second coming and the final establishment of his eternal reign as “King of kings and Lord of lords” in a “new heaven and new earth” (Revelation 21:1-4). Jesus will return in power and great glory, making God’s redemption complete. He will judge the wicked and reward the righteous and as his name is proclaimed “every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11). Come Lord Jesus!
Sunday, March 27
Easter Sunday
Scripture: Luke 24:1-12, John 11:25-26
But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” And they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened. Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
BUT THAT’S NOT ALL
The crown of the thorns is a symbol of cruelty and oppression—but a poetic one. The rightful king of creation enters his realm, only to find himself crowned with the very thorns that choke his vineyard. The blood he sweats is the great consummation of the sweat with which man was to till the earth, and those thorns are the final harvest of the cursed ground (Gen. 3:17-18).
Then on my head a crown of thorns I wear:
For these are all the grapes Sion doth bear,
Though I my vine planted and wat’red there:
Was ever grief like mine?
(George Herbert, The Sacrifice, ll. 161-4)
The Romans saw in Christ a rival to Caesar, an upstart to lead the Jews in yet another rebellion, and crucified him as such—an unmistakable warning, soaked in cruelty and shame, to any like-minded rebels or bandits. And as part of their mockery, part of Christ’s humiliation, they crowned the false king with a crown—and in so doing honored him far more than they knew, for he indeed came as King.
Why, Caesar is their only King, not I:
He clave the stony rock, when they were dry;
But surely not their hearts, as I well try:
Was ever grief like mine? (ll. 121-4)
He came as the rightful king of this fallen creation. Enthroned on the tree of death, crowned with the only laurel wreath our wretched cursed soil could provide, he suffered the fate of the kings of men, bearing in his own person our curse, with the curse of the land upon his brow. God’s punishment for Adam and Eve had come to completion at last.
So sits the earth’s great curse in Adam’s fall:
Upon my head: so I remove it all
From th’ earth unto my brows, and bear the thrall;
Was ever grief like mine? (ll. 165-8)
But that is not all! Indeed, George Herbert—you are right. Never was a grief like his, in his (and your) great Sacrifice. But oh, there is much, much more to say. For God rests not content with the thorn, and an ancient prophecy upon it rests, that when fashioned as a crown upon one who set his own crown by, it would blossom once more to life.
The hard crown grows supple upon my brow
Thorn bursts forth in color, a delicate bloom
Life triumphs o’er grave, Spring is come evermore.
Ne’er was joy like mine.
The Maker treasures his creation; the Fall was not the final word. Christ may bear the crown of thorns, but he bears it to remake it, refashioning creation, turning curse into blessing.
Oh Death, where is your sting?
Ye thorns, be softened and adorned.
All ye saints, rejoice in the power of the risen Lord…
PRAYER
We thank Thee for the beauty of this day, for the glorious message that all nature proclaims: the Easter lilies with their waxen throats eloquently singing the good news; the birds, so early this morning, impatient to begin their song; every flowering tree, shrub, and flaming bush, a living proclamation from Thee. Open our hearts that we may hear it too! Lead us, we pray Thee, to the grave that is empty, into the garden of the Resurrection where we may meet our risen Lord. May we never again live as if Thou were dead! In Thy presence restore our faith, our hope, our joy. Grant to our spirits refreshment, rest, and peace. Maintain within our hearts an unruffled calm, an unbroken serenity that no storms of life shall ever be able to take from us. From this moment, O living Christ, we ask Thee to go with us wherever we go; be our Companion in all that we do. And for this greatest of all gifts, we offer Thee our sacrifices of thanksgiving.
Amen.
- Peter Marshall
Adam Johnson, Assistant Professor of Theology, Torrey Honors Institute
Artwork #1
Allegory of the Resurrection of Christ
Patrick Devonas
Grisaille oil painting
Private collection
About the Artist and Art #1
Patrick Devonas (b. 1965) is a Swiss Realist painter. Receiving a scholarship to the New York Academy of Art, he studied with Randy Melick and Vincent Desiderio. Patrick graduated from the New York Academy of Art in 1997 and began teaching painting classes at the Academy and later privately out of his studio. In 2005, Patrick and Bill Whitaker founded the Carl Bloch Academy. He returned to Switzerland in 2012, where he has been teaching workshops, and has founded Atelier Narasca with Swiss painter and teacher Dorian Iten. Patrick Devonas’ works are sought by collectors in both Europe and the United States. He has been commissioned to execute paintings for numerous private individuals and paints work that reflect various aspects of the human condition. This piece shows the moment when Christ’s body is raised from the dead.
Artwork #2
Resurrection
Paul van Dongen
Watercolor etching
About the Artist and Art #2
Paul van Dongen (b. 1958) is a Dutch artist known for his detailed drawings, etchings and subtle watercolors. Explicitly religious subjects like the pietà, crucifixion, and resurrection are common themes in his work. He often chooses one detail from the usual iconographical depiction and then enlarges it. In Resurrection, thorns and the crown of thorns show us something of the meaning of the resurrection. These enlargements often executed on big pieces of stark white paper, make his work new and contemporary. This print speaks of sin, death and mortality and of new life that has been opened up for us through Jesus’ suffering and death. Just as the crown of thorns is broken in two, so Jesus’ body was broken for us, breaching the brokenness and clearing the way upwards. The erect branch breaks through the bended crown of thorns like Jesus through the stone on his grave. He opens the way that leads on high. Concerning the plant motifs Van Dongen says: “Nature with its cycle of growing, flowering, dying and sprouting again is symbolic to me of Christ and his resurrection.”
About the Poet
George Herbert (1593-1633) was a Welsh-born English poet, orator and Anglican priest. Herbert’s poetry is associated with the writings of the metaphysical poets, and he is recognized as “a pivotal figure: enormously popular, deeply and broadly influential, and arguably the most skilful and important British devotional lyricist.” Throughout his life Herbert wrote Christian poetry with a precision of language and a masterful use of imagery. Some of Herbert’s poems have been turned into hymns and are still in use today.
About the Music #1
“The Lord Awoke” (Psalm 78:65)
Lyrics
The Lord awoke as one asleep, and arose saving us.
Alleluia!
About the Performers #1
St. Vladimir’s Seminary Octet was formed in 1962. During the summer and throughout the year, the Octet sings concerts in parishes across North America. The Octet’s goal is to present the beauty of liturgical Orthodox music in English. This Easter hymn, “The Lord Awoke as One Asleep” is sung at the beginning of the midnight Easter or Pascha service, heralding Christ’s resurrection.
About the Music #2
“Thine Be The Glory”
Lyrics
Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son;
endless is the victory, thou o'er death hast won;
angels in bright raiment rolled the stone away,
kept the folded grave clothes where thy body lay.
Thine be the glory, risen conquering Son,
Endless is the vict'ry, thou o'er death hast won.
Lo! Jesus meets us, risen from the tomb;
Lovingly he greets us, scatters fear and gloom;
let the Church with gladness, hymns of triumph sing;
for her Lord now liveth, death hath lost its sting.
No more we doubt thee, glorious Prince of life;
life is naught without thee; aid us in our strife;
make us more than conquerors, through thy deathless love:
bring us safe through Jordan to thy home above.
About the Music and Composer #2
Edmond Louis Budry (1854-1932) was the lyricist for the Easter hymn, “Thine Be the Glory.” The tune was taken from a chorus “See, the Conqu’ring Hero Comes” from Judas Maccabaeus, an oratorio George Handel wrote in 1747. Bundy was inspired to write the hymn following the death of his first wife. The hymn was translated from French into English by Richard B. Hoyle in 1923. The hymn is based on the Resurrection of Jesus and uses elements from Isaiah 25:8. This recording is performed by the choir of King’s College, Cambridge.