Israel in Egypt, G. F. Handel
Recitative (tenor)
And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances. And Miriam answered them: —
(Exodus xv: 20, 21)
Soprano Solo and Chorus
Sing ye to the Lord, for He hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea.
(Exodus xv: 21)
It has been awhile. My sharing with you ended on the Second Sunday of Easter. It has been busy. The post Easter mystagogy, that turning toward the word and living the Resurrection, has been quite busy and wrought with distractions. Glad to have a minute to share some thoughts.
I left the story with the encounter with the risen Jesus. With Miriam, we sang, “I will sing to the Lord, He is gloriously triumphant. Horse and chariot are cast into the sea.”
However did they come back, chasing me through the Red Sea of my life? Those horses, chariots, and charioteers are persistent and pernicious. Didn’t I take care of this on Easter? It hasn’t even been 40 days.
To reconnect with the Easter message, I went back to read various commentators who wrote on or around Easter. Many wrote that we live stuck in Holy Saturday. This has not settled into my heart as true.
Consider, the apostles are in the upper room, likely sitting Shiva, telling stories of their beloved friend. Wrapped in their rent garments, they consoled each other and prepared themselves for a life without their teacher.
Was it enough for them to have an experience of the risen Jesus, not once but twice? Is it enough for us?
I suspect not. I suggest that it is not Holy Saturday that holds us with a false sense of safety. Rather, we live in the upper room of the post Resurrection experience. Time and time again, we are visited by our risen Friend and in our comfort with the memories of the past cannot understand the greeting, “Peace; Do not be afraid.”
Holding to the past, keeping our fears alive, choosing to live sitting shiva, rejecting peace keeps those chariots and charioteers alive. How quickly we have forgotten the ecstatic energy of Easter morning.
We believe that we are transformed by the grace of resurrection in our baptism. The time is now to put those chariots and charioteers to rest and say yes to the ecstatic peace that overcame Miriam. Our call is to leave the upper room and live the life of the transformed and be Miriam.
On this first night of Passover, don’t miss a chance to “Sing unto the Lord….he has triumphed gloriously! Shalom.
