By Lilly Lewin
I’ve been using a hashtag this week on instagram #almostEaster. It truly is almost Easter, but there are important things that happen this weekend before the celebration on Sunday. Here are two poems to help you process Good Friday and Holy Saturday. Sit with the one that resonates with you. Print it out, our print out both. Ponder the poem or poems as you take a walk, or sit somewhere quietly. You might draw something or journal some in response. What if you didn’t know that Sunday was coming? What if you didn’t have any hope of an Easter and the resurrection? Remember, that’s just what the disciples faced that weekend.
You might take time to watch the Gospel of John on Netflix or the great documentary called ‘ Jesus Count Down to Calvary” narrated by Hugh Bonneville of Downton Abbey to help you engage the feeling before the hope of resurrection.
May we remember the silent tomb and the despair of uncertainty of that sabbath day so long ago, before we rush to celebrate this Sunday.
God on a Stick by Paul Hobbs
They spit on his face and then they crucify him.
Jesus our Lord
He dies as a sinner
He dies as a blasphemer,
as an idolater,
as one who denies God
As one who betrays him
I stand before the cross and wonder
He is not guilty of these things but takes our place
He dies as one who boasts,
who gossips
As one who dishonors his parents
As a cheat, as a liar, as a thief
He dies as a fraud and an embezzler
I stand before the cross and fear
He is not guilty of these things but takes our place.
He dies as a sinner
He dies as one with evil thoughts
As a slave to lust, as a fornicator
As an adulterer, as an abuser of children
I kneel before the cross and weep
He is not guilty of these things but takes our place.
He dies as one full of jealousy
As one who is selfish, unkind and rude
As one who destructively manipulates others.
As one who envies and hates
He dies as a sadist
As one who destroys and murders
I pray before the cross and rejoice
He is not guilty of these things but takes our place
He is not to blame but dies to take the blame for us.
He is dying to forgive us
Stand, stand…
And watch Jesus die
Alone and with nothing…
God on a stick.
The Day before Easter by Lilly Lewin
the day before easter
the Light of the World…
pierced our darkness,
set us free
we did not notice him
we expected something else
we wanted our own impression of a savior
not one who died and was buried
not one who suffered
not one who was condemned
the Light of the World ….
pierced our darkness
set us free
we missed the gift
we closed our eyes
we didn’t understand
we didn’t want to listen
when he said he had to die
we denied him
we betrayed him
we got scared and ran away
the Light of the World…
pierced our darkness
set us free
we took him down
we wrapped him with spices
we buried him in the tomb
we couldn’t even mourn him there
we were afraid
it was the sabbath
the Light of the World
who pierced our darkness
was no longer….
the Light, our Light, was gone
snuffed out, buried in the cold stone tomb
no hope,
no joy,
no laughter on this sabbath day…
lilly lewin April 2004
©lilly lewin and freerangeworship