celebrating the resurrection of Christ with a season of suffering

Many thanks to Lauren Merritt of The Christian and Creation ~ Glorifying the Creator for shining a light on the unintended consequences many of our common Easter pets experience:

The LORD is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made. (Psalm 145:9, NIV, emphasis added)

The meaning of Easter has been mostly lost in our culture, dissolved into a flurry of fluffy yellow candy, hunts for plastic eggs and the ever famous four-legged, long-eared emblem of the season.

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Jesus and the donkey

Today being Palm Sunday, it's natural to think of the young donkey which Jesus rode in His triumphal entry into Jerusalem (Matthew 21:1-11).  Though the manner of the donkey's requisition seems a bit unorthodox to modern sensibility, it's clear that Jesus knew which colt He wanted and why He needed him.  Zechariah had prophesied after all, in Matthew's words:

"Say to Daughter Zion, 'See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.'" (21:5)

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Good Friday for all creation

Earlier this week I was looking for a hymn which might point to the implications of Good Friday for ourselves and all of creation, and came across this lesser-known but poignant classic penned by English theologian and hymnist Isaac Watts (1674-1748).  "Nature with Open Volume Stands" was set to music by Georg Joseph, which you can hear a taste of at NetHymnal:

Nature with open volume stands,
To spread her Maker’s praise abroad;
And every labor of His hands
Shows something worthy of a God.

But in the grace that rescued man
His brightest form of glory shines;
Here, on the cross, ’tis fairest drawn,
In precious blood and crimson lines.

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a compassionate Easter

Last Easter, Stephanie Feldstein, lead blogger for Change.org's Animals Cause and a gifted and prolific one at that, asked if I'd be interested in contributing a few reflections as a Christian and an animal advocate on some Easter traditions and their implications for animals, along the same lines as the post we've shared from Lauren Merritt on common Easter pets.  I was very grateful to be able to share a few thoughts on the holiday and animal compassion from a faithful perspective.

As believers who recognize the true origin and meaning of Easter, is it possible we can amend some of our traditions to better reflect the new life Christ made possible for all creation by His death and resurrection?  Here's part of what I wrote for Stephanie's post "Celebrate Easter for the Animals":

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the story of the Easter robin

With Good Friday and Easter coming up next weekend, I wanted to pass along a children's book which I recently reviewed for Vegbooks, Dandi Daley Mackall's The Story of the Easter Robin, illustrated by Anna Vojtech (Zonderkidz '10).  I found it to be a warm and compassionate story, and beautifully presented, though I had one or two suggestions for parents or other caretakers who might share the book with their children.  Here's my introduction to the review:

Christian children’s books about the biblical story of Easter or the animals we culturally associate with the celebration today (bunnies, chicks, etc.) are plentiful.  But books which are true to the original message of Christ’s resurrection and also communicate a message of genuine concern for animals are hard to find.  Because of this, The Story of the Easter Robin is worth noting ...

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the universe as it begins for all things

I've had a deep-seated interest in the problem of pain for several years, for mostly personal but also faith reasons.  Last Fall, in the middle of another difficult season, I began reading Philip Yancey's Disappointment with God: Three Questions No One Asks Aloud, which I'd inherited from my grandmother.  I found it to be profoundly relatable on a personal level and deeply theologically grounded, a rare combination. 

Though I think the book is most valuable for its realistic take on our encounters with pain and disappointment in the context of faith, a couple of passages related to Christ's resurrection and the innocence of creation stood out to me as well.  I've looked forward to sharing them this week as we focus on the redemption God intends to bring His creatures into.  First, on the inimitable meaning of Easter, and our deep need for "a new heaven and a new earth":

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springtime in the Rockies

Thank you sincerely for bearing with a heavier dose of subject matter last week, looking at the groaning of some of God's creatures.  But having celebrated Easter this weekend and the unimaginable gift of Christ's resurrection for us His children, and all creation, we happily turn the page to the theme of redemption, and the hope God has for His beloved animals! 

Ray Paunovich of Wild Planet Films has provided another perfect opportunity for doing so, through his typically mesmerizing and heart-lifting video short "Springtime in the Rockies", a "natural look (at) the renewal of life in our Rocky Mt. West":

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celebrating the resurrection of Christ with a season of suffering

Many thanks to Lauren Merritt of The Christian and Creation ~ Glorifying the Creator for shining a light on the unintended consequences many of our common Easter pets experience:

The Lord is good to all; he has compassion on all he has made. (Psalm 145:9, NIV, emphasis added)

The meaning of Easter has been mostly lost in our culture, dissolved into a flurry of fluffy yellow candy, hunts for plastic eggs and the ever famous four-legged, long-eared emblem of the season.

Click to read more ...

when I survey the wondrous cross

When I survey the wondrous cross
on which the Prince of glory died;
my richest gain I count but loss,
and pour contempt on all my pride.

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the groaning of God's creatures

As we mark the passion of our Savior this week, and the suffering He endured on our behalf as well as the rest of creation, it seems appropriate to pause for a few moments to reflect on the groaning of the creatures He suffers for and with:

We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. (Romans 8:22, NIV)

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