Heading Outside to an Empty Tomb

Obviously, it was a different kind of Holy Week and Easter Week this year. There were empty pews and prayers at home. Jesus still rose, but the fanfare was missing.

On Holy Saturday, I often wonder what I’m supposed to do. It’s not as solemn as Good Friday; we’re not instructed to fast. And yet, Christ is dead and buried. There is nothing to do but wait for the Vigil and feasting to begin.

The waiting. I think that’s what I’m supposed to do on Holy Saturday. Wait for whatever happens next. That’s what the disciples were doing. Trying to get through a very different Passover. Hiding in their rooms wondering if they would be arrested next. The women waiting for the Sabbath to pass so they could prepare the body. Waiting, unsure of what to do.

That’s what a lot of us are feeling right now, at home, waiting for restrictions to lift, wondering what happens next. Does this pass and we return to normal, or has everything changed?

On Easter morning, we usually gather in large groups and celebrate boldly. But this year, I’ve been reflecting more on the earliest hours of Easter morning. Men staying inside for safety, women quietly walking to a tomb to do a necessary job, Jesus telling Mary Magdalene that she cannot touch him. We want to focus on the earth quaking and the glow of angels and the ripping of the veil, but there are so many small, mundane movements in the account of the Resurrection. Because the disciples were just human. They struggled to maintain normalcy and routine and safety in the face of the extraordinary. They didn’t know what was coming. They had hope, but they didn’t have a blueprint.

The feeling of this Long Lent continues. The waiting of Holy Saturday continues. I don’t know when we’ll get the news that the waiting is over, that the world will be different, better, now. But Christ is still risen. No restrictions or shut downs or guards at a tomb can stop that. We can rejoice in our rooms. It may not feel like a normal Easter, but the disciples didn’t think it felt like a normal Passover. Our feelings don’t stop the calendar. Our fears won’t stop the Resurrection. He is risen, and all shall be well. Alleluia!