a big sacrifice

Good Friday. I doubt you need a little homily relating to the Easter story from me - we've heard it all before a thousand times.

Of course I'm generalising. Not everyone has heard it all before and some have never even heard of Jesus, but for those of us who know the story inside out, it can all become a bit tired. There are only so many different ways you can tell a story before the sameness of it siphons off the meaning.

Ya. I'm jaded. This may well be the only post amidst a globe of Easter blogs that isn't gushing with emotion at what Jesus did. Last year I focused on Lenten readings, and (for one who has heard the stories countless times) found them surprisingly refreshing. This year I have done little to prepare myself for remembering the sacrifice of Jesus. In my head I know it is enormously significant, but where is the swelling of my heart in response? Lost because the story has been weakened by too many tellings? Or could I not have heard it enough?

Here is a paradox. The message of a story can wear thin when it is told, and told, and told. Yet ritual breathes life into a story - the retelling keeps the deeper meaning near to the heart. Perhaps my problem is not that I have heard the story too many times, but that I haven't been giving it enough focused attention of late. I'm so caught up in the bigger picture of my faith I have forgotten a central pillar. And without that pillar, the big picture crumbles.

Time to go read the Easter story again and do some quiet reflecting. You might even find me in church on Sunday. Then again, maybe not - I have guests for the weekend.
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I saw Gran Torino last year, around the time of Easter. (Spoiler alert) I wept buckets at the self sacrificial giving of Walt Kowalski. He gave up his own life so others could have freedom. The story of Jesus in a nutshell no? Maybe I'll go watch that movie then read the Easter story.