Transformed: Easter 2020 - Christian Lindbeck

Suspended between heaven and earth,

between God and man,

splayed like an insect,

pinned,

excoriated,

spat on;

serrated breaths

catch and snag,

carpal bones grind,

tarsals strain.

His beloved head

drips crimson sweat,

His eyes blur with torment,

His heart lacerated

by betrayal,

denial

and viscous hate.

Yet He summoned strength

to whisper, “Forgive them”

and offer hope to an expiring thief,

like Him,

condemned to a slow,

cruel death

upon an

intersection of

splintered wood.

Yet today,

this tool of torture

and intimidation,

like swords into ploughshares

is transformed,

rehabilitated –

its ugly associations shattered.

Two intersecting beams

become shorthand,

a universal symbol

of hope.

The crux imissa

becomes the Cross of Christ.

Transformed

as we are when we see Him newly raised,

whether in a graveside garden,

daubed in dew;

along a footpath to Emmaus,

or crouched beside a beach fire,

picking fish bones from his teeth.

From life

to death

to life: the sequel,

transformation and renewal

have been His goal.

All nature echoes this motif:

winter melts to spring,

each dawn is born anew;

narcissus bulbs burst forth

in heady abundance

despite a fearful virus

on the loose.

As the seed sprouts in dark soil –

crucified with Christ –

so death produces life –

I no longer live but Christ lives in me.

As rotting vegetation

leeches nutrients to enrich the earth –

united with Him in death –

new life springs heavenward –

united with Him in resurrection.

Transformed.

Renewed.

Hallelujah!