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Friends United Meeting |
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April 2001
Valiant for Truth
By Trish Edwards-Konic
Hearty laughter. Little giggles. Jokes and funny stories fill the air with sounds of laughter. Who doesn't like to hear a good joke and get a good laugh?
But, how many times have you purposely gone to church to tell jokes? I don't remember any time in my life when that was the focus of my church attendance.
Yet, the early Greek Orthodox Church had just such a time. On the day after Easter the people of the Church would gather together just to tell funny stories. Yes, jokes, hilarious stories, anything that would evoke a laugh.
They had good reason. It had to be the day after Easter, the day after Jesus rose victorious over the death of the grave. They celebrated the enormous prank God played on the devil who thought he had won when Jesus died on the Cross.
Imagine the surprise as satan realized he had been hoodwinked. What seemed a victory was short lived as Jesus rose victoriously and then continued to live in a new, more powerful form among his followers. People who were cowering in fear were now proclaiming the resurrection. What folly! What a surprise! What a joke on the devil!
Because we never remember Good Friday without the knowledge the resurrection follows, it is hard for us to experience the fear, the doubt, the hopelessness Jesus' followers felt during that dark time. Imagine their relief to know Jesus wasn't really dead to them; He was transformed into a new presence who promised to continue to dwell with them.
The reason many of us are afraid to laugh so heartily in church is traced back to a fourth century priest Chrysostom who preached against laughter. Believing hilarity was pagan, he declared, "Christians must weep for their sins, God doesn't want his children to play, and if the devil can get people involved in frivolity, he's won the day." His views started a chain reaction that continues to today.
Hopefully, we can respond more like E. Stanley Jones who said he "didn't grieve over the awful events of life very long, simply because he knew how it would all turn out. The resurrection documents that God, not evil, is in charge of life."
Can we see the wool being lifted from the eyes of the devil as he realizes he had been defeated for all time? Can we see his surprise and laugh over the enormous prank God played on him?
This Easter, may we see the events of our lives through these eyes of joy and laughter, knowing God is in control and the resurrection changes everything.
Copyright (c) 2001 Friends United Meeting
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