. . . and liturgical calendars count seven "Sundays of Easter" between Holy Week and Pentecost. But that's not what I'm talking about. Nor is it the Reformed idea that every Sunday is a "little Easter" as we celebrate the resurrection again and again.

Preachers following the Revised Common Lectionary saw Mark 6:1-8 as the Gospel lesson for Easter this year. My favorite commentary on Mark begins discussion of Mark 16:1-8 with a riddle of sorts: "Q. When is an ending not an end? A. When a dead man rises from the tomb — and when a Gospel ends in the middle of a sentence." If you look it up, you'll see several notes about "shorter" and "longer" endings and hints of long running discussion about the "original" and "later" endings.

David H. C. Read, when he was pastor of Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York, put together a book of his sermons and called it Unfinished Easter—taking the title from this text. That book was one of my preaching textbooks in seminary, and I have never forgotten that sermon. Dr. Read helped me learn to love the "unfinished Easter" in Mark's Gospel by pointing out that Mark’s ending has a special quality to it that the others don’t: It is an “unfinished Easter,” because Easter is unfinished.

A rounded-off, completed story of Easter would be something that we could admire and hold off at a distance, tied up in a neat little bow. Something that goes up on the shelf to be looked at from time to time but not handled too much. But, as Dr. Read put it, “this open-ended Gospel stretches out to this year of grace.” With no descriptions of anyone meeting the Risen Christ, it suggests a meeting which can take place now. It is, he said, an “invitation to you and me to write our own endings.”

So, now that the annual observance of Easter Day is behind us, let's keep working on writing more chapters in the unfinished story of Easter!

Blessings,

P.S. Even if your church has re-entered the sanctuary for worship in some form, keep in mind that the most recent CDC guidance for fully vaccinated people still says, among other things, that fully vaccinated people "should still take steps to protect yourself and others in many situations, like wearing a mask, staying at least 6 feet apart from others, and avoiding crowds and poorly ventilated spaces."

P.P.S. The two-week trend in new cases is still up across the Presbytery of Tampa Bay. As reported on 4/9 (but updated daily), the 14-day changes in new cases were:

P.P.P.S. Did you miss our last issue of the eNews? Check it out here!

The Synod of South Atlantic invites pastors and church leaders to a Church Leaders’ Forum with Tod Bolsinger on Tuesday, April 27, 2021, 3:00 - 4:30 pm EDT via ZOOM.

Rev. Dr. Bolsinger is Senior Fellow at the De Pree Center and Associate Professor of Leadership Formation at Fuller Theological Seminary and author of Canoeing the Mountains and Tempered Resilience.

We've been living amidst the Covid-19 pandemic for over a year. What comes next for the church? Join the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary for a series of workshops to help pastors and leaders brainstorm and plan for emerging from the Covid-19 pandemic. Join us for each workshop, or pick and choose what is relevant to you and your ministry. This event is free and open to all. We hope you can join us!

REGISTER FOR THIS FREE EVENT BY CLICKING HERE.