Eastertide

If you attend a traditional service at St. Andrew’s, you may have noticed that the paraments on the altar and pulpit have been white since Easter. No, we haven’t forgotten to change them. The colors of the paraments change depending on the church calendar season.

Right now, we are in the season of Eastertide which is white. Eastertide is the period in the Christian liturgical calendar that celebrates the resurrection of Jesus, beginning on Easter Sunday and lasting until Pentecost which is June 8 this year. On that day the paraments will switch to red for one Sunday celebrating the day the Holy Spirit came and filled a room of Jesus followers, and they were changed forever.

Whenever we are in Eastertide, I always wonder about what the followers of Jesus were thinking those 40 days before Jesus ascended into heaven. Individual disciples, family, and even two strangers on a road called Emmaus had encounters with Jesus. Once a group of about 500 saw him and another time He showed up in the middle of a locked room where the disciples were hiding. For about 40 days Jesus kept appearing and disappearing until one day He told them He had to leave them so the Holy Spirit could come to them.

Strangely, this is the good news of Jesus leaving. Because if Jesus goes, the community of believers will grow because of the arrival of the Holy Spirit. The believers will also have an even closer relationship with Jesus and will go great things in His name for the kingdom of Heaven. John 14:12 says this, “I assure you that whoever believes in me will do the works that I do. They will do even greater works than these because I am going to the Father.” Still, I bet they were scared and confused as they watched Him disappear into the clouds.

Aren’t we always a bit unnerved by change. Even when we know the change is for a good reason, we can still feel uncertain and afraid. Maybe that is a good time to remember we never go through change alone. Jesus left the disciples physically so He could eternally live within them and they in Him. The same is true for us. Regardless of any change in our lives, we are never outside of the presence and comfort of Jesus.

#Eastertide #PentecostSunday #HolySpirit