Easter and the Miracle of Transformation

Transformation is at the center of Easter. Christians believe that Jesus Christ came back from the dead. He came back in the flesh, not a spirit, not a soul—but in physical form. This is important to note because the resurrection will lose its meaning if we were to believe otherwise. In scriptures we learn that Jesus still has the holes on his hands and side performed during his crucifixion. We also learn that he sits down with his disciples to partake on a meal on more than one occasion. On another instance, he appears to two disciples on the road and joins on a conversation. All these appearances demonstrate that Jesus’ resurrection is completely corporal, but it is also something else. In the same occasions, we learn that Jesus can walk through walls and vanishes in the mist of his disciples. Jesus does not resurrect only in a corporal form—for he has characteristics that are not limited by a corporal body. Nor does he resurrect solemnly in a spiritual form, for he can partake in bodily experiences. The event of Easter transforms Jesus Christ into someone we do not know, yet. This new form-of-being that Jesus takes after his resurrection places transformation at the center of the Easter. 

The resurrected Jesus not only conquers death, but invites us to do partake in this transformation of our beings. In the same way Jesus fully takes into another form, we too are called to partake in this transformative process. While Jesus shows us the ultimate and final consequence of this calling—we can embrace Easter and live out this transformation daily. How can we do this?

Thankfully, Jesus gives us instructions. In his resurrection form, Jesus tells us that he will send the Holy Spirit that is ‘to teach us all things’ and ‘remind you everything I have said to you.’ Easter season culminates with the descend of the Holy Spirit onto the disciples. This is the final-step, so to speak, to prepare the disciples to live a life of constant transformation. What do we learn from a life that has been touched by the Holy Spirit? Peter’s first deed after Pentecost was to preach ‘boldly’ the word of God. Transformation occurred, Peter who was terrified to the point of denying knowing Jesus, now proclaims his teachings with power and authority. Paul encountering the risen Jesus, falls of his horse (literally) and figuratively too by the abandonment of his way of life. After this incident he becomes a powerful instrument to evangelize metropolitan cities of the time. Scriptures are full of examples of the power of the Holy Spirit in the transformation of an individual.

However, most of the transformation in scriptures are powerful and sudden. Most people cannot relate to the event of Pentecost, (although there are plenty of people of faith who say they have experienced something similar), and feel as if they are not being guided and transformed in their daily lives. We will also not experience the form of the resurrected Jesus Christ during our lifetime! 

So, How does the Holy Spirit through the resurrected Christ approach us in the quotidian aspect of our lives? How does this transformation occur? The Holy Spirit does move us and transform us, slowly, quietly, and throughout our lives. Spiritual writer Richard Rohr says it in common language, “if you do not transform your pain, you will surely transmit it.” This is the miracle of Easter—to let God entered our lives that are dead and broken, that have been crucified, and to transformed them into a new creation that gives life. 

On Easter

I am often conflicted by the season of Easter. Easter is a time to claim victory, the same way Jesus conquered sin and death. But in a culture that proclaims, ‘Trust me, you will get tired of winning,’ how do we enter the Christian season of victory? Isn’t Christianity unique because it is the only religion that claims God became human? Meaning that it centers in the notion of the incarnation—a relatable God, a human God, a God that suffers and dies in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. No matter how much one can emphasize the resurrection, the story does not make sense without the understanding of a God that becomes human and dies. Easter is intertwined with Good Friday. So, how do we celebrate the season of victory and reject a society that is obsessed with winning?

While our culture might be obsessed with wining, Easter has a lot to say about who gets to proclaim victory. Jesus came to proclaim the Kingdom of God to all, but he placed a small condition. One must repent first. The Greek word found in the gospels is metanoia that translates to a change of hearts and minds. In other words, one cannot embrace the season of victory, without first going through the season of metanoia. Only those who are willing to go through a conversion of heart and mind can claim victory. In a way, Jesus invites us to his passion so that we too may see him raised! Simply, there is no Easter without metanoia, there is no resurrection without death, there is no victory without defeat.

The second condition that helps me think of Easter as different than a society infatuated with winning lies in the what type of victory Christians proclaim during Easter. It is not a victory over other people, it is not a victory that divides, it is not a victory that belittles others, it is not a victory of hate, it is not a victory of violence, it is not a victory that hinders the human-spirit. Instead, it is a victory of love over hatred, a victory of peace over war, a victory of kindness over selfishness, a victory of trust over fear, a victory of grace over sin, a victory of life over death. Anyone claiming any other type of winning is not proclaiming the victory of Jesus of Nazareth.

So, to truly celebrate the season of victory, Easter must be divorced from our own notion of winning. This season is less about a self-absorbed notion of winning and instead about the paradox of giving of one’s self to others to be able to triumph. Easter's victory is the victory of all the hearts that have gone through metanoia, that in the same way Jesus of Nazareth was nailed to a cross, they too died and were horribly defeated and that now they see the light of hope. Easter's victory is in all the hearts that just like seeds, died, so that they too could blossom and produce good fruit. Easter's victory is in the hearts that rejoice because of their sacrifice and faith. Easter's victory is the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God here before us—and in all the people who embody Jesus of Nazareth by building the Kingdom before us.