Christ Church Moreton Hall

For those of you who read my article on a regular basis, I hope you have recovered from the huge gaffe that appeared in last month's issue. Yes, Mothering Sunday was on 14th March, not 21st. Sorry about that. I hope not too many people were put off and, of course, if provided some of you men with a golden excuse for forgetting the 14th.

Easter is the most important event in the Christian calendar and this year, like many years before, somewhere between two to three billion people, that is to say one third of the world's total population of six billion, will be celebrating this day.

In addition to that, Easter is an important time for other faith groups as well. Not because they disagree with it or are offended by it, but in many ways they are linked to it. Islam for example, acknowledges Jesus Christ as a prophet and that he lived. Many people in Islam do put their faith in Christ every year. Judaism acknowledges that Jesus existed and lived when the gospels said He did. He is also referenced in Hinduism and many of the other faiths.

Even for those people without faith Jesus Christ is one of the greatest of the world's moral philosophers. His life and work has inspired literally thousands of care-workers and human justice organizations by people who would not call themselves religious.

So what is about this young Jewish rabbi, of uncertain parentage, with no formal education, who died a premature and untimely death over two thousand years ago? Why is it that He, above all people is remembered by so many people and continues to be a talking point for all religions, philosophies and those who are interested in both personal and corporate morality?

On the one hand, it was His teaching which, as even people like Gandhi would say, has never been exceeded and rarely equalled. Statements like "Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" and "Do unto others as you would have done unto yourself" live with us still.

Secondly, there were the great miracles he performed, feeding the five thousand, walking water, which are stories that persist in every culture in every age. Thirdly, there was the consistency of His life. No man ever loved like this man. His sense of self-sacrifice and of passionate justice has produced some of our greatest works of art, films and poems.

The real centrepiece of the life of Christ is the claim that after He died He rose from the dead. This was not just a conjuring trick, or even a far-fetched story. People found they could talk to Him, be with Him, and touch Him. People were so convinced about this they went to their deaths proclaiming it and would not give up until every person they knew had heard the story.

The authenticating sign was that as people who had never met Jesus listened to the teachings, put it into practice and prayed the prayer asking Jesus into their lives, something wonderful happened to them. In that way the resurrection and Jesus' supernatural presence has never stopped touching people and continues to do so to this very day.

The true significance of the resurrection is that we no longer need to be afraid of death. Death is not the end. There is a life to go to. There is a life that can be accessed only through Jesus. This is the Christian hope and is the Christian promise. It gives strength and peace for people to live this life as they should and hope for the future. They need not look forward to their old age with fear.

This has been the hope which it has been my privilege to proclaim for over twenty years on the estate and also my great privilege to know for myself for over thirty-five years. It is my prayer that you find this for yourself this Easter and by so doing find that Jesus is a real and living friend who will be with you today.

With every blessing,
Yours sincerely,
Jonathan Ford