Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology

The development of Easter as a fifty-day season in the church year was an extended historical process that allowed major theological themes to find their place as a part of this central celebration in the life of the church. Careful attention to the embodiment of these themes in our Easter celebration can foster the work of renewal in our own diverse communities of faith.

The women's silence in response to the message of the “young man” at the tomb is a feature found only in Mark. Its omission by Matthew and Luke suggests that they found this element in the narrative problematic. Yet Mark's text has played a significant role in the Easter liturgy of the ancient church and beyond. The reception history of the narrative reveals both harmonization and discord.

At Easter, hymns and sacred arias can work together with Scripture texts to proclaim in fresh ways that Christ is risen. If we come with attentiveness to focus upon the words, phrases, meter, and melody, we can experience new depths, wonders, and glories.

In the New Testament, the resurrection of Jesus is not described as a visible event, and for this reason, the resurrection was not represented directly in visual arts for about 1,000 years. Direct representations of the resurrection as an event appeared only after 1000 C.E. They were concrete, and they objectivized and historicized the resurrection in a problematical way.

Preachers are faced with two unresolved issues at Easter: 1) Are the resurrection stories fact or legend? and 2) What does Paul mean by a spiritual body? Is he supposing something different from the stories? What is the Easter message we are called to preach?