For centuries, darkness has played the antagonist in the advent story and in our society. In the scriptures, darkness represents the formless void that existed before God ordered the world in Goodness. Darkness represents death and suffering and sin and hopelessness. In our society, darkness is often a symbol of despair and sadness. More physically, darkness is cause for fear and uncertainty. We night-light our bedrooms to scare away the monsters that only come out at night; we run up the basement stairs as quickly as possible; our streets are aglow with the light of overhead lamps and headlights. We more often see darkness as a foe to fight off than a gift to receive gratefully. Even so, perhaps sometimes darkness gets a bad wrap.

Each year during the Passover seder, our Jewish sisters and brothers retell the story of the Exodus from Egypt, acknowledging God’s kindness and faithfulness to the Jewish people throughout history. Traditionally, part of their remembrance includes singing a song in Hebrew titled Dayenu (Hebrew: דַּיֵּנוּ), translated as ”it would have been enough.”

Our celebration of Easter needs to look like Dance Marathon… It’s a marathon, not a sprint. The celebration doesn’t end the day after Easter. This side of Christ’s resurrection, EVERY DAY is Easter! So keep dancing! The more signs of resurrection we see, the more we need to dance. And the more we dance, the more this world will look like a new creation.

Soil and ash. At creation’s dawn, fathomed but not yet formed, humankind awaited God’s creative labors. Taking the dust of the earth and animating it with divine breath, God’s Spirit stirred up soil and ash into life, gave that life a purpose (i.e. to love), and called it “good.” Now, all these years later, though, our lives don’t always feel “good” nor are our hearts always set on love.