You might notice in the right column of this blog the badge from Bosco Peters (click it, it leads to his blog!) reminding all who care to read it, that Easter is 50 days, not just one.

As the Easter Week readings remind us, the encounter with the Risen Christ is not limited to Easter Sunday.  In fact, it is more common for the ‘reality’ of the resurrection to take some time to sink in that it is to wake up with Alleluias on the lips of the disciples.  Add to that the fact that the resurrection ‘stories’ were not written down in anything approaching their current form until years after that first Easter Sunday, and we might learn a thing or two about growing in wisdom, age and grace when it comes to our understanding of the Resurrection Event.

Were not our hearts burning within us?

Just as it took time for the disciples to recognize Jesus in their midst on the first Easter on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35), so to it may take time, conversation and companionship for Jesus’ presence to be made ‘realer’ for us.  It pays to pay attention to our bodies, emotions and thoughts as we travel the journey of these 50 days.

The gift of the Great 50 Days of Easter is that we are given numerous examples of how Jesus made his presence real in the lives of people after the crucifixion and resurrection events.  If we are willing to bring beginners’ hearts and minds to the Easter Season, I firmly believe that we too can encounter Jesus in ever deepening ways.  In fact, when we learn to pay attention, I suspect we’ll come up with opportunities to encounter Jesus that outnumber the written examples in Scripture by a wide margin.

We can do this by embracing a variety of disciplines including, sacred reading (outside of scripture), prayer (both private and corporate), acts of mercy (service to others), journaling, caring for our loved ones, sitting quietly in the beauty of nature among many, many others.  As we train our attention away from distractions and more to the periphery of our vision, we can often encounter Jesus in places we’d never have looked before.

May this Easter week and the rest in this season of rebirth, renewal and recreation open the eyes of your hearts and may those hearts burn within you as they did with Cleopas and his companion on the Emmaus Road!