Scripture: Acts 10:34-43 (NRSV)
Today the Christian church remembers the agony of Christ’s death on a cross. The one who came to Earth, took on flesh, and brought an ethic of justice and love to the world suffered to the point of death at the hands of those intent on maintaining the status quo and on preventing Christ’s way from spreading. The cross, crown and spear snuffed out the Light of the world, and left those who remained in a despairing, hopeless state. The one who was our leader, who drew us together and provided us with hope, is gone. What does one do when the image of their hope falls to the powers of evil?
I think Acts 10:34-43 gives us one answer: we name, we remember and we do this together. We name where we have found hope before; we name the pain we feel; we name the loss that we experienced; and we name the struggles we continue to face. We remember the one who we lost; we remember the stories of our faith; we remember the acts of faith that Christ did; and we remember the hope we found in the model of Christ. By naming and remembering, we affirm where we have found hope before, and we delve into a space where we might again find hope. For those of us ascribing to the Christian faith, the statement of faith that we find in Acts 10 provides a strong history of hope that can sustain us through moments of greatest loss.
Scripture: Acts 10:34-43 (NRSV)
Then Peter began to speak to them: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, 35but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. 36You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ—he is Lord of all. 37That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: 38how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; 40but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, 41not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. 43All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”