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| Image by Johan J. Ingles-Le Nobel |
A GREETING
I wait for your salvation, O God.
(Genesis 49:18)
A READING
After these things, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, though a secret one because of his fear of the Jewish leaders, asked Pilate to let him take away the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission; so he came and removed his body. Nicodemus, who had at first come to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it with the spices in linen cloths, according to the burial custom of the Jewish people. Now there was a garden in the place where he was crucified, and in the garden there was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. And so, because it was the Jewish day of Preparation, and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
(John 19:38-42)
MUSIC
A MEDITATIVE VERSE
God keeps all their bones; not one of them will be broken.
(Psalm 34:20)
A POEM
Against the dark heavens
someone kneels, slowly allowing
the sheet to drop down.
Everything is in darkness. The trees too.
Only the body shines.
No, not exactly. Again. From the beginning.
Soft white flesh, so it seems,
living, breathing, moving its arms,
even loving. Outside the frame,
one guesses they will put him to rest in the ground...
The figures,
the bloodied, silent wood, heaven
all color – colors are colors –
but from where and where to? Darkness.
- from "Descent from the Cross" by Tuvia Ruebner & Keshev
translated by Lisa Katz and Shahar Bram
VERSE OF THE DAY
On their hands they will bear you up.
(Psalm 91:12a)
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| The Descent from the Cross (1617-18) by Peter Paul Rubens (click the painting to enlarge it) |
The Jewish context of Jesus's burial is named in several ways in today's reading. Joseph of Arimathea, who is described as a rich man and a religious lay leader, has had the courage to stand before Pilate with his desire to reclaim Jesus’ body, and he is accompanied by Nicodemus, a member of the temple Sanhedrin, who came to Jesus and asked questions by night. Two upstanding Jewish men, accompanied by Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses, help to unhang Jesus from the Cross and bring him into the loving arms of those who care for him. “The burial custom of the Jewish people,” named as part of that care, continues to this day in the form of the Chevra Kadisha, a ‘holy society’ whose job is to accompany the deceased person from before they die, until the grave, including washing and preparing the body for burial. In our own time of crisis, this kind of care is not always possible. This past week in Ukraine, we have been hearing about atrocities committed against civilians during the Russian occupation of the villages in the eastern part of the country. As the soldiers withdrew, the full toll of the horror became vivid. In one village, aid workers spray-painted Orthodox Crosses on the outside of the garden gates of each home, to indicate the number of casualties that lie within. Those who have died have been laid in bags in mass graves. These victims of war will not know the last comfort and witness that surrounded Jesus from the cross to the tomb. In the painting above by Peter Paul Rubens, the cross of cruel death is being replaced by a cross of love. When Jesus is laid out on the ground, those gathered wrap him in a shroud with the rich spices that Nicodemus has brought. Today's music encourages us to see ourselves as the hands and feet of God. The men and women taking Jesus down from the cross have become a part of his body, and so are the men and women who recover civilians killed in war. In putting him to rest, the loved ones of Jesus have returned him to the garden of his origin. How can we help to heal the wounds of cruelty with anointing hands of love? How can we help to uphold the sacred passage of life to death?
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| Screen shot from CBC News feature on Andriivka in Eastern Ukraine. The Orthodox Cross means there are casualties in the house; in this case, one. (CBC The National, April 10, 2022) |
LC† Tending the Vineyard is a project of Lutherans Connect, supported by the Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada. To receive the devotions by email, write to lutheransconnect@gmail.com. The devotional pages are written and curated by Deacon Sherry Coman, with support and input from Pastor Steve Hoffard, Catherine Evenden and Henriette Thompson. Join us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram and on Twitter. Lutherans Connect invites you to make a donation to the Ministry by going to this link on the website of the ELCIC Eastern Synod and selecting "Lutherans Connect Devotionals" under "Fund". Devotions are always freely offered, however your donations help to support extended offerings throughout the year. Thank you and peace be with you!
