This sermon was preached at Christ Episcopal Church in Eureka CA at the Easter Vigil Service on April 20, 2019.
“This is the night when God brought our fathers, the children of Israel, out of bondage in Egypt, and led them through the Red Sea on dry land.
This is the night, when all who believe in Christ are delivered from the gloom of sin, and are restored to grace and holiness of life.
This is the night, when Christ broke the bonds of death and hell, and rose victorious from the grave.”
These words from the Exultet, which Archdeacon Pam chanted at the beginning of this service, remind us of the great story that we remember and re-enact and respond to this evening as we lett the drama sweep us up. It is the story of God’s children facing and enduring tragedy and devastation and certain death; and then somehow miraculously being liberated, rescued and resurrected by something that is more certain than death, something that C. S. Lewis called “a deeper magic.”
When a deadly flood enveloped the earth, Noah and his family are rescued and protected in the ark and held securely in God’s loving hands. We are part of that same story and we re-enact that story by simply being inside this building. If you look up at our ceiling, you will notice that our wood beams are exposed. This is not because the builders of the church got lazy or because we ran out of money. This was intentional. The beams resemble the keel or bottom of a ship. Just imagine a ship stripped of everything except its bottom structure, then turn it upside down and stick it to the ceiling. These beams run along the length of what is called the nave of the church. “Nave” comes from the Latin word for ship “navis” and boat “navicula” which is also where we get the word “Navy.” This church building, which was built by local shipbuilders and was consecrated exactly 80 years ago today by Bishop Noel Porter, reminds us that whenever we feel overwhelmed by fear and forces that might drown us, God holds us secure in his loving hands and protects us, just as he protected Noah and his family in the midst of the flood. Whenever you feel overwhelmed and flooded by fear, come into this church building and look up at our ceiling and remember God’s love for you.
The story continues with the children of Israel escaping slavery in Egypt, but then discovering that they have flown out of the frying pan only to be thrown into the fire. As they approach the Red Sea with no boat, they look behind them and see the Egyptian army advancing, led by a furious and bloodthirsty Pharaoh. Instead of trying to fight Pharaoh’s army in a battle that they would surely lose, they decide to pray to the God who appears to them as a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. The divine cloud protects them from the army as the light of God’s love leads them into the water. And as they wade in the water they trust in the God who’s a gonna trouble the water by sending a strong east wind to part the sea so that they walk on dry land. And then God continues to lead them through the desert wilderness with a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. We remember and re-enact this story as we process into this church (as we just did) led by a pillar of fire called the Paschal Candle saying, “The Light of Christ,” the Light of God’s Love. So whenever you are between a rock and a hard place and there seems to be no possible way out, light a candle in this church and remember the pillar of fire that rescued the children of Israel from an impossible situation.
The story continues with the children of Israel living under the occupation of the Roman Empire, which insists that true power comes from violence and brute force and political bullies. It is in this context that a Jewish prophet begins to preach about God’s self-giving love, which he called “the Kingdom of God.” More than any other prophet or priest or king before him, this rabbi whom we know as Jesus Christ fully embodied God’s self-giving love. He healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, fed the hungry, walked on water, and empowered others to discover their true identity in their belovedness. The children of Israel wanted this prophet Jesus to overthrow Rome and to restore the Golden Age of Israel by reclaiming the throne of King David. But instead the powerful Roman empire crushed Jesus like a bug, publicly crucifying him on a tree like a common thief. Those who had devoted their entire lives to this prophet fell into a deep and dark despair and depression. The power of political bullies submerged God’s self-giving love under the sea of violence, where it drowned and where it died.
Although this may be difficult to hear, we re-enact this story as well whenever we baptize someone, as we will do in a few moments. One of the many meanings of the sacrament of Baptism is union with Christ in his death. Not only do the waters of Baptism remind us of the waters of Noah’s flood and the Red Sea, they also remind us of those forces that will tempt us to see God’s love as ultimately empty and powerless in the face of other powers. By being baptized, we are saying that we will remain committed to God’s love even when God’s love seems to be crushed like a bug and submerged under a sea of violence. I share this hard teaching with you all and with our baptismal candidate because I know we can handle it, because it is the story we all enter into, and because we know the story does not end there.
In a few moments, the choir and the altar party will process out of the nave in silence. I will then descend into the “catacombs” of our church and then return with a chest that we buried 40 days ago. I will then stand by the baptismal font, where you are invited to turn your attention. I will dip my hand in the baptismal waters because those same waters that drown us are also the waters of that “deeper magic,” that deeper magic that proves to be far more powerful than legions upon legions of Roman military, that deeper magic that exposes the pathetic insecurities of political bullies, that deeper magic that is far more certain than certain death, a magic so powerful that it makes death start working backwards. This “deeper magic” is God’s self-giving love, which annihilates death. The story we remember and celebrate tonight is the story of God’s love and life always having the final word. All floods, all armies, all seas of violence become like mere drops of water in the endless ocean of God’s abundant life and love. So after I dip my hand in that water, I will then invite us all to respond to this most glorious story as I proclaim the Easter Acclamation that Christ is risen from the dead and we ring our Easter bells and we sing “Glory to God in the highest” and we bask in the deepest truth that no matter how much death and darkness might drown us, God’s love and life will always win, in the end. Amen. Amen. Amen.
DANIEL DeFOREST LONDON 