Supermarkets and shelves around the region have literally been groaning under the share weight of chocolate bunnies, crème eggs, sticky hot cross buns and sweet mini eggs. Yes, this is the Easter season. As a minister I a l w a y s se e m t o g e t a s ke d w h a t chocolate eggs and hot cross buns have to do with Easter. Eggs and Easter go together like ‘kiwis’ and ‘jandals.’ But how come? The answer’s because eggs are a symbol of fertility and life. That’s why early Christians adopted them as a symbol of new life and resurrection helping them to remember Jesus. Hot cross buns are also a huge Easter tradition at this time of year. The cross on the top represents the cross of Christ and the spices inside remind Christians of the spices put on his body. Traditionally Christians generally eat buns on Good Friday. So what is this ‘Easter thing’ anyway? Easter’s a Christian festival that celebrates the rising or resurrection of Jesus. According to our sacred biblical writings, Jesus died on the cross on
Good Friday. It’s strange to remember on this day that someone died as 'good' but back then it really meant 'holy' or ‘sacred’. New beginnings often rise out of painful endings and just around the corner from the shadows of Good Friday is the dawning hope of Easter. Jesus then came back to life three days later. His resurrection is celebrated on Easter Sunday. To this day the resurrection of Jesus is the solid foundation of all hopes for a better world. The first Christians found that God had made new life possible and offered it to us. The resurrection changes not just us individually, but is the fuel for hope-filled ambition and for imagination that builds dreams into reality. This is why a cross is the key Christian distinctive of hope in the Christian faith. In this hope there needs to be a resurrection of our common life, something that links to the old, but is different and more beautiful. We must dream it because it is the gift of God. Then we must build it in partnership with God. Easter is all about hope and