Part 2: Ash Wednesday
Part 3: Giving Shit Up
Part 4: No Meat
Part 5: Palm Sunday
Part 6: Holy Thursday
Part 7: Good Friday
Part 8: ...Saturday
Part 9: Easter Sunday
Part 10: The Ascension
Easter Sunday
And this whole 40 day affair is capped off with the grand spectacle that is Easter Sunday. Try and contain yourself.
What is there to say about Easter that hasn't already been said? Not much, because those non-Catholics celebrate this too. Collectively, I think we can all come to look at Easter and say "meh". I don't know if the early church was afraid to attach Easter to getting gifts (we already got the greatest gift of all, right?) or if they couldn't find a Saint around this time to be associated with that day*, but Easter, in a secular sense, is lame.
* Trick question: there are more Saints than Catholics know what to do with. Not only is there never a boring day, there's ALWAYS a feast day.
You can even tell they tried to come up with celebrations for kids at the last second. It's the only explanation for bunnies, eggs, candy, and scavenger hunt all coming together. All of this while the child is in his/her nicest clothes. Christmas, you're in pajamas, and there's not even chocolate involved.
As for the religious end of the celebrating, there could be a better effort as well. I get the symbolic importance, I guess, of Jesus being resurrected, or as I like to call it, since he's god, "waking up".
Admittedly, first person shooters have ruined my perception of the Easter miracle. He respawned. If anything, I'm more impressed with him raising Lazarus** because that's reviving an ally which is useful since the lepers have him outnumbered. But this is Christianity, not Resident Evil.
** By the way, worst store name ever. It's like saying "coming back from bankruptcy".
The problem is, Fundamentalist or Contextualist, you must admit the story needs some peppering.
First, up the stakes (possible pun intended). Noah had a flood. Moses had slavery. Jerusalem in Jesus's time was more similar to England's control of Hong Kong before China took it back. Sure, they didn't like Roman rule, but Caesar was pretty Laize-Faire over there. Jerusalem was like the colonists in the US getting angry over Tea taxes, and those guys played it up better. Boston Massacre. Shots heard around the world. Those get you going. Couldn't the Apostles at least have to be busted out of jail or something? I start to think the only sin Jesus had to forgive us for was, in fact, killing him.
Secondly, what is the point in having Jesus' tomb found empty? Trust me. No one is reading the bible to build suspense. How about everyone gathers at the tomb and BOOM - stone door bursts into a million pieces, all the pebbles turn into white doves that start flying all over the place, and out Jesus walks to start Pentecost. As a kid, I would be stoked to go to mass on Easter for no other reason than possibly seeing a reenactment before the homily which would be given like a victorious battle cry. G-O-D! G-O-D! G-O-D!
Instead, I'm stuck at mass for two hours thinking the whole time how much I hate the "on the third day" phrasing. I did the math. Dies a little before sunset Friday, Back on his feet Sunday morning by sunrise. That's a day and a half. On the second day. I get it. Fri, Sat, Sun. He was dead technically on 3 different days, but if someone goes and tells you "You are going to go to sleep Friday afternoon and wake up Sunday morning" you are going to respond with "I'm going to be asleep for two days" or maybe "I'm going to be asleep for a day and a half." Sadly, at this point too many song lyrics and prayers would have to be changed, but I just want to hear the church own up to it. That's all.
Finale
So that's Lent. How does it all make sense exactly? I don't know. I'm not meant to. Being Catholic is like going to a strict prep school before going to college***. I may not use half of what I learned there or need to follow the same rules, but I have proven that I will cater to whatever authority I meet. I'll take that over "home schooled" protestants or reformers any day of the week, except Friday, of course.
***Wait, I did that too.
...Why do I feel like I'm forgetting something?
Zombie Jesus day!!
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