Saturday's Internet Edition, May 17, 2008.
Could he be the "Messiah?"
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| Easter Bunny and his pals.... These happy youngsters did not let Friday afternoon’s wind deter them from taking part in the Women’s Service League sponsored Easter Egg Hunt or getting their photo snapped with the Easter Bunny. Happy Easter everybody! |
The crowd was throwing palm branches down on the roadway signifying the arrival of their “King” who was riding on a donkey accompanied by some followers. Some even called him the “Messiah.”
It was an atmosphere of joy and jubilation as this Jesus rode into Jerusalem.
However, the joy, jubilation and exuberance soon changed as the next day this same Jesus went to the temple to pray and worship. What he did, while at the temple, was to chastise those merchants and money traders in the courtyard for “making his house a den of thieves.”
Needless to say, this further angered the chief priest, scribes and Pharisees and their followers who were already looking for some reason to try to get rid of this Jesus who was causing the church such a problem.
This being the holy week of Passover, they didn’t need this Jesus in the holy city creating a stir.
Jesus, on the other hand, was intent on observing the Passover and teaching his followers some important lessons about service.
Word has it that at the seder, or Passover meal, Jesus told his followers some disturbing news which they really didn’t understand at the time. He told them that he was about to be betrayed by one of them.
After the meal, Jesus took his followers up to the Mount of Olives because he was aware that something was about to happen and he needed some time alone to pray.
While he was praying, his followers drifted off to sleep, only to be chastised by Jesus for not being watchful and praying as well.
Within a short period of time, soldiers and representatives of the Sanhedren, the Jewish High Court, appeared and attempted to take Jesus into custody.
It seemed that Judas Iscariat, one of his followers, had in fact made a deal with the Chief Priest to identify him for 30 pieces of silver. In the Garden of Gethsemenee, he did just that.
This Jesus was taken into custody and transported to a site where the Sanhedren had hastily called a meeting. There, late in the evening, they tried to get this Jesus to talk but he remained silent, until a long last he said something to which they replied, “You’re a blastphemer!”
After this late night trial before the Jewish court, they dragged Jesus up to see Pontius Pilot, the Roman Curator in charge of Jerusalem. They urged him to try Jesus as a traitor but Pilot said “I found no guilt in this man. Take him to Herod, if you’re accusing him of being a king.”
At King Herod’s court, Herod found no problem with Jesus, who had at this time already been abused by the mob. He sent Jesus back to Pontius Pilot.
Again Pilot, who had been warned by his wife to do nothing with Jesus, took no action but to order that he be beaten and released.
Following the beating, however, Jesus was again brought before Pilot and the crowd of Jews, egged on by the Chief Priest and his followers, urged Pilot to condemn him to death.
Pilot, in exasperation, offered to release him and instead crucify the wanted thug named Barrabus. But the crowd insisted that Barrabus be released and that Jesus be crucified. Finally in desperation, Pilot ordered Jesus to be crucified as the “King of the Jews.”
The Jewish leadership had prevailed and Jesus was led up the road to Golgotha where all criminals were crucified.
Along the way, Jesus’s followers lined the way in disbelief, while others shouted all manner of profanities at him.
I, as a reporter, had to wonder, “How can this be? This man Jesus was hailed as a King and Messiah on Sunday and here it is Friday and he has been condemned to death on a cross.”
After they crucified this Jesus, it became obvious to a Roman Centurian that something was different about him.
And, what happened next astounded the Chief Priest and his followers. As Jesus life ebbed from him on the cross, the ground shook, clouds rolled in, rain and lightning were all around and the veil of the temple, leading to the holy of holies, was torn from top to bottom.
But, the story doesn’t stop there. After his death, he was taken by a man named Joseph and placed in a tomb. But the Chief Priest was insistent that Roman guards be placed at the tomb to insure that robbers didn’t come and steal the body so that they could say he was alive.
And now, it’s Sunday again, and first reports from the tomb are that the stone has been rolled away and that Jesus’ body is not there. The scary thing is that his burial clothes are there, exactly as they had been wrapped around his body.
Some of his followers have come to see this since another follower, Mary, had rushed to report that she had seen him.
And, I ran into two men from Emaus who were back in the city claiming that they, too, had seen him and supped with Jesus.
Can it be? This Jesus, who had told his followers that he would rise again in three days, is in fact risen!
If the Chief Priest thinks Jesus was causing them problems before, they’ve really got problems now!
Column One
By Dawn Simpson
I really enjoy Easter, not only for its spiritual meaning but as holidays go, it has much more of a feeling of peace and tranquility than any other. One of the greatest pleasures is the awareness of the new spring season that it brings. The simple pleasures of the children’s Easter egg hunt will be combined with Christian observance of the resurrection of Christ. Some people have a problem combining the religious meaning of holidays with the secular celebrations, such as we do on Easter and Christmas. I’m not one of those, as long as the true meaning of these most holiest of holidays is not lost in the commercialism.
Easter to me is a new day, a new dawning and a new beginning. It is a cherished celebration, commemorating the Resurrection of my Lord. However, historically it can be traced to the ancient Norsemen and their worship of Ostara, the god of spring. They welcomed the flowers and greenery after winter with a festival. The very name Easter derives from the Norsemen’s celebration and also the emphasis on new birth of life.
Easter for a very long time has been man’s season for rejuvenating himself. In addition to a rebirth of spirit which, hopefully, we all feel at Easter, it can be a more appropriate time than New Year’s to resolve to do better in the spring and summer ahead.
The buying of new clothes and other fineries at Easter, which sometimes is criticized as commercialism, actually is symbolic of the new season as the drabness of winter gives place to the freshness of spring. Man has been following Mother Nature’s example of this for centuries.
Have a Happy and Blest Easter weekend. And to make it even more so, attend church services somewhere on Sunday and celebrate with a thankful heart the Resurrected Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
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If you were here in Van Horn in the early 70s you might remember Father Sam Garcia, the priest at Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church. He stopped in this week on his way to Las Cruces to say hello and visit a few friends. He is now working with the Catholic Church in Nicaragua.
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In the anticipation of our moving to a different location in a couple of months, I have begun the process by going through file cabinets, etc. - something that I haven’t done nearly as often as I should. Yesterday I was cleaning out a small file box that contains copies of business cards we have ordered for customers. You’ll know how long it has been since I cleared out that file by some of these names. It was good to remember old friends who have since left Van Horn for one reason or another.
There was a card for our dear friend, James Thomas/Insurance Service Agency, a card promoting Golf for Kito Gomez, Van Horn Rural Health Clinic card with the names Tillman Farley M.D. and Audrey Farley M.D., Premier Bookkeeping Service/H&R Block for Ginny Hart, Eagle Hardware/Owner Steve Rouke, Placido Nunez/Culberson County Sheriff, various church pastors like Victor Taylor and Joe Barthlow. Perhaps the one that made me smile the biggest was a card for Troy Greaves. Under his name it said ‘Retired’ and in the corners it said No Money, No Business, No Worries, No Phone. On the back was printed - “I am fully aware that my youth has been spent. That my ‘get up and go’ has ‘got up and went.’ But I really don’t mind when I think with a grin.....Of all the grand places my ‘get up’ has been.”
Yes, it was one of those unexpected pleasures that makes an unpleasant job suddenly become something very enjoyable. So many good people that we have crossed paths with here in Van Horn and so many good memories.
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With the May 10th Elections on the horizon for school and city trustees wouldn’t it be nice if some civic club or organization would sponsor a ‘Meet the Candidates’ event. I just have this silly notion that if people are running for a public office it would be good to have them answer some questions, like why they are seeking the office, their goals and aspirations for the board, some things they would do different, their feelings about previous actions and decisions by that board. This is a crucial election for both the school and city. Would some organization be willing to do this? The last one that took place in Van Horn was for the County Judge race and it was very effective and appreciated. So think about it.
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You know, Easter is really about HOPE. Hope for Eternal Life, but also Hope for our ‘everyday’ life. Here’s a thought-provoking statement by Max Lucado, one of my favorite Christian authors. “Our problem is not so much that God doesn’t give us what we hope for as it is that we don’t know the right thing for which to hope.”
COMMUNITY CALENDAR
March 20th - The Van Horn Eagle varsity and JV baseball teams play Ozona today in Ozona beginning at 4 p.m. Members of the Van Horn Volunteer Fire Department are slated to meet this evening at 7 p.m at the Firehouse.
March 21st - Good Friday.
March 22nd - Nothing scheduled at press time.
March 23rd - Easter Sunday. Attend the church of your choice.
March 24th - Members of the Van Horn Lions CLub are scheduled to meet tonight at 7 p.m. at the Sands Restaurant.
March 25th - Members of the Van Horn Rotary Club are slated to meet today at noon at Chuy’s Restaurant. The Van Horn Lady Eagle softball team plays Reagan County in Big Lake today beginning at 5 p.m. The Van Horn Eagle varsity and JV baseball teams play Crane here today at Clark Field beginning at 4 p.m. Members of the Van Horn City Council are slated to meet this evening at 7 p.m. at City Hall.
March 26th - School District will host a “Meet the Superintendent” get together at 5 p.m. in the Eagle Cafeteria.