April Fools'

This past Tuesday was April Fools’ Day, a day traditionally associated with pranks and jokes and outlandish stories. I used to work at a press release distribution company, and every year we received tons of erroneous press releases that were put out by major companies in jest and fun. Sometimes they were simply trying to trick people or make them laugh, and sometimes they were used as part of a larger marketing campaign to bring attention to a new product or a corporate change, like a new name or logo. 

When it comes to Jesus, and Easter, God sort of played the ultimate April Fools’ Day joke. For thousands of years the Jews had been looking for a Messiah. They had been waiting expectantly for the Anointed One, the Chosen One, a Savior who was going to come restore their nation. They were waiting for a conquering warrior king who was going to usher in a new kingdom and bring the Jewish people back together and free them from the chains of slavery and oppression that they had been living under for so long. 

Easter Baskets

 Easter baskets are an iconic symbol of the spring holiday. On Easter morning, thousands of children find baskets, some colored, some plain, filled with prizes: toys, chocolates, candies, eggs, etc… left by the Easter Bunny the night before as a way to commemorate this celebration of new life. This fun tradition is adhered to by people of many different backgrounds and beliefs and cultures, and it has several origin stories. 

• Some say that the basket symbolizes Eostre, the Anglo-Saxon goddess of fertility from which Easter derives its name, as she was often depicted with a basket under her arm. 

• Some say that it is a modification of the “nest” that the German egg-laying hare, Osterhase, would lay his multi-colored eggs in. 

• Some see it represented in the Catholic tradition of bringing a basket of food and treats, many of which had been given up for Lent, to be blessed on the Saturday before Easter and then enjoyed the next morning. 

Hunger & Thirst

When was the last time you were hungry or thirsty? It was probably today, probably no more than a few hours ago. Hunger and thirst are common occurrences for all living things. We need food and water to keep us alive, and within just a few hours of eating or drinking something we start to feel hungry or thirsty. Our body is reminding us that there is something that is essential to life and it’s been a bit since we had it. Now, that original feeling of hunger or thirst may not be terribly strong. It may be just a small annoyance or reminder that we should start thinking about where our next meal is going to come from and start planning on when we are going to eat, but the longer we go the stronger the feeling gets. It becomes painful and unignorable until we finally eat and drink and are satisfied again. 

Happy Pi Day!

Happy Pi Day! 

Today is such a strange “holiday." It's a day to commemorate the mysterious number known as pi. 3.14, except it's not 3.14. It's 3.14159265, but actually, it's more, much more. It's an endless number, an infinite string of digits, never ending, never repeating, never falling into a pattern. The number of calculated digits of pi currently stands at 202.11229 trillion. That's an incomprehensible number of digits, yet, it's no closer to the full truth of the number than 3.14.

Pi is not only mysterious for its infinite nature, it is also an incredibly important number in our world. It is found in, and plays an integral role in, geometry, trigonometry, calculus, physics, astronomy, statistics, and biology. It's part of things like heartbeats, circadian rhythm, breathing cycles, and even the stripes on zebras. It even helps us understand DNA.

Be Humble

The first two Beatitudes were more about inward attitudes, having a right outlook on your own spiritual state and being rightly upset and grieved over sin and evil in the world and within yourself. The third Beatitude is a bit more outwardly focused, as it has to do with how we interact with the world and people around us. 

Matthew 5:5

“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

The word meek, in today’s society, means “quiet, gentle, and easily imposed on; submissive.”

This is somewhat the same meaning that Jesus is getting at here, but with a few important distinctions. We typically think of a meek person as someone who is shy and quiet, like a mouse, someone who is weak, who doesn’t, and can’t, stand up or speak up for themselves or others and who is easily taken advantage of. However, that isn’t really the idea that Jesus was trying to convey. Jesus is quoting an Old Testament verse here: