Easter 3C, May 4, 2025.  The Very Rev. Pamela L. Werntz

Acts 9:1-6(7-20). “Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen.”
Revelation 5:11-14. And the four living creatures said, “Amen!”
John 21:1-19 . Come and have breakfast.

O God of resurrection, grant us the wisdom, the strength and the courage to seek always and everywhere after truth, come when it may, and cost what it will.

We are well on our way into the Great Fifty Days of Easter, the extended Feast of the Resurrection. I love that the Church calendar gives 40 days for Lent, but 50 days for Easter because Easter is harder. Lent is easier for many of us – we know our need for increased focus on penitence, discipline, prayer, study, and our need for mercy. Many of you tell me that Lent is your favorite church season. On the other hand, a season of increased focus on resurrection (on rising from the dead) trips people up, especially when the news of what’s going on in the world is so bad. (I’ll tell you something; it was bad for the earliest Jesus followers, too.) Continue reading →