Easter Thoughts

I went to Peru once a long time ago. While I was there I got to visit a lot of ruins and beautiful cathedrals and other culturally rich aspects of that humble and breathtaking little country.

I got to climb to the top of the terraced farming ruins of Ollantaytambo and gaze out across the Sacred Valley.

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I got to see poverty beyond comprehension and the resilience and joy that still resided therein.

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And I got to see the revered and sacred places of worship that meant so much to the people of Peru.

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What I most vividly remember about the chapels and cathedrals though is the detailed, and for lack of a better word, gory depictions of the great sacrifice made by our Saviour.

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The reality of the crucifixion is well known in all of Christendom. However, as a teenager venturing out into the world for my first time, I remember feeling quite disturbed by these portrayals. Today I was reminded of this experience and, with the years of maturity I've acquired since then, was then able to grasp my Saviours death and resurrection in a much more personal manner.

As a Latter-Day Saint, as much as the crucifixion is taught and reverenced, I have always understood and saw the Easter holiday as a time to celebrate the greatest news of all, that He is risen. His sacrifice was incomprehensible and to much of society today, would be viewed as disturbing and gory. Yet He did it anyway and He did it for me and for you. But what happened three days later is what Easter is all about to me. It's about the empty tomb and the tremendous amount of hope and light that was brought into a seemingly hopeless and dark world. He is risen and He lives. 

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As I sat in sacrament meeting today comparing these two vastly different depictions of the Saviour and his atonement, I suddenly realized how I am able to focus on my own life in a similar fashion. After a tough couple of days dealing with an incredibly stubborn two year old and taming some feelings of frustration for my husband, I was beginning to look at my life as a series of lost tempers, unchristlike thoughts, and a state of perpetual shortcomings. My life and efforts seemed to be grim and disappointing. Fortunately, I soon realized how similar this line of thought is to focussing on the death and gore and sadness of the crucifixion, rather than choosing to see the light and hope that the atonement and resurrection has made possible in my life. Because he lives, I have a new chance every day to try again, to be better than before, to forget my shortcomings and start anew. Just as I view the Easter holiday as one of hope, I need to view my own life in the same manner.