That Which Never Dies
Table Talk
Setting the Table
You are welcome here. The Spirit of God is gifting you great joys in little things. Take a couple deep breaths, grab yourself a cup of coffee, light a candle, do something that brings you comfort. May your eyes and your body soften for a few moments to receive the wonders of being fully present.
Belovedness is a part of who you are. It is inscribed on your heart and on the hearts of those you love.
“I am certain that as we stand in awe of this faithful force, that what has seemed dead is dead no longer, what has seemed lost is no longer lost, that which some have claimed impossible is made clearly possible, and what ground is fallow is only resting – resting and waiting for the blessed seed to arrive on the wind with all Godspeed. And it will.”
- Clarissa Pinkola Estes, from The Faithful Gardener
Matthew 28:5-8
But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, 'He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you." So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples.
Food for Thought
When I was young, my Grandma would often take me on a walk to the local cemeteries where she grew up. Her father was a stone carver in the community, so she took great pride in showing me the gravestones and monuments of granite he had rendered to grace their community.
One particular tombstone I remember visiting was that of the Austin Angel.
The Austin Angel bore the last name of my grandmother’s cousin, Marcia, and Marcia’s infant son, who were killed in an automobile accident. Marcia was not only my grandmother’s cousin, but her best friend. When my grandmother talked about Marcia – telling stories of her life and their childhood together – a somber quality would wind its way through her recounting. Marcia’s death deeply affected both my grandma and my great-grandfather, so in her memory, he carved from a block of granite this rendering of an angel walking alongside a small child – the Austin Angel, as it came to be known.
That image has stayed with me through the years. When I visit cemeteries, I think of the Austin Angel, and remember those walks with my grandmother. I recall the sorrow and grief she held for her cousin, but I also think about the love that poured forth in her remembrance. I think about the ways that our remembering, and our gifts and offerings in memoriam, like the Austin Angel, offer life, inspiration, and healing – touchstones where we can encounter new life and reconnect with the sources of love that have gone before us.
The women returned to the tomb Easter morning; bearing their grief and memories – their gifts and offerings – they went to the place where Jesus’s body had been laid. They knew they would find no monument to his memory there, only a behemoth stone that, with all of its gravity, would seal in the one they loved and his witness in the world. But it would not erase his witness from their hearts – that was indelibly etched there. They could still remember, could still honor, could still love their Jesus – their dear friend, their teacher.
And so they returned to honor him, and in that faithful moment they encountered the surprising possibility of life beyond the grave. In God’s deep love for them and for the world, they witnessed a life and a hope that proved stronger than death, and were encouraged onward, to share the news of Jesus’s life and resurrection until the love and light of Christ would meet them again on their journeys.
My grandmother returned to the cemetery often to bear witness to sorrow and loss, but also, in that returning, she found some unexpected source of blessing and hope, some courage and comfort, some sense of the great cloud of witnesses that surrounded her in her living. She returned to be reminded of that surprising possibility that life can reach us even beyond death. That our Easter story is as true today as it was then, and death does not get the last word.
She returned to remember deeply her cousin and others that she loved, cherished, and missed; she returned to see the work of her father’s hands, and to remember his love shined upon her and his community during his lifetime; she returned to honor their belovedness and to remember her own – engraved not in stone, but on her very being by those gone before her.
Inscribed upon her heart were etchings of divine love that never fade, that never die, that yield something of life eternal.
On this Easter morning, as you accompany the women to the tomb holding whatever sorrow and grief your heart may be holding, may you – like the women, like my grandmother, like me – find something of stones rolled away. May you encounter a promise and mystery that reveals hope beyond the deepest shadows of our living. May you know a grace that is not held back by stones. May you experience deeply a love which can never die – the love we have received, the love we have to offer, and the love we persist in honoring and bearing witness to – a love that will meet us again along the way.
Think of someone you have loved or whose legacy inspires you. If they are no longer with us, think of the inscriptions or the carvings that were used to honor them. Offer a prayer of thanksgiving for them.
Our “That Which Never Dies” Journaling Page provides seven daily thoughts of reflection and journaling prompts that tie back into this week’s story. You can print it, forward it to a friend, use it as inspiration for your own journaling practice (or group conversations), or maybe just use it as food for thought in your own quiet time!
For a printable version of today's reflection Click Here!
Blessing
Loving God,
In the remembering and revisiting of difficult places and moments in our lives, may we encounter something of your surprising hope and promise.
May inspiration and encouragement find us along our journeys of living that allow us to recall to heart and mind the belovedness inscribed by you, and by those who have loved us. Amen.
A little Table Talk for your table...
Is there a cemetery or a grave that is important to you? What significance does it hold in your life?
When you hear the story of Jesus’s resurrection, how does it make you feel? How does it speak into your life of faith, and your understanding of death and what comes beyond it?
How does the memory of those who have gone before inspire you in your daily living?
Try taking it to the Kids Table...
With your child, visit the grave of someone dear to you. Tell your child what you remember about that person and why they were so important to you.
Take flowers to a grave, or plant flowers there (peonies are great to plant at a graveside – they can come back every year without your efforts and don’t need a lot of watering). Ask your child how the sight of new flowers and buds in the spring can offer hope.
If talking about death or those who have died makes your child sad, you can remind them that when we die, we are still held in and by love. You can also have your child draw a picture of their big emotions. It is okay to feel sad about losing those we love.
Meet Our Welcoming Voice!
Rev. Daryn Stylianopoulos is originally from North Carolina, but has called Boston, MA home for nearly twenty years. She is a graduate of Wake Forest University and Boston University School of Theology and serves as a Baptist pastor in the Boston area. Daryn is an advocate for the marginalized and works against injustices in her community. She believes in creatively cultivating a spirit of cohesion, welcome, and healing in the world. A lover of art, music, gardening, and, most of all, family, she often looks to these for inspiration in her work and ministry.
To hear more from Daryn throughout the week, follow along on our Instagram!
Here are Five Things to Remember When Setting Your Own Welcome Table!