St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church, Owings Mills MD
April 17, 2022
Easter Day
Acts 10:34-43
Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24
1 Corinthians 15:19-26
John 20:1-18
“The Garden Club”
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
In a time of turmoil, we have been on quite a journey with Jesus and his disciples.
It was just a week ago that some of us – and a donkey - gathered outside for the palm parade.
On that chilly Sunday morning, we waved our palms and sang out “Hosanna!” just as people filled with hope and expectation had greeted King Jesus as he entered Jerusalem two thousand years ago.
And then, with shocking suddenness and apparent finality, everything seemed to go terribly wrong.
Instead of crowning a new king, some call for his death.
And the Roman rulers of Jerusalem were, as usual, quick to crush any rivals or dissenters.
And Jesus died on the cross and descended to the dead.
To just about everyone, the story of Jesus of Nazareth must have seemed a tale of dashed hopes, yet another disappointment, yet another tragedy in a world that’s just full of them.
And now, this morning, we resume our story in darkness.
Just one faithful disciple, Mary Magdalene, comes to the tomb – perhaps to anoint Jesus’ lifeless body or maybe because she just didn’t know what else to do.
To her shock, she finds the stone has been rolled away.
After all the tragedy of the past few days, Mary Magdalene assumes the worst – the body must have been stolen – yet another heartbreak in a time of so much turmoil.
She ran to get help, and Peter and the other disciple come back, look into the empty tomb and then go back wherever they came from.
This time, at least, the men are no use at all.
Mary is alone again at the tomb, weeping.
Two angels, who, of course, already know the good news of new life, ask her why she weeps – a question that Mary must have considered bizarre, if not cruel.
And then, at last, someone else appears.
Must be the gardener, Mary thinks.
But then this gardener calls her my name.
“Mary.”
And Mary knows that voice – and Mary knows that something unexpected, something unprecedented, has happened.
Mary now knows the best news of all time:
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
The Risen Christ instructs Mary to go tell his brothers this best news of all time, entrusting her alone to be the apostle to the apostles, to be the whole church for that precious and holy time it took to reach the others.
And so the Good News began to be shared among men and women, down through the generations, until arriving here among us, two thousand years later, on this beautiful Easter Morning.
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Maybe because I now live and work amid so much natural beauty, as I reflect on the story of the first Easter I’m struck by the fact that it took place in a garden.
Surely that’s not a coincidence, right?
After all, the whole story of God and us began in a garden.
It was in that garden where the first man and woman disobeyed God.
It was in that garden that they were so overwhelmed with shame and guilt that they even tried to hide from God.
But God never stops seeking us out, wanting to be known by us, wanting us to accept God’s love.
And, surely it’s no coincidence that Jesus spent the night before his death in a garden, praying, begging God to take away this bitter cup, before peacefully submitting to the worldly forces of oppression and violence.
And now this morning we’re back in a garden.
It’s in a garden that God defeats hate and death with love and life.
It’s in a garden that God gives us another chance at new life.
It’s in a garden that we are invited to once again work beside God to restore the world to the beautiful garden it was always meant to be.
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
During my first year here with all of you, I’ve learned that quite a few of our parishioners are talented and accomplished gardeners and flower arrangers.
Their handiwork is visible at home and also here at St. Thomas’.
I mean, just look at all this beauty and creativity.
And this city guy has also learned that there are “garden clubs,” where gardeners meet and talk shop and have competitions.
Who knew?
(I know…you did!)
Now, normally, I try to avoid describing church as a club, but on this beautiful Easter morning I’m going to make an exception.
Because, you know, Mary Magdalene was not wrong when she thought Jesus was the gardener.
Jesus is the Gardener, hard at work restoring the beautiful garden souls – the beautiful garden of creation - that has been for so long neglected, diseased, and distorted by our sinfulness.
And Jesus the Gardener invites us to join this holy work.
Now, in this sacred garden club, the only tools we need are love, compassion, and a willingness to serve others.
In this holy garden club, we till the soil by opening our hearts and doors to people in need, by being a servant church to the many people beyond our walls who are so hungry for good food, so desperate for hope and new life.
In God’s garden club, we welcome anyone who wants to join up, no experience necessary, no particular skills required.
In fact, we are about to welcome little Annabel into our garden club. She doesn’t know yet what she’s getting signed up for, but she knows that she’s loved – and that’s more than enough.
So, today, on this beautiful Easter morning, we are back in the garden.
Just as he called Mary Magdalene long ago, today Jesus the Gardener calls Annabel and each of us by name, inviting us to be part of his garden club, helping us to restore the garden to the beauty that was always intended, sending us out into the world to share the best news of all time:
Alleluia! Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Amen.
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