2020 was the most unusual Easter Sunday in our lifetimes.
Churches were empty. No candy for the children. No Easter speeches. No fancy clothes. No Easter eggs. In some ways, it barely felt like Easter. But in other ways, it was the best Easter we’ve ever experienced.
As a Pastor, Easter is one of the highest attended days of the year. In fact, the joke is, “Many people are C.M.E. people – Christmas, Mother’s Day, and Easter.” These 3 are normally the easiest days to get family and friends to church.
Easter is the day we have special programming. Special fanfare. Special decorations. Special clothes. For most, it just feels like a special day. But not this year.
This year we were locked in, and felt locked up. This year everything was forced to be virtual, if at all.
In a strange way, this lock down has caused some of us to be even more sociable than ever before. It has caused us to reach out in ways we never have. It has caused us to appreciate personal connections in a fresh new way.
So this Easter Sunday was special. All over the world people sat in front of their computer, smart phone or tablet to experience a spiritual connection. We were all in the same boat. We were all connected digitally. The playing field was leveled. No big churches or little churches. No big budgets or little budgets. We just all did the best we could to connect online. And, how glorious it was.
Virtual Easter might make us more appreciative for Live Easter (when we go back to that). It just might make us appreciate the physical connections a whole lot more. But, it could also make us more investigative regarding how our future Easter experiences should look. For many, it’s easier and better to just sit back and relax and enjoy the Lord online.
When you think of it, maybe church will never be the same again. Many will be forced to re-think church.
What will be your desire and expectation of church after this?
Chime in and let me know.
Bishop
Bishop G.E. Livingston's Blog 