We need Easter

Easter just goes on and on!  We're in the Easter Season all the way until Pentecost, on May 19.  Seven weeks is an awfully long time to keep singing Alleluia.

And yet, aren't we "Easter people"?  Shouldn't we be "practicing resurrection" all the time?  Shouldn't we keep our eyes open for an encounter with the risen Christ every day of the week?  And sometimes, we really need to hold onto Easter.  I recently read this in the Washington Post:

"The latest statistics are terrible: According to the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, almost 1 in 5 of 12- to 17-year-olds had a major depressive episode in the past year, while nearly half of 18- to 25-year-olds had either a substance use disorder or a mental illness."

WHAT?!  Those are horrifying statistics.  What is happening in our society that there is such a crisis of health, meaning, safety, purpose, and connection?!  And where does the church fit into this crisis, when most young people are not connected to a faith community?

We need Easter.  We need a God who shows up even in the midst of suffering and death.  We need a community that practices welcome and compassion.  We need to look for resurrection even in hard times.  May each of you find an Alleluia to sing this week!