For those who thought this Easter season was over already, allow me to share a little Easter memory from its beginning a few weeks ago. It’s actually a reminder for all of us.
A friend called on Holy Saturday to wish our family a happy Easter—and to give us a sign for the occasion. I’m talking yard sign, not speaking in tongues or anything like that. He donated to a pro-life charity and as a reward they gave him a couple yard signs reading “Christ is Risen.” He offered one to us.
I’ve never been big on yard signs like those projecting a household’s pride in their kids’ school teams or even those that remind dog-walkers to pick up their pet’s poop, but this one was different. This one was practical, like a real estate sign showcasing a home—and identifying its agent as the information source. Where Christianity is concerned, we’re all called to be that source. The home we’re offering is strong—thanks to a rock-solid cornerstone. Now, mind you, this is a century home—about 20 of them. That fact alone might make 21st-century prospects walk on by, but Peter, the agent who was first appointed to lead the expansion team selling this pile of bricks, has a way with moving do-it-yourselfers—as we see in the second reading for this Sunday’s mass (1 Pt 2:4-9):
Come to him, a living stone, rejected by human beings but chosen and precious in the sight of God, and, like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. … The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.
Spiritual houses are designed to be part of spiritual neighborhoods—all built on the bedrock from which their cornerstone came. The agent owners cherish the value of this real estate, and as Sunday’s first reading proves (Acts 6:1-7), the Acts of the original apostles put this neighborhood on the world map.
The word of God continued to spread, and the number of the disciples in Jerusalem increased greatly; even a large group of priests were becoming obedient to the faith.
Christ is the cornerstone of our home, the faithful are its infrastructure, and this faith is our foundation: Christ is risen.
But which way did Christ go? That’s what his original agents needed to know. John’s gospel gives us the answer (Jn 14:1-12):
I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
If we invest everything we have in the message our sign is selling, Christ’s assurance is our insurance:
–Tom Andel