Watch: In Easter message, GMP takes us on a ‘Journey Beyond the Grave’

An Easter video reflection from the Rev. Karen Georgia Thompson, General Minister and President of the United Church of Christ, takes the church on a journey beyond the grave with memories of where we were just four short years ago during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the recording, Thompson reminds us that we were left alone and contemplating death during Holy Week in 2020.

“We want to remember the celebrations, and yet we are reminded not to pass too quickly from celebration to celebration and miss the incredibly important moments in between,” she said. “We would like to rush from ‘Hosanna’ to ‘He is risen,’ but life is rarely that straightforward, predictable, or easy.”

Thompson reflected on the pain of the journey Jesus faced, being tortured and wrongly accused. She pointed to conflicts that continue worldwide — in Gaza, Ukraine, and Haiti, in particular.

“For some,” she said, “the hope of the empty tomb seems very distant.”

But, she added, we are a people of resurrection. “On Easter, we will gather at the empty tomb and experience again the large stone which was rolled away. We will marvel with the women who were the first to know that Jesus was alive and had triumphed over death. We will remember and give thanks for the stones that have been removed from the tombs of our lives.”

Still, Thompson said we cannot forget those for whom that kind of hope is far away. “May our witness be stronger than the forces which hold others back from flourishing,” she shared, praying that the power of the Holy Spirit will bring an abundance of hope for all.

Watch the full video here.

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