During this difficult time throughout the world, church buildings are closed, but Christians still rejoice in the message of hope through Easter. We asked area pastors for their words of encouragement.

Promise fulfilled every day

The transition from Good Friday to Easter morning was life-changing for the followers of Jesus.

A joy that led to new life every day!

That everyday experience and relationship with the living Christ is the essence of Easter.

Despite canceled egg hunts and ham dinners, the promise and experience of Easter joy and new life continues. The living Lord is with us all despite the separation.

Easter means the promise is fulfilled every day. He is with us to the end of the age.

So while we are physically separate, we are united with Him and one another.

Happy Easter!

The Rev. Dean Frey, Zion United Church of Christ, Lehighton

One true God

When I think about hope, one thought always resonates above all else: The one true God who is creator and sovereign over all, is the same one who loves me immeasurably more than any other. His love is far superior in every single way than anything we have ever experienced here on earth. It is purer. It is stronger. It knows no bounds.

Fear and anxiety come from uncertainty, but in Christ Jesus we as believers experience a glorious peace for we have a certain future. We will have times of struggle, sickness and tragedy in this life, but it is only temporary. Eternity awaits us with our Heavenly Father where there will be no more pain, nor tears, nor death.

The Rev. Mike Coulson, People’s EC Church, Lehighton

The new morning

Among beloved Easter hymns many Christians enjoy singing is “Low in the Grave He Lay.” We are in the “low,” waiting, staying in, time of this COVID-19 pandemic.

Think of Jesus dying on the cross on Good Friday. After his death, Jesus’ body lay low, in the tomb, through Saturday. But as Easter arrives, the sun rises and God’s Son rises victorious over sin and death!

“On the first day of the week, very early … the women … found the stone rolled away from the tomb … ‘Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!’?” (Luke 24:1-6). God brings the new morning, “weeping may endure through the night but joy cometh in the morning.” (Psalm 30:5). “Hallelujah! Christ Arose!”

The Rev. James LeVan, Slatington Baptist Church

Hope of a better tomorrow

My dear faithful people,

Nothing could have prepared us to experience the caution, the fear and the encounter of this Holy Week experience and the COVID-19 virus. As hopeless as we might all feel, today’s great feast of Easter reveals to us the hope of a better tomorrow.

Jesus’ death upon the cross was the culmination of a life of love. He loved us all from the very beginning of His public ministry. He taught us that goodness can overcome any threat of evil and sin. Death in this life is not the last word.

Most of us were not around to experience World War II. Countless lives were lost in the darkness of personal sacrifice to break the bonds of an evil hold upon a good peaceful society. It wasn’t until countless lives were lost and much blood spilled upon the many battlefields and seas that the success of all the sacrifices made led to the proclamation of V.E. day, Victory in Europe.

Today V.E. day has a new meaning for us Christians, Victory at Easter. Yes, the sacrifice of Jesus and the spilling of His blood upon the battlefield of Calvary was a real sacrifice resulting in death. A new hope and a new life has been gained by the death and resurrection of Our Lord. Easter is a happy time. It tells us there is a life after death. It is worth a great celebration.

It tells us there is hope, no matter how desperate life seems to get. With Jesus, we can conquer anything and anywhere.

Jesus has promised to share His risen glory with all who follow Him. This is a feast of tremendous hope! This is a feast of precious life! This is a feast of the redemption of Jesus’ promise of peace and eternal happiness.

God Bless you all. Happy Easter!

Monsignor John Chizmar, St. Peter the Fisherman Church, Lake Harmony

He is alive!

After the cross addresses the despair of human pain and suffering with God’s sacrificial love, what is equally amazing to me is the hope Scripture confides in and following the resurrection.

Read the experience of appearances at the very end of each of the four gospels and how they tell of peace, joy and love. This is our future in Christ. And this is the good news.

Now let the heav’ns be joyful,

Let earth her song begin,

The round world keep high triumph,

And all that is therein.

Indivisible and visible,

Their notes let all things blend,

For Christ the Lord hath risen,

Our joy shall have no end.

(John of Damascus - Eighth Century)

Christ is Risen, He is Risen indeed)

The Rev. F. Peter Muhr, The Lutheran Church of St. John in the Heights, Jim Thorpe

We’ll make it

These past few months have been very trying, not knowing when a sense of normalcy will return. Our church just celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2019. The congregation over the past 150 years endured pandemic flu/virus, wars, the Great Depression, but made it through. During this Holy Week, look within, self-reflect, pray, open your heart to God our father.

We too will get through this. Our faith, our hope and our love for our risen savior, Jesus Christ our lord will make us stronger. Have a blessed Easter.

The Rev. Dan Meader, Coaldale United Methodist Church

Removing the obstacles

From lockdown to liberty! This is what we all long for today isn’t it? That was also the original story when Jesus was put to death: crucified on the cross of Calvary and then raised up again to life on what we call Easter Sunday.

John 20:1 tells us that Mary Magdalene went to the tomb where Jesus was buried “while it was still dark,” found the stone was rolled away and then witnessed the risen Lord Jesus in person, alive and face to face!

Her first steps toward Jesus and His resurrection power were taken by faith and through darkness so that when she arrived at that garden tomb; God had already removed the great obstacles that overwhelmed the followers of Jesus and kept them hiding behind locked doors: Death, darkness, doom and despair! Almighty God the Father rolled them all away with that huge stone and lifted up His only begotten Son Jesus in resurrection power, not just for the hour, or the day, or the season; but for all of eternity.

Jesus opens locked doors, blows away all obstacles, and floods our steps of faith with His eternal gifts of life, light and liberty; do not be afraid, but embrace His resurrection power and start walking in His ways even now … and forever more … Amen!

The Rev. Rob Timlin, Faith Alive U.M. Church, Palmerton

Not an ordinary day

Like Christmas, this day ordinarily would be one for welcoming all the herd: parishioners of varying familiarity, children home from school, relatives from out of town, the customary and the curious.

Instead, I greet you not face-to-face - not even mask-to-mask - but screen-to-screen.

All of you, present to the heart of Christ at His painful triumph on the Cross; all of us, united with Him before the Father of mercies, gathered in ways and for reasons nobody would have considered only a few months ago.

All of it, a poignant reminder that God is in control. He embraced sin, suffering and death and achieved victory over them, so that our experience of these need not define us, but rather refine us.

The Rev. Christopher M. Zelonis, SS. Peter and Paul Parish, Lehighton

In God’s hands

We are in good hand, God’s hands!

The final words of Jesus before he took his final breath: “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” Psalm 31:5 is an evening prayer taught to all Hebrew children.

Jesus was entrusting his life into His Father’s hands. Like a “trust fall” when you fall back, trusting that whoever is behind you will not let you fall, hurt yourself, or hit the ground, but will catch you and raise you up with their hands. Jesus, with a childlike faith and trust in His Father, fell into His hands! A trust fall!

Psalm 31:15 says: “My times are in your hands …”

Can we claim this hope for “our times,” the COVID-19 pandemic? I believe we can. God is faithful to His promises, He is victorious over His enemies. He is our ever present help in times of trouble (Psalm 46:1). We are in good hands when we entrust our times into God’s hands.

Psalm 31 ends with these words: “Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.” There is much concern about the physical health and economic well-being of our country and the world. Our hope is in medical science finding a cure. Our hope is in an economic stimulus that will get America working again.

But, is our hope in the Lord? On Easter we celebrate the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ! God, the Father, raised up His Son and exalted Him (Philippians 2:6-11). The spiritual health and well-being of America and our hope in the Lord - we need to trust, entrust, all of life into God’s hands as did Jesus with his last words before his last breath.

The Rev. Steve Boothe, Middlecreek Christian Church, Kresgeville

God is still raised

In our normal celebrations of Easter, when we’re not in the midst of a global health crisis, joy consumes the day.

This year our Easter celebrations are much closer to the realities of the first Easter.

Early in the morning, while it’s still dark, Mary goes to the tomb because she can’t sleep. She’s haunted by her friend’s death. While it’s still dark Mary is in the garden only to find the tomb empty. She thinks to herself, “Someone has stolen the body.”

Fear and anxiety grip Mary, so much so that she’s unable to recognize Jesus and mistakes him for the gardener. The disciples, onlookers and other close friends were also fearful and sad. For however long it took Mary to run from the garden to town to tell the others, she was the Church. She was the only one who had seen the risen Christ.

Imagine the magnitude of emotions Mary must have felt. We too know what the weight of anxiety and fear can do, but even when it’s Friday, and even if Easter still feels like Good Friday, God is with us in our suffering and the tomb is still empty, and our God is still raised!

The Rev. Lauren Wolfe Blatt, St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, Mahoning

Life anew

During trying times, it is important not to lose hope. Be reassured we will gather again. Until that time, let us continue to be safe and keep social distancing at the forefront, wash our hands, wear masks when out completing essential chores, and telephone loved ones to check on their health and spirits.

And most of all to remain encouraged by offering support, confidence, and hope that these wearisome periods will not last, but a new day will dawn.

A basic tenet of Christianity is the Resurrection commemorated during Holy Week. God’s revelation that just beyond Good Friday is Easter, where the Resurrection looms beyond the death on the Cross. When the quarantine ends from this pandemic, life will begin again in a new way.

The Rev. James D. Robison, Good Shepherd United Church of Christ, Slatington

Rolling away the stone

As we struggle with the weight of the COVID-19 crisis, social distancing is one of the best means by which to combat its spread. However, it also creates issues of its own as the number of those experiencing loneliness, depression and job loss has increased dramatically.

We can feel like Sisyphus, condemned for eternity to roll a heavy stone up a hill. In Mark 16:3, the women approach the tomb and ask, “Who will roll away the stone for us?”

The state of society may feel daunting, but our hope comes in knowing the same God who rolled away the stone and raised Christ from the dead, will provide for us. May God remove your stone of burden and provide for your new life this Easter.

The Rev. Tony Pagotto, Dinkey Memorial Lutheran Church, Ashfield/Trinity Lutheran Church, Bowmanstown

God’s promise

Few will argue that recent weeks have been some of the most challenging we’ve ever experienced.

All have been affected as a microscopic virus turned our lives upside down. Store shelves are empty. Schools and workplaces have closed. Jobs have been lost; anxiety and uncertainty have skyrocketed. Loved ones are isolated and alone. Too many people are sick, and far too many have died.

Perhaps, though, our moment of unprecedented trial points us to the only one who truly understands isolation, agony and death: Jesus Christ.

Perhaps the amazing life, horrific death and glorious resurrection of Jesus reminds us that nothing in the world can separate us from God and God’s love for us! I believe that’s exactly what Easter is all about: God’s promise that nothing - not a virus, not even death - has power over us any longer. Alleluia!

That powerful truth may seem hard to grasp as we remain isolated.

Dear friends, fear not: Jesus will meet us right where we are. Just like that first Easter morning, as Mary Magdalene was alone and weeping, Jesus will greet us by name with the joy of resurrection!

The Rev. Brad Leight, Grace-St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, Jim Thorpe

A plan for us

On Good Friday, Christians everywhere gather at the foot of the cross and stare death in the face. But we do so knowing the cross isn’t the end of the story. Sunday is coming, and with it, resurrection.

Likewise, our current reality isn’t the end of our story. The author of life is still writing, still creating.

The plot includes many twists and turns that lead us into unfamiliar and sometimes frightening places.

Each experience, whether pleasant or distressing, brings growth and wisdom as we mature and blossom.

As our story unfolds, trust the One who assures his people, “For surely I know the plans I have for you … plans for your welfare and not for harm, to give you a future with hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

The Rev. Ruth Ann Christopher, Hope of Christ Presbyterian Church, Summit Hill

Not the end of story

As Catholics we face the darkness of Good Friday when we embrace the sufferings of Jesus as we bear our crosses in life. That suffering has now come to all of us as we face the effects of the coronavirus on our families, communities and parishes.

However, as people of Faith, we know our Good Friday experiences are not the end of our story for following such experiences we will, like Jesus, celebrate a joyful Easter.

This is the time when God’s light shines forth to overcome the darkness and brings us His gifts of Peace and offers to all who are faithful the promise of Eternal Life in Heaven!

May the Joy of Easter brighten each of your lives.

The Rev. William T. Campion, Sacred Heart Parish, Palmerton

Light in the darkness

In John’s Gospel, it says that one of Jesus’ followers, Mary Magdalene, comes to visit Jesus’ grave so early, dawn hasn’t come yet. “While it was still dark,” Mary comes to the tomb, and finds it’s empty! Mary didn’t realize it at the time, but God has raised Jesus from death, “while it was still dark.”

That’s still how God works miracles sometimes - while it’s still dark.

One of the darkest years of my life was 2008. It began with the death of my Dad, I “celebrated” Valentine’s Day by going to a lawyer, for a divorce. Mom was disappearing in dementia. A friend had a stroke, and died two days later. Then, another friend, and his teenage daughter, were killed in an accident.

I felt VERY dark, inside. But God can work, while it’s still dark. A church friend put a Bible verse on my door: In quiet, and in trust, shall be your strength (Isaiah 30:15) That was the light that helped me get through the dark! God still works, while it is dark. In these dark times, watch for God, offering you some light, to get through the darkness.

The Rev. David Quinn, St. John’s UCC, Palmerton

Resurrection changes everything

Though the ways in which we celebrate will change this week, the reason for the celebration remains the same. Jesus Christ hung on a cross, was buried in a tomb, and came back to life, and He lives today at the right hand of God the Father, praying for us.

“In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” (John 1:4-5)

The Resurrection changed everything for the scared, selfish men who were His disciples; they ignited the greatest advancement in human history as the result of the Resurrection. So it is for us. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. Let His light shine brightly within you!

The Rev. Cliff Eckhart, Blue Mountain Community Church, Palmerton

Searching for the rock

During this time of uncertainty many people have found themselves searching for a rock, fortress, support or some other means of sturdy reliability. As a priest and pastor I have always taken consolation in the piece of art called “Compassion” by William Bouguereau. Many people see this painting as depressing but I offer that it is not depressing, it gives hope.

Christianity has as one of its core beliefs that suffering is redemptive, namely, the cross always leads to the Resurrection. Like Jesus Christ our suffering through this time of pandemic will lead to newness of life just as Jesus’ death on the cross lead not only to his Resurrection but salvation for all of humanity.

As we enter into these “Holy Days” let us not forget that almost everything that was worth doing had some form of sacrifice attached. We love these stories because they inspire. Jesus’ story has inspired people for 2,000 years because of the fullness of His passion, death, AND resurrection.

Be assured of this, in 2,000 years people will still be talking about Jesus’ Paschal Mystery but if we follow or “hold on to” his way and his cross, as the picture depicts, they will also talk about the people of 2020 who imitated the work of their Savior by showing coronavirus who the real king is!

The Rev. Allen J. Hoffa, M.Div., St. Joseph Parish of the Panther Valley, Summit Hill

All can be overcome

Marg Magdalene and the “other Mary” went to Jesus’ tomb to grieve. But when they arrived, according to the Gospel of Matthew, the earth shook. God’s messenger, gleaming like lightning, rolled the stone away and said, “Be not afraid.” Jesus is not here. He is risen. Go and tell the disciples. So, the women ran toward the disciples with fear and great joy. On the way, they encountered the risen Lord. They fell down and worshipped him. Jesus also said, “Be not afraid … go and tell my disciples.” These women were the first two evangelists on Easter morning.

God’s love has conquered death. Do not be afraid. If God can defeat death, all can be overcome - a virus, self-isolation, and unemployment included. There is an ancient blessing … May you fear God so much, that you fear nothing at all.

Rev. Suzanne Brooks-Cope, St. Matthew’s UCC, Kunkletown

In the storm

This Easter, like no Easter before, feels as if we are adrift in a storm in which we have no control. It feels like Jesus’ disciples felt like when they were caught in a boat on the Sea of Galilee in a raging storm.

Jesus had told them to cross over the sea, a trip that should have taken about an hour and a half. But after about nine exhausting hours of fighting against the storm, they spotted something out on the water. “A ghost!” they said, crying out in terror. (Matthew 14:26).

It never occurred to them that Jesus would come to them that way.

Neither do we.

We always expect Him to come to us as we sing familiar hymns on Easter Sundays or reflect on Good Friday. We never expect to see Him in a job loss or in a pandemic. We never expect to see Him in a storm. But, you see, it’s in the storm that he does his best work, because it’s in the storms that he finally can get our attention.

Jesus’ reply to the disciples is something we should write down and put on our bathroom mirrors and our refrigerator doors. “Don’t be afraid,” He said. “Take courage. I am here!” (Matthew 14:27).

Many of us are asking, “Where is God in this storm?” He’s in the storm with you. You can see Him in the compassionate touch of medical professionals and first responders. In the kindness of neighbors. In the generosity of people like you. We see only a small portion of His activity. But we know this: He is still stepping into the storms of life.

Jesus met His disciples in the midst of their storm. Invite Him into the middle of yours.

The Rev. Tim Ream, Bethany Evangelical Congregational Church, Lehighton