No Easter Blessings today please thanks.

Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. John 19. 30

On this day of horror which we call Good Friday, Easter blessings are out of order as are Easter egg hunts on Maundy Thursday. We have no capacity to understand the joy of Easter if we are not fully enmeshed in the pain of this tragic day.

Last night as many of us followed Jesus' commandment to love one another by washing each other's feet, we were gifted a beautiful sermon about six word memoirs. Introduced with the example of a six word memoir attributed to Ernest Hemingway, "baby shoes for sale unused" our brilliant preacher LP proceeded to offer a list of six word memoirs describing Maundy Thursday. It was stunningly haunting and beautiful to listen to her brief statements that so poignantly embellished the meaning of the service. Pause for a minute and think of six words you might use to describe Good Friday and the pain of it all. For example "unknown man hanging on tree cross ."

This beautiful book has accompanied me for many years as I observed Good Friday. The song below sung with chilling sadness also takes me to that place of great sorrow and fear. Look at the cross today; remember that glamorizing this day is impossible.