“It so happened that when they gathered together they asked Jesus questions, saying, ‘Master, this is when you’ll restore the Kingdom of Israel, isn’t it'” (Acts 1.6).
Resurrection Sunday always makes me think of the prom scene in Carrie or the climax at the bar in Unforgiven. There are plenty of other movies, but those to me conjure up this sense of the quiet, abused figure who doesn’t want to fight but, in the end—faced with all the wrong done to them—strike out. Reaching down, they touch a power inside them that they’ve kept hidden.
That’s what the story is on this Sunday morning. After three years of taunts and threats which culminate in a brutal beating and painful death, Jesus has stripped away the mask to reveal who he really is. And like a wraith that outshines the sun, he shatters the earth upon his escape from the grave to enact vengeance on those who killed him, and leads his small army of followers to victory, and showing everyone The Way.
Which isn’t how it happened at all.
The Eastern Orthodox Church still practices a method of theological reflection called the via negativa. It stands in the very old tradition that since God is so other to our understanding, the only way we can begin to understand the Divine is by saying what God isn’t. And, since the Resurrection is one of the most alien events in the Gospels, I’ve been wondering if maybe a means to really understanding it is to think about what it isn’t. Like, for instance, a revenge story.
Jesus could have done it. The one who could silence a storm could certainly call one into being. He who gave speech and sight and hearing to those without it had the ability to take it away. And if Elijah could single-handedly take down over four-hundred prophets of Baal, well, temple guards and Roman legions would be no match for the Christ, would they?
I mean, there are stories upon stories throughout history of the vengeful dead who return to seek recompense upon those whose evil deeds harmed them. And this story has those sorts of deeds in spades and, seriously, a death scene that’s more brutal than what you’d find in a mafia movie.
But this isn’t that story. It is exactly the opposite of that story. In fact, Jesus was so opposite the avenging angel that one of his close companions thought he was part of the landscaping crew. And at the end of forty days, when these words are spoken, Jesus tells his friends that, no that’s not how this particular tale is going to be told.
And, you know what, those with him are confused. They don’t understand. What’s the use, after all, of having power like this and not using it? I mean Carrie was telekinetic and Clint Eastwood’s character was second to none with that rifle and look what they did. What’s the point of having such power if you don’t use it?
It almost makes you wonder if there isn’t some greater power here at work.
Risen Christ, today we remember that you conquered death and fear and even the worst we humans can do. But you also taught us what it means to love, even love those who have wronged us. In this season, help me understand what it means when you say that vengeance is yours.