Easter 2016 #forgive #happyeaster
Bishops want to take Easter back to the church through new language and meaningful conversation
Easter is the major Christian feast and an underlying story in our culture. It is about the great questions in life and about personal human experiences – hope, reconciliation, forgiveness, community, faith in life – but also failure, loneliness, suffering and death.
Despite all this many people think of Easter primarily as a time for doing the garden and eating chocolate.
The bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Denmark (ELCD) wish to change this and celebrate Easter 2016 in a way that will strike a responsive chord even outside the walls of the church.
New language
The aim of this special focus is to present the message of Easter with a new language and to create space for meaningful conversations and reflections.
Each diocese and indeed each parish is invited to promote the campaign, especially through social media and in the actual meeting with people. Materials and inspiration have been created and can be found at the ELCD website.
Forgiveness in focus
Forgiveness has been chosen as the theme to open up the Easter universe of community, death and resurrection.
- Easter is one great story of forgiveness, says Bishop Henrik Wigh-Poulsen, chair of the steering committee for the Easter project.
- The times we live in are marked by a colossal lack of compromise and reconciliation. It is a very angry time we live in. We see it as soon as we enter social media and when we read the newspapers. There is an immense anger and contrast everywhere. Forgiveness is a correction to this agenda. It always speaks of an alternative opportunity; a different perspective in life.
Participation is crucial
Parishes and individuals are invited to take part in the conversation about Easter wherever they are, whether in church, at the family dinner or on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Via Social Media and the hashtags #forgive and #happyeaster (in Danish) thoughts and reflections can be brought to a community level without leaving your favourite chair
The daffodil
In Denmark, the daffodil (in Danish: Easter lily) is a symbol of resurrection since N.S.F.Grundtvig wrote the hymn “Easter flow’r, now what on earth!” (Påskeblomst, hvad vil du her?) in 1817. The Easter 2016 project has chosen the daffodil as its symbol. People are encouraged to take photos of the flower and post them on Social Media and the churches to give flowers to members of the congregation on Easter morning. This way people will meet the symbol of resurrection inside as well as outside the church.
Listen to the hymn of N.S.F.Grundtvig here
