Article March 25, 1991 Issue

SECOND THOUGHT

Looking again at news and commentary

The Christian Ministry

[Excerpts from a sermon on Mark 16:1–8, regarding the three women, followers of Jesus, who discovered the empty sepulcher where Jesus had been laid. Mark 16:8 records: "And they went out quickly, and fled from the sepulchre; ... neither said they any thing to any man; for they were afraid." The sermon was delivered by Pamela J. Abbey, pastor of Faith United Methodist Fellowship in Fresno, California.]

"Why would these faithful ones, who [had] followed Jesus down the dusty roads of Galilee, tolerate the crucifixion's agony but not the resurrection's joy? Because the crucifixion is understandable; the resurrection is not.

"The crucifixion was predictable. If you disturbed the authorities in a Roman-occupied territory, then you could expect to end up on a cross. And even if you managed to escape that fate, death eventually comes to all. The crucifixion was a tragedy, but it wouldn't change the women's lives. ...

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