March 21, 2008 - Roll Away the Stone

This meditation was given at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Scarborough by Fran Ota.

At the beginning of Lent at Glen Ayr, we started a little meditation with stones. Each person received a small bag, like this, with two stones in it - purple and clear. Each day of Lent, people were encouraged to spend some time at the end of the day reflecting on whether or not they had emulated Jesus, or not. If not, the purple stone went into the little bag and was carried around until the next evening. If they had, the clear stone went into the bag.

Throughout the scriptures, stones play a part. From the rock in Exodus, to the temptation in the desert to make bread out of stones, and on this day, as we remember the crucifixion, a tomb with stone rolled across the entrance. Common burial custom. But what does the stone across the tomb represent? Is it just something which happened to Jesus as a practicing Jew, or is there something deeper here?

A couple of weeks ago, the morning readings gave us the story of Lazarus. The Gospel writer used two words for the death of Lazarus - one was when Jesus said he was asleep, and the other when Jesus said he was dead. ...Jesus called Lazarus to come out, and then said to the others “Unbind him and set him free.” Set him free from what? The things which bound him in life?

So Jesus is bound and wrapped and placed in a tomb - and the stone is rolled over the entrance. Is that a metaphor for faith? Is our faith bound, and wrapped, placed in a tomb and a stone rolled over the entrance to our hearts?

There is a Danish Christmas carol which is the perfect amalgamation of the meaning of Christmas and Easter. It is a minor key, slow but very powerful. The words of one verse go like this:

I am the thorns that crowned you, I am the whips that scourge,
I am the chains that bound you, who all my sins did purge.
I am the cross you shoulder, a cross that crucifies;
against your tomb the boulder. When will my heart arise?

When will our hearts arise? When the stone is rolled away, and faith emerges unbound and free. Then our hearts will arise.