EASTER SUNDAY. THAT DAY BRINGS UP HAPPY MEMORIES FROM MY childhood: a big dinner after church and the Easter egg hunt when each of us would find our baskets filled with jelly beans and chocolate bunnies. But along with all that, I remember loving the stirring hymns, the fragrance of orchids and lilies in the church, and the joyful celebration of Jesus' triumph over the grave. But even with all the trappings of my family's Easter celebrations, that deeply comforting event of 2,000 years ago spoke to my child's heart. I recall the words from the old gospel hymn "I love to tell the story" reassuring me that the idea of "Jesus and his glory, / ... Jesus and his love" was a universal message, not limited to any specific place and time.
Back then I didn't know why the "old, old story" in that dear hymn moved me so deeply. But as an adult, I learned through Christian Science that Jesus' resurrection promises my own resurrection—my own lifting out of material thinking and limitation. Now I can see why I responded to those hymns and the Bible accounts telling about Jesus rising from the tomb. I see now that Jesus' understanding of his true spiritual identity—eternal and untouched by matter—serves as a model for everyone. As each of us learns more and more of our own inviolate spiritual identity, resurrection takes place continuously, moment by moment—in thought—as we rise out of matterbased beliefs such as fear, anguish, loneliness, deprivation, and illness. And as we rise to higher views, we awaken to the radiance and harmony of divine Life.
This month, as the Christian world celebrates the Easter season, Contributing Editor Allison W. Phinney delves into the Scientific explanation of Jesus' resurrection. And Lois Rae Carlson, also a contributing editor, explains why Easter doesn't fall on only one Sunday a year—because every day brings Easter blessings. In fact, all the articles and testimonies in this issue offer beautiful accounts of healing and tell of writers' own "resurrection" moments. These articles show that resurrection out of material thinking guarantees healing and transformation—and that Life, indeed, does spring eternal.
