Reflections on Easter: More than an annual rite of spring

Easter.

It’s the world’s greatest cause célèbre, surpassing all others by light years. Nearly 2 billion Christians worldwide claim as fact that Jesus Christ rose from the dead.

They trust their eternal salvation to Easter’s astonishing message.

The long arm of death can no longer menace. The maker of the universe has stepped into creation and, in breathtaking fashion, rescued humankind. Jesus’ death and resurrection bring hope.

Now, to be sure, life exists beyond the veil. Jesus made the down payment on our freedom with his final ragged breath on a 1st century Roman cross.

Were the resurrection simply a legend, humanity’s future would be hopeless, not to mention completely without purpose.

“And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins,” says the Apostle Paul in a sobering passage of his first letter to the Corinthians.

But because Christ was raised from the tomb, death no longer has the final word.

American writer John Updike, in his “Seven Stanzas at Easter,” says: “Make no mistake: If he rose at all / it was as His body; / If the cell’s dissolution did not reverse, the molecule reknit, / the amino acids rekindle, / the church will fall.”

The church stands.

“Atheism has no answer to death, no ultimate hope to give,” writes Oxford mathematician John Lennox in his book “Gunning for God: Why the New Atheists are Missing the Target.”

“It is an empty and sterile worldview, which leaves us in a closed universe that will ultimately incinerate any last trace that we ever existed,” Lennox writes. “It is, quite literally, a hopeless philosophy. Its story ends in the grave. But the resurrection of Jesus opens the door on a bigger story. It is for each one of us to decide whether it is the true one or not.”

Personally, I opt for the “bigger story.”

Easter must be taken literally. The resurrection is either God unleashing a power greater than the Big Bang or it’s apple sauce.

No silly metaphors. We can handle the truth.

My wife, Hedy, and I recently watched the Sony Pictures film, “Risen.” It tells a story familiar to most of us and describes in detail a journey many — myself included — have taken.

Roman military tribune Clavius, a nonbeliever, is tasked by Pontius Pilate to confirm whether or not Jesus of Nazareth — after having died publicly on a rough hewn cross outside the gates of Jerusalem — has risen, as claimed by his followers. Find the body!

Clavius, portrayed masterfully by English actor Joseph Fiennes, dutifully embarks upon his mission. He encounters resurrection where he expects to find death and decay. Jesus is risen.

That’s the orthodox view of a story of immeasurable significance. So reliable is it in my estimation that I’ve staked my life to it.

“Risen” is no made-up-from-whole-cloth “Last Temptation of Christ” with its evident deceptions. Employing plausible extra-biblical artistic touches, the truth of “Risen” is lifted from the pages of Scripture.

Even Rotten Tomatoes, the review aggregator website, gives grudging approbation, calling “Risen” a faith-based film that might entertain a few nonbelievers, despite some occasional hokiness, and one that balances weighty themes with a wry sense of humor and sincere performances.

I took Clavius’ journey nearly 40 years ago.

Agnostic due to personal lassitude, I read Josh McDowell’s classic, “Evidence that Demands a Verdict,” in the late 1970s. I found it clear-minded and compelling. I also read everything I could by C.S. Lewis.

Years later, after having committed to the faith, I read Lee Strobel’s “The Case for Christ: A Journalist’s Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus.”

McDowell, an agnostic as a young man, examined the claims of Christianity and laid out overwhelming evidence for the reliability of Christian doctrine.

Strobel, an avowed atheist, set out to write a book condemning Christianity. His effort was so futile that he ended up embracing the faith. He spent two years interviewing experts from the fields of science, philosophy and history about the evidence for Christ.

Easter is more than an annual rite of spring.

It’s infinite power unlocking the door to ultimate freedom.

JIM CARNETT, who lives in Costa Mesa, worked for Orange Coast College for 37 years.