Should Easter be surprising?

This week, we're posting three lectionary blog posts: Maundy Thursday's on Monday, Good Friday's yesterday, and Easter Sunday's today. For more commentary on the readings, see the Reflections on the Lectionary page, which includes current Living by the Word columns as well as past magazine and blog content. For full-text access to all articles, subscribe to the Century.

In my experience, Easter Sunday is a fairly scripted event. For weeks, the choir has been practicing special music, perhaps a cantata. Extra bulletins have been printed since there may be visitors to the church, those Christmas-and-Easter Christians we are always talking about. Additional worshipers means that preparing and serving communion will take longer. There may be a bit of exhaustion—Holy Week services have drawn us into the agonies of Jesus’ last days. Pastors may have bags packed, ready to head out for a few days after all the extra work.

Easter has been coming, and we’ve made sure to be ready. We want to do it well. Easter can be so well-prepared that it sometimes seems rather un-Easter-like.