I initially encountered this sort of idea during my younger years in churches where ministers and congregants had abandoned rigid Christianity but remained committed to Christian spiritual experiences. Later, I found it quite prevalent during my time in the Episcopalian community, and then, rather unsettlingly, though for a distinct reason, after we joined the Church.

Certain individuals were convinced that the deceased Jesus resurrected, while others did not appear to share that belief; nevertheless, they all regarded the Resurrection rather than a historical fact, more as a representation that alluded to what we could describe as existential aspirations. They referred to the Resurrection as a magnificent emblem of renewal (similar to spring blossoms), of optimism for brighter tomorrows, of the necessity to endure through challenges, and of God’s affection for humanity.

Positive symbols indicate truths

Those who did not have faith in Jesus departing the Tomb that Easter morning must have expressed something along these lines, or else there wouldn’t have been an Easter sermon. For them, the symbol imparts the narrative with whatever significance it possesses.

Those who believed in the Resurrection sensed, I believe, that they were obligated to say something. They inadvertently, yet effectively, regarded the occurrence as a representation by concentrating on its perceived significance rather than its reality. (I would advise these priests to draw from the Catholic tradition and share what the Resurrection signifies for them.)

Positive symbols influence us since they direct our attention to truths, in a manner that enhances the authenticity of those truths. They achieve this in a way that simple descriptions cannot. They are not similar to road signs indicating an exit but resemble the vehicle that takes you back home.

However — and this is something that too many ministers overlook — we must believe in the realities for the symbols to guide us. I don’t understand why certain individuals find representations of fantasy so appealing. The minister asserts that the deceased remained deceased, yet we have this tale of him unexpectedly showing up to his companions and even dining with them, and naturally he is still dead, but doesn’t that narrative simply bring a sense of comfort to the world?

No, it doesn’t.

Jesus Christ, alive and here

This is frequently observed in how certain individuals attempt to evade the shocking truth of the Eucharist. Even certain Catholic priests refer to it as a communal action rather than a meeting with the living God. They may genuinely uphold the Church’s doctrine, yet their sermons do not reflect this belief, again (I suspect) in an attempt to say something.

The Eucharist is a similar occurrence to the Resurrection: Jesus truly appears. Not as a representation, but as his true self.

There exists a well-known tale regarding Flannery O’Connor, when she was inexperienced and unfamiliar, at a literary gathering with the prominent author Mary McCarthy. “She left the Church at 15 and is a Major Intellect,” O’Connor noted in a correspondence to a friend several years afterward.

O’Connor had remained silent the entire evening, until the early hours when the group began discussing the Eucharist, “which I, being the Catholic, was evidently meant to justify.” McCarthy remarked that as a child she viewed the Host “as the Holy Ghost, He being the ‘most portable’ member of the Trinity; now she regarded it as a symbol and suggested that it was quite a good one.”

That compelled O’Connor to articulate. “I then remarked, in a quite unsteady voice, ‘Well, if it’s a symbol, to hell with it.’ That was the extent of the defense I could muster, but I recognize now that this is all I will ever manage to convey about it, aside from a narrative, except that it is the core of existence for me; everything else is dispensable.”

Jesus Christ has risen today: That transforms the world. The notion that the tale of a Jesus who remained in the grave imparts hope, similar to the blooming of spring flowers: that fails to.