Chaplain's Column | A Good Friday Reflection

‘Christmas is important, but Easter is decisive!’

This quote was not uttered by any Pope or Archbishop from a pulpit, but came from an unlikely source; Arsene Wenger. To be fair, I imagine he wasn’t thinking far beyond Arsenal’s hopes for Premier League success but, as we celebrate Good Friday, he unwittingly uttered a lot of truth beyond football.

On a football level, I am sure there will be high hopes and perhaps even a few prayers that this Easter will be decisive for the Cards. This campaign has been pretty gruelling and nerve shredding but the rise up the table in the last few weeks has lifted spirits. Not far to go now!

However, on this Good Friday it is worth remembering, beyond football, that, in the Christian calendar, the Easter weekend is THE decisive event of all events. It is no exaggeration to say that if true, as millions believe, it is everything or, if untrue, nothing.

Christians pause on Good Friday (ironically at 3 pm!) to recall the moment of Christ’s death on the cross as He prayed ‘Father forgive them’ and declared ‘It is finished’. The Christian belief is that He expressed God’s love as He took the evil, pain and depravity of the world upon Himself and breathed His last. The sky went pitch black and any lingering hope for humankind was extinguished. That however was not the end as, on Easter Sunday morning the tomb was empty and a new era of hope was born, as people met and were changed through the resurrected Jesus.

Since then, ‘the greatest story ever told’ and, more importantly, the personal experience of that story has been a source of hope and confidence for many millions, if not billions. The Christian hope on Good Friday is that however dark the situation and overwhelming the struggle we are facing hope can always be found in the resurrection of the Easter events.

In writing this column I am very aware that not all who read it will be Christians but hope that for all there is an opportunity for reflection. If Easter is decisive then hope is never lost – there is always a positive future to be searched out if we look in the right place.

Have a wonderful Easter everyone and Come On You Cards – let’s do this!