Roll Tide… Eastertide, that is
I’ve spent some time on the campus of the University of Alabama. No matter where I’ve gone in the city of Tuscaloosa, I’ve been greeted with, “Roll Tide.” On campus at the bookstore, “Roll Tide.” Enter the dorm for a tour, “Roll Tide.” Grab a bite at the local Chick-Fil-A, “Roll Tide.” The enthusiasm and consistency of this greeting made a winning impression.
Tides are a powerful force – the alternate rising and falling of the surface of the ocean in relation to the turning of the earth and the gravitational pull of the moon. I think this tidal power is why folks in central Alabama have made “Roll Tide” more common than “Hello.”
But, there is a more ancient meaning to the word “tide” that still has power in spiritual circles. Before “tide” became associated with the rising and falling of the ocean, “tide” simply meant “an opportune time or moment.” As in, “high tide is an opportune time to launch our ship.”
On rare occasions, you’ll hear a Christian—even in the USA—refer to “Christmastide.” The Charlie Brown Christmas special has a lovely musical number called “Christmastide is here.” This refers to the season, the 12 days of Christmas, which are the opportune moment to recognize and celebrate the coming of Jesus Christ into the world. Personally, a 12-day-long Christmastide season sounds amazing compared to merely a couple of days of holiday!
On even rarer occasions, the concept of “Eastertide” is mentioned. Eastertide embraces the idea that we need a season—a 50-day season(!)—to celebrate and explore the reality of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. A single day is not enough to contain our joy or allow us to tease out the infinite implications of Jesus’ risen life.
In recent years at ECRC, our Sunday morning worship services have sought to embrace resurrection realities in the seven Sundays following the Great Sunday of Easter. This year, we’ll continue this practice by leaning into a variety of responses that lovers of Jesus find themselves adopting in the wake of his resurrection. We aim to make this simple and memorable by sharing a representative word each week. For example,
Wow!
Thank you so much
I love you
Help!
More, please
I’m hopeful that these short phrases, rooted in passages from the Gospels and the Psalms, will help us to express ourselves to God with greater freedom and fewer inhibitions. Jesus rose to set us free, after all. Free to worship. Free to serve. Free to express our undying love for him. Lord willing, we’ll be able to do that with great energy and life this very Sunday!
– Pastor Gregg