Amen!
By: Rev. Dr. Mary Brown
Happy Easter! He is risen!
Or, as my Pappap taught me to say: Christos Anesti!
His father – my great-grandfather – immigrated from Greece to the United States at just 12 years old. Greeks are particularly proud of their heritage; Pappap never missed a chance to weave some Greek culture into our lives. So on Easter Sunday, when everyone else was saying, “Christ is risen,” Pappap took pride in saying it back in Greek: “Christos anesti!”
As a child – long before I studied New Testament Greek – those two words were exotic pieces of a language otherwise unknown to me. And yet, because of who taught them to me, they felt familiar. When my Pappap declared, “Christos anesti!” he always had a big smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye. That communicated to me great joy and a fun bit of mystery.
The Lord’s prayer is another set of spoken words passed down from generation to generation. Some of the words are so foreign and strange to our everyday speech they might as well be Greek! And yet, because of who taught them to us and how they’re spoken, we can experience great joy and an important bit of mystery through them.
On this Easter Sunday, may you experience God’s great “Amen!” to us through Jesus Christ. May you truly know that Christ is risen. Christos Anesti!
