Rebirth

Hello and Happy Easter!

I felt compelled to write a little note to you today on this day. This time of year has great symbolism for many different cultures. The constant theme for this time of year is rebirth.

Three Events:
It's said that Jewish Passover usually begins the first full moon after the spring equinox (it was a full moon Thursday April 9th) and that the Christian Holiday of Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox.

It's very interesting to note that the Spring Equinox, Passover, Easter and the first Full Moon of Spring are so closely related.

The symbolism of all thee dates corresponding around the same time is not a mistake. The same theme runs through each event: re-birth.

Spring Equinox:
The Spring Equinox marks the beginning of Spring, where in the Northern Hemisphere we come out of the darkness of winter and once again embrace Spring's promise of new life, new harvest and prosperity. In the spring our land is ripe for seed, animals awaken from hibernation and slumber and the plant life begins to blossom again. The environment comes back to life, it is reborn.

Easter:
Easter is the day Jesus Christ rose from the dead and was re-born only three days after his crucifixion on Good Friday. Christians believe that Christ died to wipe clean all the sins of the world and by Christ conquering death those who believe in Him will be forgiven of all sins and find salvation and eternal life through Him. In short, through Christ's death and re-birth we have been given the promise of new and everlasting life.

Passover:
In the Jewish tradition, Passover is a Holy Day that celebrates the Jews escape as slaves of Egypt. God inflicted 10 plagues on the Pharaoh in order to free the Jews, the 10th plague being that of killing every first born son. The Jews were instructed to mark their doors with the blood of a spring lamb and upon seeing this the Spirit of the Lord "passed over" these houses, saving their first born son. The first born of the Pharaoh was killed, and this caused him so much grief that he freed the Jews. So in this way, the Jewish Holiday of Passover celebrates God freeing the Jews from the bondage or death of slavery to be reborn as a free people.

My Thoughts:
No matter what walk of life you come from this is a great time of year to allow yourself to be reborn. We are not what's happened to us. The past is over and done with. The Promise of Spring, the resurrection of Christ and the liberation of the Jews all show us that we can move from darkness to light, from bondage to freedom and from fear to love.

In a sense, many things have died over the past year. We have a new President, probably less money than we had this time last year, maybe we don't have the same job. All the things that have fallen away from our lives have left much room for new life. Maybe you ended a longtime relationship because you new it didn't serve you anymore. We've been given the power to free ourselves.

Let's take this time to see how we can be reborn. So many times we are so sad mourning what we've lost that we can't see the miracles and opportunities that are always at our finger tips. Let us not be slaves to outdated bad habits, or stay in hibernation because we're afraid to face the world outside the cave of our current understanding. Let's go out into the world, get messy, make mistakes and learn that our fears can die and be reborn as love, understanding and courage.

What a miracle, you are alive today on this day where The Promise of Spring, rebirth and new found freedom can be yours.

The choice is yours to make.

With great love,

Mastin