Like a news reporter announcing breaking news, Matthew reports that on the first Easter morning, a great earthquake shook the earth. An angel descended from heaven, rolled back the stone from the entrance to Jesus’ tomb, and sat on the stone.
This is the second earthquake recorded in the Gospel of Matthew. The first one took place on Friday, when the noonday sky turned black and Jesus died. Matthew says, “The earth shook, and the rocks were split.”
In Easter Earthquake, James Harnish invites us to place Easter at the center of our Lenten journey. This study explores how Christ’s resurrection shakes some of our most basic assumptions about ourselves and God. Harnish reverses the usual focus of Lenten studies by starting at the empty tomb and seeing the entire journey in light of the resurrection. This different perspective on the passion can bring fresh energy into our lives as followers of Christ.
