Easter (caution: contains thoughts of religious nature)

I have been musing a lot about finding the reality of things, such as what Waitangi day really signifies to me etc. It is easy to just take a holiday and enjoy it, but it has always felt strange to not know upon what the things we see are based. Easter has been like that too. A good time for a holiday or an AIESEC conference. But there is naturally a root that lies in the past.

Easter originates from the resurrection of Christ and pagan Spring festivals, and now is buffeted by social constructivistic forces. The resurrection of Christ is what I am reading most about lately (although I am interested in finding out about the pagan side one day too). I was quite glad to be reading the last few chapters of Matthew (from the New Testament) which detail Christ's crucifixion on Good Friday and Saturday. Of course, I knew the story previously but I have been gaining more knowledge and perspective of it with every day.

It is this day that really is the beating heart of Christianity. It is to understand how it works that reveals exactly its power. And as any Christian SHOULD tell you, it is not to intellectually accept creation or even the existence of God, the faith in the reality or not of the death and resurrection of Christ and its significance should be the acid test of one's own atheism.

Reading the Bible is mind-altering. On Good Friday, I read a section of Matthew 24 : 30, describing the Second Coming of Christ: "At that time, the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. Then all the people of the world will cry. They will see the Son of Man coming on clouds in the sky with great power and glory." The strange thing is that I had a dream of this kind several weeks previously. I remember I was in the middle of another dream when suddenly the sky went dark and then out of the sun came bright figures riding horses. My mother in the dream, cursed them in a strange way (she is not Christian and often speaks suspiciously of religion). That was spooky. Dreams are unnerving in this way. My religious co-worker at Intrax says his wife has visions in her dreams.

That being said, my understanding of my own mind is that which I am gaining through these experiences.