Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” (John 12:24 ESVi)
We need death in our lives. We cling to this idea of resurrection because we don’t want the “good things“ in our lives to end. We don’t want to lose our loved ones permanently, so we are encouraged by the idea of resurrection and being reunited. We don’t want our own lives to end, so we hold on to this hope of resurrection – continuation. But, we need death in order for life to be created.
Jesus equated death in the metaphor of a seed being planted much like a body is buried in the ground. The seed needs to be planted in order for the new life to realize growth. The fact that he said “unless” it falls it remains alone would seem to also indicate that death is a doorway to our connection – perhaps to God, perhaps connection to others.
Someday I will die and all that I am will “fall into the ground” in order for a new life to be realized. Until then, maybe all that I think I am can die in order to create the “much fruit”, the connection of the eternal.
Perhaps at some level fear of death stems from not knowing what that new life will actually look like. This is the importance of living in the now. The “good” memories that we cling, to or the “bad” ones we so desperately cannot seem to shed are the antithesis of new life. They’re an ego driven struggle to hold on to that which needs to die. “Good” or “bad” everything at some point in our journey needs to die in order for the cycle of life to continue. In the words attributed to the prayer Saint Francis, “It is in dying that we are born to eternal life.”
I believe in the power of the resurrection. I believe that resurrection power courses through every human being and we realize that power as we deepen our connection with God who energizes the entire cycle as Love. But, you can’t experience resurrection without first experiencing death.
So then the question is what in my life needs to die in order to realize the more that already is?
Happy Easter & Blessed Resurrection.