I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else. – C.S. Lewis, theologian and author.

 

This weekend, Christians around the world celebrate Easter – the commemoration of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ that forms the crux of the Christian faith.

Billions of people – from Catholics to Baptists, Methodists to non-denominational worshippers – will mark this event in sunrise services and formal liturgies, all of which celebrate the light and the life that comes from Christ.

That light, just like the sun, illuminates not only the sky but all it touches, just as faith illuminates not just the prayer of a Christian, but all he touches in life.

Jesus Christ preached a consistent and simple message: to love, God first and fellow man second. He commanded that his believers should serve others, whether that be through the humble act of washing feet of healing the skin of leper. He challenged those who would follow him to lose their lives – their pride, their desires, their worldly ways – in exchange for the love of their fellow man and the love of God.

And, in the ultimate sacrifice of love, he allowed himself to be crucified on a cross then rose again as he conquered death, for us.

And some 2,000 years later, his message is just as relevant. We may not be faced with lepers or beheading at the hands of a Roman soldier, but we are faced with an increasing secular society and everyday opportunities to let the light of faith shine through – if, like C.S. Lewis so eloquently explained, by faith we see everything else.