Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Progressive Christian
Religious Events
The Trap of Easter Tradition

The Trap of Easter Tradition

Last updated on: April 9, 2023 at 11:29 pm by Duncan Edward Pile

0 Comments

The Trap of Easter Tradition 2023-04-09T23:29:07+01:00 Duncan Edward Pile

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I’m not a lover of tradition. The school I attended in my youth was all gowns, mortar boards, titles, oak panelling, Latin mottos, and a penchant for male self-regard. I hated all that. It felt like a language I couldn’t speak, and as an individual I responded to warmth and informality instead. This is still my nature today. As an employee of a youth charity, I can say with complete certainty that not a single child or young person in our care benefits from overbearing, stuffy tradition, and that every person I work with is down to earth and unconcerned with ceremony.

I suppose this puts me on one end of the scale, while others are comforted by the familiarity and consistency of tradition and routine. Perhaps this is why Paul wrote the following in Romans 14:5 and 17, urging us not to quarrel about ‘disputable matters’:

One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind. Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord…

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit

And again in Colossians 2: 16-17

Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.

The challenge for someone with a non-traditionalist viewpoint like my own is that although these passages explicitly give permission to each of us to make that choice privately (specifically whether or not one celebrates a Holy Day or sees all days as alike), we are not to judge those who take the opposite view. I do intend, however, to challenge a traditional approach because of its potential pitfalls, and am happy to field responses.

Tradition is just a shadow

I want to be honest – the stations of the cross and other aspects of memorialising Easter are off-putting to me. The key to celebrating Easter authentically must lie in the last statement of the quoted verses from Colossians:

These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.

The reality of Easter is not contained by religious structures, calendars, or events, but directly in Christ, engaged with through the Holy Spirit. I don’t understand why we would peer so intently at a shadow when we can cling to the one casting it.

Structure or substitute?

Though a structure can be helpful, it can also serve as a substitute for true spirituality. Let’s say a group of people attend the same events in the religious calendar. Perhaps liturgy is involved and they all speak the same words. Does this mean that each is authentically engaging with God? Of course not. Mimicry is entirely possible, and can lead to self-deception, believing ourselves to be celebrating or remembering Easter even if the evidence of Easter is lacking in our behaviour and in our connection with the Holy Spirit.

Personally, I shunt all tradition from the tracks and then peel up the tracks themselves. Give me open, uncharted countryside, and my Lord to walk with! Let Easter be deep in my heart each and every day, rather than focussed on at specific times of year.

Jesus was not a fan of tradition

Jesus challenged the potential deception of tradition in Mark 7: 5-13

So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with defiled hands?”

He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:

“‘These people honour me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from me.

They worship me in vain;

their teachings are merely human rules.’

You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human traditions….thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down.

Tradition (and liturgy) enables the honouring of God with our lips while our hearts are far from him, and can nullify the word of God. Of course, the same could be said of contemporary worship. The structure is not the substance, and can end up being a substitute for meaningful, connected spirituality.

The only people Jesus rebuked with any consistency and in the harshest terms were religious leaders, who imposed traditions and structures to mask their lack of love.

The Danger of Tradition

We only need to look at the tension in Israel to understand how an obsession with the holiness of certain days and places leads to anger, competition, and violence. If all three monotheistic religions carried the truth in their hearts instead of placing paramount importance on calendars and the physical structures of this world, Israel would be a peaceful place. I’ll leave that there…

A living tradition

I used to attend a lively Pentecostal church in Nottingham, where I learned how to walk with God. I remember an impassioned sermon by the senior pastor, preaching at Easter. With tears in his eyes and a choke in his voice, he said:

“When I think about the cross, I see my Lord’s torture and humiliation. I hate to look at it, but the Holy Spirit makes me!”

I was utterly taken aback. My experience was one of trying to feel something about the cross, but rarely getting there. I wanted to connect more deeply to the Easter story, but I had little or no engagement with the Holy Spirit at that time in my life. This man’s experience was the opposite. Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he saw the terror of the cross for what it was and was horrified to know his Lord, who he loved profoundly, had gone through it. The cross was real and visceral for him, so much so that it pained him to look at it, but the Holy Spirit drew him again and again to gaze at the crucified Lord of Love and embrace what happened there.

This is, in my view, true Christian spirituality – a vivid, tangible, communicative, fulsome connection with the Holy Spirit. In his company, all the stuff we strive for in a state of spiritual lack becomes a reality. Often, it feels like too much.

A call to repentance

Sometimes I despair at the lack of devotion to the Holy Spirit amongst Christian groups. I want every reader to understand that we can’t walk closely with Jesus without the continual infilling of the Holy Spirit, who is also called the Spirit of Jesus. We can’t hear Jesus’ voice or feel his touch, we can’t be transformed or know the freedom he promised, and we absolutely cannot enter into the deep mystery of the cross without his inspiration and presence.

I invite all readers whose walk of faith is dry to seek God with all their hearts. Turn from powerless traditions and drink from the living water made available in Christ. Break out of the trap, cast aside structures, and turn from shadows, choosing a life of daily communion with the Spirit of God.

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit

General Christian

Religious Events

The Holy Spirit

The spirit-filled life

True worship

a relationship with the living God

Break free from tradition

Easter

living faith

the cross

the trap of tradition

Previous Post

March 18, 2023

The Sin of Exclusion

Next Post

April 8, 2023 Among the Scoffers?

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"As I see it, the values espoused by self-described Christian nationalists (which really requires the ..."

frharry

The Rise of Cultural Christianity

"Most people when considering cultural Christianity view it merely as left-wing. Primarily because "cultural Christians" ..."

newenglandsun

The Rise of Cultural Christianity

"A Good Follower of "The Way" of Yahushua , and a Good Person should go ..."

stephen hamilton

Is It More Important To Be ..."

"Dear Duncan — This is my conclusion about the Christianity of the Trump administration. Trump ..."

gottlieb spangenberg

When Politics and Values Clash

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category A time for war and Sheol Authentic Faith Being in Christ Christian marriage Christian Mysticism Christian Nationalism Christian Parenting Christianity and politics Church and State De/reconstruction Discipleship Divine Healing Divine judgement Don't throw the baby out with the bathwater Effective Prayer Embracing the LGBTQ+ Community Embracing the LGBTQIA+ community End-Times Fellowship with his sufferings Gehenna Glorifying God Hades Healthy Debate Heaven and Earth Hell Honouring Christian Women I still believe inter-faith dialogue Interpreting Scripture Keep the faith Knowing the peace of God Living in Abundance Loving Each Other Loving God Loving Ourselves Mental Health Mental Health and Faith Old and New Covenants Practice Peace Prophecy Prophesy Re-thinking Christian Concepts Resist the Devil Revival Salvation Seeking God Sex and love sin and sinfulness Sound theology Spiritual Authority Spiritual discipline Spiritual effectiveness Spiritual Gifts Spiritual growth Spiritual Mentorship The Christmas story The Cross of Christ The divine feminine The Fear of the Lord The Holy Spirit The importance of kindness The importance of theology The MAGA Cult The Ministry of Jesus The risen Christ The service of Jesus the sin of judgement The spirit-filled life The Virgin Birth True worship Uncategorized Understanding God Understanding Old Testament prophecy Understanding Self-Worth Understanding the Bible Union with God War and Peace

Select a Month September 2026 August 2026 September 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which short letter warns about false teachers and references Enoch?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Jude 2 Peter Philemon Timothy