Easter message 2023: Have courage and take hope! - A call to inner contemplation and cohesion

Easter message 2023: Have courage and take hope! - A call to inner contemplation and cohesion

happy Easter! This short greeting reaches us everywhere today. Whether we are Christians or not, the message is: have courage, don't be afraid. The Council President of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), Kirsten Fehrs, put it as much this year: "In view of the immeasurable suffering in so many places in this world, the Easter Festival releases inner strength and speaks courage to the sad and deeply exhausted souls."

in Berlin are only 19.1 percent of 3.88 million inhabitants either Protestant or Catholic faith. Exactly 741,261 Christians lived in the city after the end of 2023. Does that reduce the Easter message? Of course not! It is universal and extends beyond Christianity.

The Easter message, as the Berlin musician Peter Fox puts it, is more complex: How can you take hope when someone is nailed to the cross? The answer is easy for Christians: hope comes from the resurrection. And for everyone else? We have a few days off, the long weekend invites you to a spring trip. Anyone who has school children may have went on vacation. Resurrection and Easter message are slightly forgotten. The holidays give us time to stop in the inner contemplation. Regardless of whether we are looking for Easter eggs or how to bring Easter water to our loved ones in Sweden. All Easter customs convey one: time to pause.

The holidays can be used to think about the important things in life. In the war in Ukraine and in Gaza as well as in the face of demographic change, digitization, the climate crisis, globalization and other challenges, longing is great for "carefree and unexpected life". Every single, but also society as a whole, needs a lot of strength. The Easter message is a help and support for Christians. But the same applies to everyone else: a great force can be drawn out of courage and confidence. But how does confidence arise? What makes us despair of a problem, but search for solutions? On the one hand, we humans draw strength from experiences that we have already had. We can be sure of our way if we are sure from the past that there are always solutions. We are more confident if we also know how we can tackle our problems. And it helps to know that we are not alone, can count on the help of others.

We humans are social beings who cannot be without their surroundings without exchange with others. It is not only since Christianity that the community gives us strength.

In a complicated world, many new answers are needed. The great power of mankind is to be able to master challenges together. We rarely make ourselves aware that we can achieve much more together. In post -war Germany, we are proud to have become a society of individualists in which everyone can go their own way, each individual enjoys a lot of freedom. We sometimes forget about things like consumption and career that we all have to work together to get these freedoms. Common values, humanity and a sense of responsibility need more space again. Happy Easter!

The following table contains information on the religious preferences of the residents of Berlin:

| | Total | Evangelical | Catholic | Other |
| —- | ——-———---———— | Number | 3,880,000 | 741.261 | 741.261 | 2,397.478 |
| Share | 100% | 19.1% | 19.1% | 61.8% |

These figures clarify that a variety of people with different religious backgrounds and worldviews live in Berlin. However, the Easter message is considered universal and accepted beyond Christianity.

It is important that we become aware of our common responsibility and work towards finding solutions together for arising problems. The Easter holidays offer an opportunity to think about the important things in life and to focus on common values ​​such as humanity and a sense of responsibility.

In a world that is often complex and challenging, we can draw great strength by sharing and working with other people. Don't let us forget that we can achieve much more and that we can work together for a better future.

happy Easter to all!

Source: Berliner Morgenpost/OTS