Joseph Sabino Mistick: An Easter message of hope and faith

Easter is a celebration of rebirth, and, since it coincides with springtime in many places, new beginnings are everywhere. Crocuses and daffodils are popping out of the recently frozen ground, and magnolia trees have burst with blossoms overnight. The sun has reappeared where it has been cold and dark for months.

The images that represent Easter are all about birth. In “The Easter Book,” Francis X. Weiser, S.J., writes that the symbol of the Easter egg is “based on the fertility lore of the Indo-European races. To our pre-Christian ancestors, it was a most startling event to see a new and live creature emerge from a seemingly dead object.”

According to Weiser, even the Easter Bunny has a serious side. Introduced by German Protestants as a Santa Claus-like figure that brought sweets to good children, rabbits got their start as pre-Christian fertility symbols. The prolific rabbit is the perfect example that new beginnings are possible.

While Easter is a chance for a personal reset for many believers, the Easter message has been applied to broader civil dilemmas. In 2021, facing the second Easter that was celebrated during the pandemic, the World Council of Churches reminded its congregations “to love and care for the whole world, overcoming death with life, conquering fear and uncertainty with hope.”

There will be opportunities to put that message of hope and rebirth to work again in the remainder of 2024.

Our cities are struggling to be reborn. While covid-19 is mostly in the rearview mirror, the post-­pandemic change in our work lives is threatening the continued existence of American cities. Downtown office towers are partially occupied, daytime lunch spots and service businesses are failing and property values are crashing, along with precious tax revenue.

Experts are worried that anyone who can work from home is likely to keep working from home. Many government workers have not yet been ordered to return to their downtown offices.

With fewer eyes on the street, real crime and the perception of danger seem to be winning out as cities struggle to convert offices to apartments and skyscrapers to mixed-use developments. In Pittsburgh, where the city government continues to place economically senseless requirements on developers, the rebirth of Downtown is deeply uncertain, despite our vibrant Cultural District.

The conduct of the 2024 presidential election could also benefit from the Easter message, especially with the probable rematch of President Joe Biden and Donald Trump. Regardless of whom you voted for in the 2020 presidential election, the vicious Jan. 6 attacks on the Capitol and the police who defended it shook America’s faith in the peaceful transfer of power.

The Big Lie that the election was stolen or not fairly run — without a shred of credible evidence — put the republic at risk. A large minority of Americans believed the Big Lie back then, and some of them now believe that this coming election will not be true and fair. Faith that our votes will be fully and fairly counted — the linchpin of the Republic — must be rekindled.

Both the rebirth of our cities and the rebirth of our faith in American elections will require strong civic and political leadership. Neither can be accomplished with half-measures or cable-news shouting matches. We are down to basics here. The message of Easter is that both can be reborn.