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I know some of my Nation First readers aren’t particularly religious or Christian, but hear me out, because there’s a message in this even for the atheists and agnostics. These days, Easter has been secularised and commercialised, with hot cross buns, Easter eggs, images of fluffy ducklings and the like. That’s not what Easter is about. In the Christian tradition, Easter is hardcore. The entirety of the Holy Week/Easter story revolves around violence, death, the war between good and evil, the rescue of sinners and, ultimately, the victory of Christ. And in all of that, we learn what it truly means to be fully human. Christ was beaten, spat on, scourged, pierced with thorns, made to carry a cross up a hill, was nailed to that cross and, just to make sure He was dead, a Roman soldier speared Him in the side. It was the most violent sort of death imaginable at the time. Then things got interesting. The Apostle’s Creed tells us that Christ “descended into Hell” before he rose again. There is a great work of art by 19th century French artist Gustave Doré called ‘Vale of Tears’ (pictured above) that depicts Christ, just after being crucified, storming the gates of Hell with His cross with a piercing light emanating from Him, shocking the wretched masses who are imprisoned in that dark void. Other early Christian imagery depicts Christ just after His death trampling on Satan in a sign that His death defeated the forces of Hell. At the same time it depicts Christ rescuing Adam and Eve from their tombs, showing He has also defeated death itself. These events aren’t recorded in the Holy Bible (although 1 Peter 3:19–20 alludes to it) but they are part of Christian tradition. What the Holy Bible records is that Christ rose from the dead, again signifying that He had destroyed death because He taken away its sting. (Johnny Cash sings it better than I can write about it!) For the atheists and agnostics, breathe easy: the religious lesson is over but here’s the rub: Easter is about the forces of good defeating the forces of evil. Psychologist and author Jordan Peterson tells us that Christ is the archetype of the perfect man. (Christians believe the same by the way). Thus the notions of sacrifice, courage and the actions of opposing evil, and rescuing our fellow man are the kind of things we uphold and desire to embody. We only need to look at the status our nation rightly ascribes the ANZACs and our diggers to see that. I’m a fan of the Greco-Roman practical philosophy of Stoicism. You may have heard of the great Stoic philosopher and first century Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius and his classic writings, now titled ‘Meditations’. In those writings, Aurelius says that the answer to the question of 'how to live’ is not found in syllogisms, money or fame but… “In doing what human nature requires. How? Through first principles. Which should govern your intentions and your actions. What principles? Those to do with good and evil. That nothing is good except that which leads to fairness, and self-control, and courage, and free will. And nothing bad except what does the opposite.”
Later, in his writings, Aurelius admonishes the reader to stop talking about what it is to be good and to just be good, saying that the good man: “… has stripped away his body and - realizing (sic) that at some point soon he will have to abandon mankind and leave all this behind - has dedicated himself to serving justice in all he does, and nature in all that happens. What people say or think about him, or how they treat him, isn’t something he worries about. Only these two questions: Is what he’s doing now the right thing to be doing? Does he accept and welcome what he’s been assigned? He has stripped away all other occupations, all other tasks. He wants only to travel a straight path - to God, by way of law.”
The Roman emperor could have been talking about Christ Himself. What he is talking about, though, is how we should aim to live and act: without fear of death, without fear of slander, without fear of ill treatment, and with doing what is right and what is our duty firmly in mind. This Easter, whether you’re a Christian or not, let’s rededicate ourselves to following the straight path, and doing what is right by our nation, by speaking out and rejecting what we know to be wrong, regardless of attacks and slander. I hope you and your loved ones have a safe, holy and happy Easter. Yours truly,
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