By Rev Bukelwa Hans
Easter Sunday is the celebration of hope rising from despair, light breaking through darkness, and life triumphing over death. We declare with joy: Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!
But Easter is not just a celebration of a past event. It is a present reality and a future promise. It speaks directly into the world’s deepest wounds – including the ongoing tragedy of gender-based violence (GBV).
All over the world, women, girls, and gender-diverse individuals continue to face abuse, exploitation, and silence. Their pain does not disappear just because we are celebrating Easter. But here is the good news: the resurrection of Jesus is God’s declaration that injustice, pain, and death will not have the final word.
When Jesus rose from the dead, He still carried the scars in His hands and side. The resurrection did not erase His wounds – it redeemed them.
God does not ignore the wounds of survivors, but He honours them. He sees their pain. And He offers them healing, not by pretending it didn’t happen, but by walking with them into new life.
Easter reminds us that we don’t just believe in a risen Christ – we are called to rise with Him. That means leaving behind not just personal sin, but also the broken systems and silent complicity that allow violence to persist.
As a church, resurrection calls us to:
- Create spaces where survivors are safe, heard, and supported.
- Speak truth in love, even when it’s uncomfortable.
- Advocate for justice and care for the vulnerable.
- Be a resurrection people – alive with compassion and courage.
On Good Friday, violence tried to silence love. But on Easter morning, love rose up in power.
To those who have been silenced by abuse, shamed into silence, or told their voice doesn’t matter – the resurrection says otherwise.
Jesus calls each of us by name, just as He called Mary Magdalene in the garden. He restores identity, dignity, and purpose.
Easter is not the end of the story – it’s the beginning of the church’s mission. We are now His hands and feet in a world still longing for healing.
Let us be a church that walks with survivors, that challenges injustice, and that embodies the resurrection hope of Jesus Christ in word and deed.
Because Christ is risen, there is hope for healing.
Because Christ is risen, there is power for justice.
Because Christ is risen, we rise too – and we rise for others