As we journey to Easter, I am remembering the powerful witness of Harriet Tubman and her audacious calling to serve as conductor on the Underground Railroad. Repeatedly, she risked death in order to liberate other people to freedom, earning her the title of “Moses.”
As I learn more about the Underground Railroad, I see a visceral resemblance between the historic journey of enslaved people to freedom and our liturgical journey from Lent to Easter.
We begin with embracing our mortality through the sign of ashes. We continue to the crucifixion, joining the disciples in their anguish. The pain of our Savior’s death overtakes us and torments us until the midnight of Good Friday finally yields to the dawn of Easter. This is the power of the resurrection. Joy defeats sorrow. “Hallelujah!” replaces “How long, oh Lord?”
Today we remember Harriet Tubman, died 1913, and Sojourner Truth, died 1883; renewers of society. This message was adapted from “Beyond Hallelujah” by Angela Khabeb in the March 2016 issue of Gather magazine.