Were they afraid because the story didn’t turn out the way that they had planned? Tragic as it all was, the death of Jesus put a final period on all that had transpired. "This was the truth," they must have thought as they walked up the hill to that lonely grave. A good man has died in a noble but futile cause.

Then, suddenly, all bets were off. All neat and tidy conclusions were tossed out the window. No longer could anyone assume that they knew the ways of Almighty God. No longer could the sanctimonious or the scholarly claim to have a lock on the workings of Yahweh.

"He has risen!" smiles the angel all dressed in white.

He is risen and for those who like their religion all wrapped up pretty in a box, look out!

Is it any wonder so many of us are like those women racing down the hill, scared to death?

The Easter story proclaims a different message to those few bold and brave enough to believe in the God revealed in Jesus. For this is a God who loves unconditionally and surprises unendingly. This is a God revealed in the story of Jesus and the stories of Jesus. This is a God who calls on each of us not to be scared to death but open to life.