Letter from the Publisher: Easter greetings!
Hamtramck Review Publisher John Ulaj
By John Ulaj
As The Review approaches its 11th anniversary, I am excited and proud to say “Happy Easter” to you and your loved ones!
It’s the continuous support — the loyalty of our readers and advertisers — which has made such an anniversary possible. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.
With the arrival of this pandemic, which has struck at both our nation and the world, many people are distraught over, and fearful of, our frankly unforeseeable future.
Those of you who have read the Old Testament are perhaps familiar with King Solomon’s famous quote, “There is nothing new under the sun.” Today, many believe that whatever plagues or misfortunes occurred thousands of years back then were probably short-lived — the result of not being technologically savvy enough yet, perhaps.
Well, this virus has definitely brought things into perspective. Who could have seen this coming with any certainty?
But then, of course, so too come all the nay-sayers.
The negativity starts to pour out on social media. Fear-mongering folks are definitely having themselves a field day.
Well, I want to say that the most encouraging five words in the Bible are “And it came to pass” — as in, by way of God’s benevolence.
And this implies that even the coronavirus situation is temporary, and that we will see the light at the end of the tunnel. God has allowed — and I mean “allowed” — this occurrence to come into our lives. It’s a kind of a “time out,” and I believe that God is also trying to get our attention.
Taking time out from out busy lives. Not a bad idea.
One pastor I know even considers the word “busy” as standing for “being under Satan’s yolk.” He is saying that there is such a thing as “too busy” in life. Can it be that something like this is meant to reset our priorities; to make us take stock in what is truly important?
What’s interesting is how the world has reacted since being faced with the reality of such a disease, or even of death. Maybe being at death’s door, recognizing the vulnerability of each of ourselves, has finally gotten our undivided attention.
I’ve been writing about Easter for almost 11 years, and now I hope to remind you that the greatest news of all is, that we don’t have to be afraid of death anymore.
In John 11:25-26, Jesus the Son of God said unto Martha: “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live”: [26] and “whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.”
The reality is that we will all eventually pass from this Earth, but Easter is a reminder that God is so good, that we as His children don’t need to live a life in the constant dread, anxiety and fear which have wreaked havoc on so many other lives.
Take things one day at a time. Most people think about their current lives, about their problems and their worries; about the things that disturb them or which they don’t like. Doing so, day after day, turns this way of thinking into a habit — and then worse, into a way of life.
Jesus conquered death on the cross (after paying the price for our sins), thereby setting us free indeed!
We are liberated, and what we need to do in this time of crisis is simply take some deep breaths, spread our proverbial wings, and fly away into the sky with our thoughts. Enjoy the precious freedoms that the Lord has given to us, to those that believe.
May God richly keep you, and may you have a wonderful Easter!
Posted April 10, 2020
