"HE ROSE AGAIN FROM THE DEAD"

DID HE RISE TWICE?

FROM: https://catholicphilly.com/2013/09/catholic-spirituality/the-meaning-of-the-phrase-jesus-rose-again/

By Father Kenneth Doyle • Catholic News Service • Posted September 27, 2013

Q. Thank you for your column, which helps me to understand the nuances of our faith. Here is my question: In both the Nicene Creed and the Apostles’ Creed, we say that Jesus “rose again” from the dead; the word “again” puzzles me — did Jesus rise twice? (McFarland, Wis.)

A. Every week, several questions are submitted from readers across the country to be answered in this column. Given the space limitations, I am forced to select only one or two. When making that choice, I try to gauge which ones might be on most people’s minds. The problem, of course, is that there is a built-in bias: I see things through the prism of my own mind. If an issue has never occurred to me, I can’t imagine how it could be creating a problem for anyone else. And so for months, I have resisted responding to the question you have raised, simply because the word “again” in the creed never struck me as odd. But since several readers have now mentioned it, I concede that the use of the word does merit an explanation.

If you look at any dictionary, you’ll find that the first and most common meaning of “again” is “once more,” which suggests repetition and prompts the logical question, “When did Jesus ever rise before?” But another meaning — acceptable and often used — is “anew”; and so we say, “The man tripped and fell, but he got right up again,” or “I woke up during the night, but I rolled over and went back to sleep again.”

So Jesus rose only once, on Easter Sunday. He lived once, he died once, and now he lives again.

FROM: https://www.gotquestions.org/Jesus-rose-again.html

Question: "What does it mean that Jesus rose ‘again’?"

Answer: In a few Bible verses, such as 2 Corinthians 5:15 and 1 Thessalonians 4:14 (depending on the translation), and many of the popular and ancient creeds, such as the Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed, the phrase rose again is used in reference to Jesus’ resurrection. As a result, rose again has become commonly used terminology when referring to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This can be confusing, since again often means “an additional time” or “once more.” Jesus “rising again” sounds like Jesus rose from the dead more than once.

While again can mean “an additional time” or refer to a further instance of an event, it can also mean “anew” or “afresh.” Again can also be defined as “in return” or “to a previous place or condition.” For example, in The Merchant of Venice, Portia speaks of one who “swore he would pay him again when he was able” (I:ii). In describing a business transaction, Portia uses the word again to mean “in return.” Similarly, when used in reference to the resurrection of Jesus, rose again does not mean “arose a second time.” Rather, it means Jesus rose anew. He returned to life. He came back to His previous condition. Jesus was alive before; then for a while He was dead; now He is back.

Similarly, the English word resurrect comes from the Latin word resurrexit. Notice the prefix re- in both the English and Latin words. Normally, when the prefix re- is attached to a word, it means the action is occurring an additional time, i.e., repeated. But, just like the word again, the prefix re- can also mean “anew” or “back.” When we say that Jesus was “resurrected,” we do not mean that Jesus was “surrected” a second time. We mean that Jesus returned to life. He has life anew. What is being repeated is not the act of coming back to life but the state of being alive.

Saying, “Jesus rose again,” is simply a way of referring to the resurrection of Jesus. Any confusion over the word again should be dispelled by the knowledge that words often have multiple definitions. The key point is this: “Jesus rose again” does not mean Jesus rose from the dead more than once. Rather, it means Jesus returned to life. Jesus was, for a time, dead but now is alive again.