Surprised by Hope: Rethinking Heaven, The Resurrection, And The Mission Of The Church

Wright insists strongly on the point that Jesus’ resurrection was a bodily event. The gospels present the risen Jesus as having a solid, tangible body, as eating fish, and as assuring his disciples that he is not a ghost. After his resurrection, Jesus appears like any other human being, as is clear from Mary Magdalene mistaking him for a gardener and from him joining a group of disciples unrecognized on the road to Emmaus; Jesus inviting Thomas to feel his wounds so as to verify his identity underscores this point. At the same time, Jesus’ body appears to be able to transcend earthly limitations of space and time such that there has been an enhancement as well as a restoration.

The corporeal nature of the resurrection has important consequences for our lives. That Jesus’ body was raised intact—and, indeed, with new powers—is, for Wright, an affirmation of the worth of the body as a unique creation of God. It fosters a hope for the renewal of creation, including material reality. The book of Genesis declares that God looked at his creation and found it good, and the resurrection assures us that this good creation will not be destroyed forever. Importantly, ancient peoples agreed that resurrection (whether they actually believed in it or not) would involve a resuscitation of the body, so the idea of resurrection was distinct from mere survival.