Luke 24:1-12

Luke 24:1-12

At daybreak on the first day of the week
the women who had come from Galilee with Jesus
took the spices they had prepared
and went to the tomb.
They found the stone rolled away from the tomb;
but when they entered,
they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
While they were puzzling over this, behold,
two men in dazzling garments appeared to them.
They were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground.
They said to them,
“Why do you seek the living one among the dead?
He is not here, but he has been raised.
Remember what he said to you while he was still in Galilee,
that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners
and be crucified, and rise on the third day.”
And they remembered his words.
Then they returned from the tomb
and announced all these things to the eleven
and to all the others.
The women were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James;
the others who accompanied them also told this to the apostles,
but their story seemed like nonsense
and they did not believe them.
But Peter got up and ran to the tomb,
bent down, and saw the burial cloths alone;
then he went home amazed at what had happened.

Opening Prayer: Lord God, you have prepared all human history for the passion, death, and resurrection of your Son. From the creation of the world to the call of Abraham, from the formation of the nation of Israel to the Kingdom of David, from the prophets to the fullness of time, you have guided all things and have revealed your great love for us through the sending of your Son and your Spirit.

Encountering the Word of God

1. The Living One: The resurrection of Jesus is unlike the miracles which recount the restoration of someone to earthly, physical life. What happened in the cases of Jairus’ daughter, the Widow of Nain’s son, and Jesus’ friend Lazarus, was a resuscitation. All three would die again someday. Jesus’ resurrection is something more and greater. He doesn’t return to ordinary life. He begins a new mode of existence and will never die again. He enjoys not just the immortality of his soul, but the everlasting life of his risen and glorified body. Luke alone records the question of the angel, who asked: “Why do you seek the Living One among the dead? “It’s not just that Jesus is alive; it’s that being alive is constituent of his person: he is the One characterized by Life! Why would anyone week the Author of Life, the One who lives eternally, in the place of the dead, in an area of tombs? What sense does that make?” (Bergsma, The Word of the Lord: Solemnities and Feasts, 201).

2. The Women Announced These Things: Luke is unique among the Gospels in emphasizing the role of the women who were disciples of Jesus and were prominent in the early Church. Luke names three of the women who discovered Jesus’ empty tomb and how they immediately believed. Mary Magdalene acted as a leader among the women and was the one from whom seven demons were cast out by Jesus. Joanna was the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward. Like Mary Magdalene, she was a person of high rank. She was one of the wealthy women who provided for Jesus and his disciples out of their means. The third woman mentioned was Mary, the mother of James. She was also Jesus’ aunt. She was married to Clopas, who, according to tradition, was the brother of Joseph. Luke emphasizes that the eleven Apostles, led by Simon Peter, were slow to believe the announcement of the resurrection by the women.

3. Peter Went Home Amazed: Luke doesn’t say that Peter looked in the tomb and believed, but that he returned home amazed by what he saw and what had happened. Peter is left wondering and cannot understand why the tomb is empty. He does not yet believe it was because Jesus was raised from the dead to new life. Throughout the next forty days, Peter will have multiple encounters with the risen Jesus, usually on Sunday. We too encounter Jesus at mass and especially on Sundays. We hear his Word and receive his Body and Blood in the Eucharist. Sundays are our encounter with the Risen Lord and, like Peter, we are encouraged each week to deepen our faith and commitment to him.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, on this Holy Night, I will see and recall the great mystery of Baptism, which is a share in your death and resurrection. I have died with you and am raised to new life. Help me to live this new life to the fullest and experience its joy. Alleluia!

Living the Word of God: Looking at my life, am I still attached to my old self and the slavery of sin? What in my life still needs to be crucified with Christ? How can I truly be dead to sin and alive in Christ Jesus?