John 20:11-18

Acts 2:36-41

Psalm 33:4-5, 18-19, 20 and 22

John 20:11-18

Mary Magdalene stayed outside the tomb weeping.

And as she wept, she bent over into the tomb

and saw two angels in white sitting there,

one at the head and one at the feet

where the Body of Jesus had been.

And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”

She said to them, “They have taken my Lord,

and I don’t know where they laid him.”

When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there,

but did not know it was Jesus.

Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?

Whom are you looking for?”

She thought it was the gardener and said to him,

“Sir, if you carried him away,

tell me where you laid him,

and I will take him.”

Jesus said to her, “Mary!”

She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni,”

which means Teacher.

Jesus said to her, “Stop holding on to me,

for I have not yet ascended to the Father.

But go to my brothers and tell them,

‘I am going to my Father and your Father,

to my God and your God.’”

Mary went and announced to the disciples,

“I have seen the Lord,”

and then reported what he had told her.

Opening Prayer: Heavenly Father, you raised your Son from the dead to new life. I trust in your promise to raise me to new life with you, your Son, and your Holy Spirit. Prepare my heart this day and always for the reward of eternal happiness.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Woman, Why Are You Weeping? The Gospels emphasize the role of the angels in announcing Jesus’ resurrection to the women. The Gospel of John highlights the encounter between Mary of Magdala and the two angels who sat in the tomb. The angels asked her why she was weeping. It was a gentle attempt to get Mary to reflect on Jesus’ words. On the way to Jerusalem, Jesus spoke three times about his upcoming passion, death, and resurrection. Mary had seen the passion. She was there at the foot of the cross when Jesus was crucified. She helped lay the lifeless body of Jesus in the tomb. And now she wanted to finish anointing the body. Instead of seeing the empty tomb and rejoicing that her Lord was alive and raised from the dead, she broke down in tears thinking someone stole the corpse of her Lord.

2. Whom are you Looking For? The risen Jesus began his appearance to Mary by asking Mary the same question as the two angels: “Woman, why are you weeping?” It is a question we can hear in our own prayers. When we are struggling, tempted, or overwhelmed by grief, if we listen attentively, we can hear the voice of God deep within our hearts asking: “Why are you weeping?” In this way, God invites us to have confidence in him, trusting that he knows all things, governs all things, and cares for us. The second question, “Whom are you looking for?,” reminds us of the first words of Jesus in the Gospel of John: “What are you looking for?” (John 1:38). This suggests that a new beginning is taking place. Just as Jesus redefined his relationship with his disciples when they left John the Baptist to remain with him, so the risen Jesus redefines his relationship with Mary after his resurrection. When Jesus pronounces her name, Mary recognizes his voice. Her sadness turns to joy. She has found her beloved. She addresses him with the title “Rabbi” thinking that her relationship with Jesus is the same as it was before. “But the resurrection of Jesus has changed absolutely everything, including the relationship between him and his followers. The disciples, such as Mary, can relate to him no longer as an earthly teacher but as the risen Lord. Jesus’ order, “Stop holding on to me,” is meant in a figurative sense: Mary can no longer hold on to her past notions of discipleship” (Martin and Wright, The Gospel of John, 337).

3. Different Dimensions of the Resurrection in Each Gospel: Each of the Gospels presents a different dimension of the mystery of the Resurrection. The Gospel of Matthew focuses on the mission of the Apostles to go out to all the nations, to make disciples, to baptize, and to teach and observe all that Jesus commanded. Mark emphasizes the initial unbelief of the eleven Apostles, how Jesus rebuked them for not believing, and how they overcame their unbelief and preached the Gospel everywhere. “In Mark 16:15 it is both startling and encouraging that those who have just been upbraided for lack of faith and hardness of heart are now entrusted with preaching the gospel to the whole world” (Brown, Christ in the Gospels of the Liturgical Year, 205). The Gospel of Luke narrates how Jesus opened his disciples’ minds to understand the scriptures and how the Christian community can continue to encounter him in the Word of Life and the Bread of Life. The Gospel of John highlights how individuals like Mary of Magdala, Thomas, John, and Simon Peter, all came to believe in the risen Jesus. “The Beloved Disciple believed when he saw the garments left in the tomb; Mary Magdalene believed when she heard the voice of the risen Jesus call her name; the disciples believed when they saw the risen Jesus and realized that it was the Lord; Thomas believed when challenged by the risen Jesus to carry out a disbelieving program of probing” (Brown, Christ in the Gospels of the Liturgical Year, 254).

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you are my savior and have cleansed me through the waters of Baptism. Teach me to repent from sin each day and turn to you and the Father. Send your Spirit into my heart and guide me so that I may behold your glorious face in heaven.

Living the Word of God: How can I encounter Jesus each day? Do I hear him call my name in prayer? Do I listen to his word in the Bible? How can I prepare my heart to receive him in the Eucharist? Do I serve the suffering Christ in the poor? What can I do better?