Images by Alyssa Marie Francis
“...Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to the see the tomb.” Mark tells us, in his Gospel, that they carried spices so that they might anoint him. The agony and the misery that must have engulfed their hearts that morning! For these women, like the rest of the disciples, did not understand fully what Jesus had told them: He would raise from the dead.
How much do we resemble these Mary’s, though? As Christians, we are the recipients of multiple promises and yet we still march to the tomb, ready to dress up the dead body of Christ without actually believing Him. As Catholics, our weakness is all the more a tragedy.
What gifts we are given! What beauty the Church has protected and handed down through the ages. We have the Eucharist - Christ himself comes to us - at holy Mass. And yet, we march as if on the way to the tomb to receive Him. Where is our belief as we grudgingly make our way to Sunday Mass, not joyous as if to meet a risen Savior of the World, but miserable as if to visit a workhouse manager extracting from us 60 minutes we cannot otherwise spare?
Listen as the angel speaks, for he speaks to us, the sisters of Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, too. “Do not be afraid,” he says as he dazzles white and rolls the stone away, “for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come see the place where he lay.” How merciful is the Lord that He sends His messenger to the women like this?
Thousands of years later, He reminds us that He is not in that tomb any longer. Indeed, He is the bread, He is the wine asking to be consoled; can we make a little room for Him in our hearts? He is the Sacrament on the altar; can we make a little time to sit before him? Will we let him roll away the stone that guards our hearts?
What joy as our answer is yes! We, like these two women, are likely to turn and run back to Galilee to tell the others what we have seen! Our Love of Christ will cause us to fall at his feet, to worship him, to run and tell the others the good news.
Christ has risen, as he said he would!
Amen, hallelujah!
Reflect: Have you let the love of Christ shine into the corners of your soul? It’s Easter, what are you holding back from Him and why?
Act: Contemplate the joy of the Lord. He is risen! Hallelujah!
