That first Easter

Here is the text of the reflection I shared with those who came, like Mary Magdalene and the other women, to pray with us on the morning of Easter Day.

After the Sabbath

Very early on the first day of the week … Mary Magdalene, Mary (the mother of James) and Salome brought spices to the tomb so that they could anoint the body of Jesus (cf Mk 16:1-2).  What they encountered there surprised and confused them: when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away (Mk 16:4).  Grave robbing was not unheard of in those times, so perhaps they may have been filled with fear that some enemy of theirs might have taken Jesus’ body, yet curiosity drew them into the open tomb, and what they found there was even more intriguing: they saw a young man dressed in a white robe … who said to them Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified.  He has been raised; he is not here (Mk 16:6).

We too have come this morning, looking for Jesus, but in our case, we know already what has happened: He has been raised; he is not here!  This is the good news that we have come to know: that Jesus no longer lives among mortals here on earth.  Our lives have their established limits, beginnings and endings, but Jesus now lives forever in heaven.

When the women at the tomb first heard this news, they were slow to believe, and yet the angel told them: go, tell his disciples and Peter (Mk 16:7) the good news, but terror and amazement had seized them (Mk 16:8).  There is a deep-seated truth about the Resurrection that is too big for our minds to comprehend, yet our hearts know that it is true.  When we are faced with challenges in this life, when we hear about horrible tragedies happening in the hills of Southern France and in universities in Nairobi, when we are facing the prospects of losing our jobs and worrying about how to provide for our families, we need to remember this truth: He has been raised; he is not here.  Even in the deepest darkness of our existence, there is a ray of hope because Jesus is risen; he has overcome even death.

The power of hope is the message of the gospel.  This is the message that Peter spoke in the house of Cornelius.  Those who were gathered there that day had already heard how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed (Acts 10:38), but Peter wanted to tell them the rest of the story, and it is because of Peter’s testimony and the hope within the hearts of the others who were witnesses to the events of Holy Thursday and Good Friday that we now know how they put him to death by hanging him on a tree, but we also know that God raised him on the third day (Acts 10:39-40).

Jesus commanded his disciples to tell this good news to others, and because of this, we too know that we have been raised with Christ (Col 3:1); we are his precious children through baptism, and we can look forward to spending eternity with him in heaven.

On this Easter Day, let us pray for the conviction and the strength to share this good news with everyone we meet.  Let us set our minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, for in baptism, we have already died with Christ (Col 3:2-3).  Because Christ died for us, we too can die a little bit every day as we give of ourselves in love.  The terror and amazement that stopped Mary Magdalene and the other women from speaking about what they had seen is replaced by the power of hope, the fruit of Christ’s love which lives in our hearts.

Happy Easter!