Chosen to Witness to the Risen Christ

Today's first reading gives witness to the fact that, on the third day after Jesus was crucified and died, He was "raised...and granted  that he be visible, not to all the people, but to us, the witnesses chosen by God in advance, who ate and drank with him after he rose from that dead"!  That is you and I chosen in our baptism to know and profess the risen Christ, to eat and drink of His body and blood, soul and divinity in Holy Communion at every Mass or Liturgy that we celebrate!  You and I, men and women, have been "commissioned...to preach to the people and testify that he is the one appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead. To him [we] bear witness, that everyone who believes in him will receive forgiveness of sins through his name."  

Women were the first to proclaim the resurrection of Jesus and it was  Mary Magdalene and another woman who was commissioned by Jesus to let the apostles know that He had risen:  "After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of  the Lord descended from heaven...[T]he angel said to the women..., 'Do not be afraid! I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified. He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, 'He has been raised from the dead, and he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him.   Behold I have told you.' Then they went away quickly from the tomb...and ran to announce this to his disciples"  (Matthew 28:1-9).

How do you announce Jesus' resurrection in your life and in the life of your loved ones and to all those who have contact with you?  Do others know the Risen Christ because they know you?  If not, why not? If yes, give praise to the Risen Christ, who reveals Himself to you and to others through your love, your compassion, your understanding, your faith and trust in the Lord,  your forgiveness, and your generosity in giving of yourself to lift burdens and spread the Good News of the Gospel!

This Risen Christ

In today's Gospel, Matthew 28: 8-15,  Mary Magdalene and the other Mary left the tomb to announce the news to his disciples, namely that they found the tomb empty. On the way to inform the disciples, Jesus meets them, greets them, and tells them to not be afraid and that they are to tell his brothers to go to Galilee, where they will see them there.

Notice that it is Jesus that shows Himself to the women. Jesus knows their fears. He knows that they have just come from His burial place and found the tomb empty. When you and I are looking for Jesus where He cannot found, Jesus knows!  He is always looking for us. He finds us and calms our fears. He also, however, asks us to share the Good News with others of His Presence, His nearness, His love for us.  He wants everyone to know that He is right here with us, walking beside us, watching out for us.  He is risen, as He said.  Though the disciples do not see Him as they did during His public ministry and though we do not see Him, as they did then either, He is still here with us every moment of every day!

I believe!  Do you?

"Woman, why are you weeping?"

Happy Easter! Imagine this day! The disciples are in deep mourning over the crucifixion and death of their Lord and Master. Its a bla, bleak, dark, empty day. At this point, the disciples still do not believe what Jesus told them that, in three days, he would rise again. Death would have no power over Him.  

He In today’s Gospel, John 20: 1-9,  Mary of Magdala goes to the tomb and finds it empty. Jesus is not there. Frightened that someone stole the body, she runs to Simon Peter and John and reports the empty tomb. Peter and John dash to the tomb, John arriving first but, out of respect, waits for Peter to arrive and enter the tomb. Peter finds it empty as well, the burial cloths in which the body of Jesus was wrapped neatly folded.  From Peter’s perspective, the body of Jesus is gone.

John enters the empty tomb. “He saw and believed.”

Would you be Peter or John? Would you only see an empty tomb? Are you unbelieving, going about your business today, living your life by celebrating holidays, not holy days? Is Easter only about bunnies and Easter eggs and champagne and Easter lambs to be eaten, enjoyed and then life goes on in a secular, detached, unbelieving way? Is your faith dead or dying, in a weakened state, to say the least?

Jesus, our Lord and Incarnate God, crucified, put to death, has risen. He does so quietly, so to speak, breaking the chains of death, destroying Satan’s power and opening the gates to eternal life for each  one of us.   No crowds of people witness the resurrection, as John reports it. Jesus is risen. While Peter and John went into the tomb,  Mary of Magdala stood outside the tomb weeping.  “As she wept, she stooped to look inside [after Peter and John had left], and saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had been, one at the head, the other at the feet. They said, ‘Woman why are you weeping?’  ‘They have taken my Lord away,’ she replied, ‘and I don’t know where they have put him.’ As she said this she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, though she did not realize that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, ‘Woman why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?’  Supposing him to be the gardener, she said, ‘Sir, if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and remove him.’ Jesus said, ‘Mary!’ She turned around then and said to him in Hebrew, ‘Rabbuni!’…” (John 20: 11-16).

For whom or what are you weeping? For whom are you looking? Do you recognize Jesus in your midst? Do you hear Jesus whispering your name? Or is Jesus not someone with whom you have a first-name relationship, a friendship that does not allow you to leave the "empty tombs" of your life until you find Him?

Alleluia! He is Risen!

Alleluia. He is Risen! Imagine the women going to the tomb the day after the Sabbath, “towards dawn on the first day of the week…[S]uddenly there was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled away the stone and sat on it…[T]he angel spoke, [saying] ‘There is no need for you to be afraid. I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said he would. Come and see the place where he lay, then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has risen from the dead and now he is going ahead of you to Galilee; that is where you will see him’’  (Mt. 28: 1-8). As they are on their way to tell the disciples, “suddenly, coming to meet  them was Jesus. ‘Greetings,’ he said.  And the women came  up to him and, clasping his feet, they did him homage. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers that they must leave for Galilee; there they will see me’” (Mt. 28: 9-10).

Imagine being witnesses of an angel whose “face was like lightning, his robe white as snow” rolling away the stone that sealed the tomb.  As they are carrying out the angel’s request that they go tell the disciples that the Lord is risen and are to go to Galilee where they will see him, Jesus Himself appears to them and repeats the angels message.  Wow! Truly, the Lord is risen!  Like the angel, we, too, men and women are His messenger, are called to be evangelizers to one another, to share our faith in the Risen Lord. In Galilee, Jesus says to his disciples:  “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations; baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe all the commands I gave you. And look, I am with you always; yes, to the end of the time” (Mt. 28: 18-20). He was speaking to both men and women, not to men only!

How faithful am I to proclaiming the Gospel with my life and, if necessary, using words, as St. Francis teaches.