20210722 MARY, AN APOSTLE OF THE RESURRECTION
22 July, 2021, Thursday, St Mary Magdalene
First reading |
Song of Songs 3:1-4 © |
I found him whom my heart loves
The bride says this:
On my bed, at night, I sought him
whom my heart loves.
I sought but did not find him.
So I will rise and go through the City;
in the streets and in the squares
I will seek him whom my heart loves.
I sought but did not find him.
The watchmen came upon me
on their rounds in the City:
‘Have you seen him whom my heart loves?’
Scarcely had I passed them
when I found him whom my heart loves.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 62(63):2-6,8-9 © |
For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord my God.
O God, you are my God, for you I long;
for you my soul is thirsting.
My body pines for you
like a dry, weary land without water.
For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord my God.
So I gaze on you in the sanctuary
to see your strength and your glory.
For your love is better than life,
my lips will speak your praise.
For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord my God.
So I will bless you all my life,
in your name I will lift up my hands.
My soul shall be filled as with a banquet,
my mouth shall praise you with joy.
For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord my God.
For you have been my help;
in the shadow of your wings I rejoice.
My soul clings to you;
your right hand holds me fast.
For you my soul is thirsting, O Lord my God.
Gospel Acclamation |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Tell us, Mary: say
what thou didst see upon the way.
– The tomb the Living did enclose;
I saw Christ’s glory as he rose!
Alleluia!
The following reading is proper to the memorial, and must be used even if you have otherwise chosen to use the ferial readings.
Gospel |
John 20:1-2,11-18 © |
'Mary, go and find the brothers and tell them'
It was very early on the first day of the week and still dark, when Mary of Magdala came to the tomb. She saw that the stone had been moved away from the tomb and came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved. ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb’ she said ‘and we don’t know where they have put him.’
Meanwhile Mary stayed outside near the tomb, weeping. Then, still weeping, she stooped to look inside, 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 recognise him. Jesus said, ‘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 knew him then and said to him in Hebrew, ‘Rabbuni!’ – which means Master. Jesus said to her, ‘Do not cling to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go and find the brothers, and tell them: I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ So Mary of Magdala went and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord and that he had said these things to her.
MARY, AN APOSTLE OF THE RESURRECTION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [SONGS 3:1-4 OR 2 COR 5:14-17; PS 63: 2.3-4.5-6.8-9; JN 20: 1-2. 11-18]
Today, we celebrate the Feast of Mary Magdalene. Although she has been called the First Evangelizer of the Good News, and the Apostle to the apostles, since she was the one who announced to them that the Lord was risen, I would like to suggest that Mary was not simply an evangelizer or an apostle but that she was an apostle of the resurrection in the fullest sense of the term. By this, I am not just saying that she was a witness to the resurrection of our Lord and the one who told the disciples that she had encountered the Risen Lord. Many people claim to have had some form of resurrection encounters through miracles or visions. Strictly speaking, the only way we know that we have seen the Risen Lord is when our lives are transformed radically. This was the case for Mary Magdalene. So it is important for us to examine how her life manifested the transformed life in Christ. She lived the resurrected life even before she encountered the Risen Lord,
Firstly, she was an apostle of total love and devotion to the Lord. She loved Jesus much more than anyone else and anything on this earth. Like the reading from the book of Song of Songs, she would have said, “On my bed, at night, I sought him whom my heart loves. I sought but did not find him. The watchmen came upon me on their rounds in the City: ‘Have you seen him whom my heart loves?’ Scarcely had I passed them than I found him whom my heart loves.” This was what Magdalene felt when Jesus died and was buried in the tomb. Her love for the Lord was so intense that she could not wait to see the body of Jesus at first light in the morning. When she could not find Him, she was distraught and no amount of assurance could console her. Can we truly say that ‘Jesus is the One whom my heart loves’? The truth is that we love our friends, our spouse, our children more than we love Jesus. We would even give up our faith in Christ just to marry someone whom we love, especially when the person is of another faith. We would sacrifice our prayer life, our time for prayers and worship, for our loved ones or even for social entertainment. Or else we put our work and ambition before our Lord. Honestly, we must ask ourselves, is He the One whom my heart loves?
Secondly, she was also an apostle of divine mercy. What was the reason for Mary Magdalene’s total devotion to our Lord? It was because she encountered the mercy of God in and through Jesus. Mary was aware of her sinfulness. Whether she was the woman in Luke’s gospel who was seen by Simon as a notorious sinner (Lk 7:36-50), or the woman who was delivered from seven demons (Lk 8:2), or the sister of Martha in Bethany, the point remains that Mary Magdalene must have been liberated from her past, her sinful life, or a life under the possession of the evil spirits. She must have been so relieved that the Lord had accepted her and set her free from her past. She was a new person in Christ. No other woman could be a greater apostle of mercy than Mary Magdalene, just as St Paul is for men. St Paul too encountered His mercy and that changed his life entirely.
If some of us are not an apostle of love and divine mercy, it is because unlike Paul and Mary Magdalene, we have not come to consciousness of our sinfulness. We think too highly of ourselves, like the religious leaders of Israel, believing that we are better than others. We think we are very good and holy people. So when others sin or fail to live up to the gospel values, we are quick to condemn and criticize. This clearly shows that we are not in touch with our past and even with the present state we are in. If only we are aware of our sinfulness, then when we come to Jesus, it would not be to demand our rights because we have earned merits for being a great disciple, but we would come to Him seeking His mercy.
Once we have experienced divine love and divine mercy in Christ, our lives will naturally be transformed because gratitude will overwhelm us. In spite of our nothingness and sinfulness, knowing that God loves us unconditionally, we cannot but give our life to Jesus. This is what St Paul said, “The love of Christ overwhelms us when we reflect that if one man has died for all, then all men should be dead; and the reason he died for all was so that living men should live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised to life for them.” Indeed, in a new life, St Paul also said, “From now onwards, therefore, we do not judge anyone by the standards of the flesh. Even if we did once know Christ in the flesh, that is not how we know him now. And for anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation; the old creation has gone, and now the new one is here.”
Thirdly, after being liberated by our Lord, Mary Magdalene followed Jesus in His mission. St Luke wrote, “The twelve were with him, as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their resources.” (Lk 8:1-3) Anyone who has been healed by our Lord of a terminal cancer or saved from a near death incident, would want to give his or her life to God if he or she is aware that it is only because of God’s grace that he or she has been saved. Indeed, even if our life was saved by a fellow human being, we will be eternally grateful to that person.
Mary did not just follow Jesus in good times but also in bad times. Mary showed her devotion to our Lord at the passion. She was one of the few women who stood by Jesus under the cross when the rest of His apostles and disciples fled the scene. Mary Magdalene was not afraid of being ridiculed or associated with Jesus, a criminal. She was loyal to the Lord even when He was condemned by the rest of her countrymen and the official religious authorities. So faithful was she that she was the first to look for the body of Jesus at the tomb. For many of us, people stand by us only when we are rich and successful in life. But when we are down and out, most people, including our friends, will abandon us. Not for Mary Magdalene. She understood what loyalty and fidelity in friendship is.
Fourthly, after encountering the Risen Lord, Mary Magdalene could not wait to announce to the apostles that the Lord was risen. She was the messenger of the Good News, and even when the apostles were sceptical, she remained firm in her faith in the resurrection of our Lord. She was certain because she knew Jesus in a personal way, for the Lord called her name. “Jesus said, ‘Mary!’ She knew him then and said to him in Hebrew, ‘Rabbuni!’ – which means Master. Jesus said to her, ‘Go and find the brothers, and tell them: I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'” Mary who heard her name called knew the voice of her beloved. Hence, she was certain it was Jesus who had risen. We too must come to know Jesus personally so that when we hear Him calling us by name, our love for Him and conviction of His resurrection will be strengthened. It is significant that Jesus also called Paul by name when He appeared to him saying, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” (Acts 9:4) Indeed, if we were to have such an experience like Mary Magdalene or St Paul, we would not be able to keep it to ourselves but tell others about it.
Finally, Mary Magdalene was asked to go beyond just feeling the love of Jesus but to love Him even when she could not see Him or feel His presence. This is what the Lord was asking of Mary Magdalene when He said to her. “Do not cling to me, because I have not yet ascended to my Father.” We must grow in our relationship with Jesus from an emotional and tangible experience of His love to a mystical encounter. A strong spiritual life is one that remains strong and firm even in times when we do not feel the presence of God. It is true especially for friends and married couples as well. We do not always feel romantic in our relationships but we know we truly love when we care and support each other always. This is what true love is all about; not just a sentimental love but one that sacrifices for each other.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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