Podcasts about rabbouni

Today's Topics: 1) Gospel - 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. Bishop Sheen quote of the day 2, 3, 4) What if God asked these 10 Questions of Pope Francis' at his particular judgment

Voici l'Évangile du mardi 22 avril 2025 : « Femme, pourquoi pleures-tu ? » (Jn 20, 11-18) En ce temps-là, Marie Madeleine se tenait près du tombeau, au-dehors, tout en pleurs. Et en pleurant, elle se pencha vers le tombeau. Elle aperçoit deux anges vêtus de blanc, assis l'un à la tête et l'autre aux pieds, à l'endroit où avait reposé le corps de Jésus. Ils lui demandent : « Femme, pourquoi pleures-tu ? » Elle leur répond : « On a enlevé mon Seigneur, et je ne sais pas où on l'a déposé. » Ayant dit cela, elle se retourna ; elle aperçoit Jésus qui se tenait là, mais elle ne savait pas que c'était Jésus. Jésus lui dit : « Femme, pourquoi pleures-tu ? Qui cherches-tu ? » Le prenant pour le jardinier, elle lui répond : « Si c'est toi qui l'as emporté, dis-moi où tu l'as déposé, et moi, j'irai le prendre. » Jésus lui dit alors : « Marie ! » S'étant retournée, elle lui dit en hébreu : « Rabbouni ! », c'est-à-dire : Maître. Jésus reprend : « Ne me retiens pas, car je ne suis pas encore monté vers le Père. Va trouver mes frères pour leur dire que je monte vers mon Père et votre Père, vers mon Dieu et votre Dieu. » Marie Madeleine s'en va donc annoncer aux disciples : « J'ai vu le Seigneur ! », et elle raconta ce qu'il lui avait dit.   Cet enregistrement est proposé bénévolement pour répandre la Parole de Dieu

John 20:1-18   Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him." Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes. But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni!" (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, "Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, `I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord"; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

Easter Sunday The Gospel John 20:1-18 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him." Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes. But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him." When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?" Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, "Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away." Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni!" (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, "Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, `I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'" Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord"; and she told them that he had said these things to her.  

Comenzamos con el Día internacional contra el uso de niños soldado y seguimos con el turista musical, que hoy viene desde Eslovenia para presentar al artista Magnifico con su tema 'Hir Aj Kam Hir Aj Go'. Después, el grupo Victorias da la ocho de la mañana con su tema 'la mitad de la mitad' y nos habla de su disco 'emocional'. Además, te contamos la actualidad y conectamos con el experto en política internacional, Alejandro López, que se encuentra en la wilaya de Rabbouni (Tinduf), para ponernos al día sobre la situación con el Sahara Occidental. Por último, hablamos con la actriz Petra Martínez, el músico Fernando Vacas y el productor David Lara sobre 'Mucha mierda', un documental que trata la huelga de actores de 1975 en nuestro país.Escuchar audio

« Rabbouni, que je retrouve la vue » (Mc 10, 46b-52)Méditation par le Père Michel QuesnelChant Final : "Ouvre les yeux de mon cœur" de Paul Baloche

Voici l'Évangile du dimanche 27 octobre 2024 : « Rabbouni, que je retrouve la vue » (Mc 10, 46b-52) En ce temps-là, tandis que Jésus sortait de Jéricho avec ses disciples et une foule nombreuse, le fils de Timée, Bartimée, un aveugle qui mendiait, était assis au bord du chemin. Quand il entendit que c'était Jésus de Nazareth, il se mit à crier : « Fils de David, Jésus, prends pitié de moi ! » Beaucoup de gens le rabrouaient pour le faire taire, mais il criait de plus belle : « Fils de David, prends pitié de moi ! » Jésus s'arrête et dit : « Appelez-le. » On appelle donc l'aveugle, et on lui dit : « Confiance, lève-toi ; il t'appelle. » L'aveugle jeta son manteau, bondit et courut vers Jésus. Prenant la parole, Jésus lui dit : « Que veux-tu que je fasse pour toi ? » L'aveugle lui dit : « Rabbouni, que je retrouve la vue ! » Et Jésus lui dit : « Va, ta foi t'a sauvé. » Aussitôt l'homme retrouva la vue, et il suivait Jésus sur le chemin. – Acclamons la Parole de Dieu.   Cet enregistrement est proposé bénévolement pour répandre la Parole de Dieu

Dans son ouvrage « Rabbouni ! Une rencontre pour tous » (Saint-Léger), la toulousaine Pauline Jourdane donne la parole à des personnages bibliques. Comme sur le plateau de KTO, elle raconte sa souffrance, sa descente aux enfers dans les affres de la maladie psychique. Après avoir délaissé sa foi catholique, elle a renoué un lien fort avec la prière après un séjour auprès de la communauté de Taizé. Son témoignage est un encouragement, un appel à l'espérance pour les personnes malades. Dans Un Coeur qui écoute, elle évoque son cheminement spirituel et sa rencontre avec Dieu qui lui permet désormais de se réjouir de son état.

Today's Topics: 1, 2, 3, 4) Gospel - Jn 20:1-2, 11-18 - On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, "They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don't know where they put Him." Mary 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 Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord," and then reported what He told her. Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene Saint Mary, pray for us! Father Charles Murr joins Terry to discuss current issues and problems facing the Church, as well as solutions and a look at authentic Church Teaching Bishop Sheen quote of the day

Gospel John 20:1-2, 11-18 On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, "They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don't know where they put him." Mary 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 Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord," and then reported what he told her. Reflection Many people look at this passage and saying that Jesus gave great dignity to women. And the disciples, I think especially Peter, was confused as to why Jesus would reveal that he rose from the dead to a woman. But what we see in this story also is something about the nature of what it means to be a believer. And Mary Magdalene had a deep, deep conviction in who Jesus was, and it was because she understood him. Because women have this side to them is so beautiful. They have empathy, they have care, they have a nurturing side. Men have it also, but it's much more developed in women. And so when you see Mary and Jesus together, you know that there was something about them that's so similar. She had a lot of love to give to him and to the others. That's why you see so many women engage more in spirituality. I give a lecture in as more women in the room, I go to church, there's more women in the room. And that's not a bad thing at all, it just means that men are still in the process, and we all are, of finding the balance. We're all masculine. We're all feminine, and we see that happening more and more today in our world. Closing Prayer Father, at the heart of everything you teach is a simple statement. Love. Love yourself. Love God. Love your neighbor. And love doesn't mean liking everyone, it doesn't mean being friends with everyone, it means you want the best for every person because you see them as God sees them. Beautiful, eternal creatures, sometimes damaged, sometimes not. But they have a dignity that God has given them that we must pay attention to. And we ask this in Jesus' name, Amen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On the first day of the week,Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning,while it was still dark,and saw the stone removed from the tomb.So she ran and went to Simon Peterand to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them,"They have taken the Lord from the tomb,and we don't know where they put him."Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping.And as she wept, she bent over into the tomband saw two angels in white sitting there,one at the head and one at the feetwhere 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 Magdalene went and announced to the disciples,"I have seen the Lord,"and then reported what he told her.

Évangile de Jésus-Christ selon saint Jean - Jn 20, 1.11-18 Le premier jour de la semaine, Marie Madeleine se rend au tombeau de grand matin ; c'était encore les ténèbres. Elle s'aperçoit que la pierre a été enlevée du tombeau. Elle se tenait près du tombeau, au-dehors, tout en pleurs. Et en pleurant, elle se pencha vers le tombeau. Elle aperçoit deux anges vêtus de blanc, assis l'un à la tête et l'autre aux pieds, à l'endroit où avait reposé le corps de Jésus. Ils lui demandent : « Femme, pourquoi pleures-tu ? » Elle leur répond : « On a enlevé mon Seigneur, et je ne sais pas où on l'a déposé. » Ayant dit cela, elle se retourna ; elle aperçoit Jésus qui se tenait là, mais elle ne savait pas que c'était Jésus. Jésus lui dit : « Femme, pourquoi pleures-tu ? Qui cherches-tu ? » Le prenant pour le jardinier, elle lui répond : « Si c'est toi qui l'as emporté, dis-moi où tu l'as déposé, et moi, j'irai le prendre. » Jésus lui dit alors : « Marie ! » S'étant retournée, elle lui dit en hébreu : « Rabbouni ! », c'est-à-dire : Maître. Jésus reprend : « Ne me retiens pas, car je ne suis pas encore monté vers le Père. Va trouver mes frères pour leur dire que je monte vers mon Père et votre Père, vers mon Dieu et votre Dieu. » Marie Madeleine s'en va donc annoncer aux disciples : « J'ai vu le Seigneur ! », et elle raconta ce qu'il lui avait dit. Pour retrouver le texte de l'Évangile du jour, rendez-vous sur le site aelf.org.   Fr. Paul Adrien d'Hardemare (op)  L'Amour Vaincra !Et l'aventure continue ! retrouvez : les vidéos sur

+ Holy Gospel according to St. John 20: 1 – 2, 11 – 18 On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. But Mary 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 of Magdala went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord," and what he told her. The Gospel of the Lord

Écoutez la Parole de Dieu ! Voici l'Évangile du lundi 22 juillet 2024. Texte de l'Association Épiscopale Liturgique pour les pays Francophones.   Le premier jour de la semaine, Marie Madeleine se rend au tombeau de grand matin ; c'était encore les ténèbres. Elle s'aperçoit que la pierre a été enlevée du tombeau. Elle se tenait près du tombeau, au-dehors, tout en pleurs. Et en pleurant, elle se pencha vers le tombeau. Elle aperçoit deux anges vêtus de blanc, assis l'un à la tête et l'autre aux pieds, à l'endroit où avait reposé le corps de Jésus. Ils lui demandent : « Femme, pourquoi pleures-tu ? » Elle leur répond : « On a enlevé mon Seigneur, et je ne sais pas où on l'a déposé. » Ayant dit cela, elle se retourna ; elle aperçoit Jésus qui se tenait là, mais elle ne savait pas que c'était Jésus. Jésus lui dit : « Femme, pourquoi pleures-tu ? Qui cherches-tu ? » Le prenant pour le jardinier, elle lui répond : « Si c'est toi qui l'as emporté, dis-moi où tu l'as déposé, et moi, j'irai le prendre. » Jésus lui dit alors : « Marie ! » S'étant retournée, elle lui dit en hébreu : « Rabbouni ! », c'est-à-dire : Maître. Jésus reprend : « Ne me retiens pas, car je ne suis pas encore monté vers le Père. Va trouver mes frères pour leur dire que je monte vers mon Père et votre Père, vers mon Dieu et votre Dieu. » Marie Madeleine s'en va donc annoncer aux disciples : « J'ai vu le Seigneur ! », et elle raconta ce qu'il lui avait dit. – Acclamons la Parole de Dieu.

Jn 20:1-2, 11-18 On the first day of the week,Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning,while it was still dark,and saw the stone removed from the tomb.So she ran and went to Simon Peterand to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them,"They have taken the Lord from the tomb,and we don't know where they put him."Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping.And as she wept, she bent over into the tomband saw two angels in white sitting there,one at the head and one at the feetwhere 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 Magdalene went and announced to the disciples,"I have seen the Lord,"and then reported what he told her.

Évangile de Jésus-Christ selon saint Marc, au chapitre 10 En ce temps-là, tandis que Jésus sortait de Jéricho avec ses disciples et une foule nombreuse, le fils de Timée, Bartimée, un aveugle qui mendiait, était assis au bord du chemin. Quand il entendit que c'était Jésus de Nazareth, il se mit à crier : « Fils de David, Jésus, prends pitié de moi ! » Beaucoup de gens le rabrouaient pour le faire taire, mais il criait de plus belle : « Fils de David, prends pitié de moi ! » Jésus s'arrête et dit : « Appelez-le. » On appelle donc l'aveugle, et on lui dit : « Confiance, lève-toi ; il t'appelle. » L'aveugle jeta son manteau, bondit et courut vers Jésus. Prenant la parole, Jésus lui dit : « Que veux-tu que je fasse pour toi ? » L'aveugle lui dit : « Rabbouni, que je retrouve la vue ! » Et Jésus lui dit : « Va, ta foi t'a sauvé. » Aussitôt l'homme retrouva la vue, et il suivait Jésus sur le chemin. Fr. Paul Adrien d'Hardemare (op)  L'Amour Vaincra ! Et l'aventure continue ! Abonnez-vous : sur

" Rabbouni, que je retrouve la vue ! "Méditation de l'évangile (Mc 10, 46b-52) par la Sœur Catherine de CosterChant final : "Ouvre mes yeux Seigneur" par la Communauté de l'Emmanuel

Écoutez la Parole de Dieu ! Voici l'Évangile du jeudi 30 mai 2024. Texte de l'Association Épiscopale Liturgique pour les pays Francophones.   En ce temps-là, tandis que Jésus sortait de Jéricho avec ses disciples et une foule nombreuse, le fils de Timée, Bartimée, un aveugle qui mendiait, était assis au bord du chemin. Quand il entendit que c'était Jésus de Nazareth, il se mit à crier : « Fils de David, Jésus, prends pitié de moi ! » Beaucoup de gens le rabrouaient pour le faire taire, mais il criait de plus belle : « Fils de David, prends pitié de moi ! » Jésus s'arrête et dit : « Appelez-le. » On appelle donc l'aveugle, et on lui dit : « Confiance, lève-toi ; il t'appelle. » L'aveugle jeta son manteau, bondit et courut vers Jésus. Prenant la parole, Jésus lui dit : « Que veux-tu que je fasse pour toi ? » L'aveugle lui dit : « Rabbouni, que je retrouve la vue ! » Et Jésus lui dit : « Va, ta foi t'a sauvé. » Aussitôt l'homme retrouva la vue, et il suivait Jésus sur le chemin. – Acclamons la Parole de Dieu.

Lạy Chúa, xin nhận lấy trọn cả tự do, trí nhớ, trí hiểu, và trọn cả ý muốn của con, cùng hết thảy những gì con có, và những gì thuộc về con. Mọi sự ấy, Chúa đã ban cho con, lạy Chúa, nay con xin dâng lại cho Chúa. Tất cả là của Chúa, xin Chúa sử dụng hoàn toàn theo ý Chúa. Chỉ xin ban cho con lòng mến Chúa và ân sủng. Ðược như thế, con hoàn toàn mãn nguyện. Amen. (Kinh dâng hiến của thánh I-Nhã)

Lạy Cha, tạ ơn Cha đã cho con gặp được một người bạn, nay trở thành người yêu của con. Chúng con cảm thấy hạnh phúc khi được gần nhau, được yêu mến, cảm thông và nâng đỡ. Xin Cha ở lại trong tình yêu giữa chúng con và làm cho tình yêu ấy thêm bền vững. Xin giúp chúng con biết tôn trọng nhau và làm chủ được những cảm xúc của mình, để mọi cử chỉ yêu thương chúng con trao cho nhau trở nên thanh khiết, thiêng liêng và trong sáng. Mỗi lần gặp nhau, xin cho chúng con gặp được Cha, và thấy Cha luôn thanh lọc tình yêu giữa chúng con để nó trở nên giống tình yêu Cha hơn. Tình yêu đích thực đòi nhiều hy sinh và đau khổ, xin cho chúng con nên thánh nhờ biết yêu, biết chấp nhận sự nghèo nàn của nhau và biết làm cho nhau thêm giàu có. Giờ đây lạy Cha, chúng con đang được nếm thử mật ngọt của tình yêu. Xin giúp chúng con lớn lên trong yêu thương để có thể gánh vác đời sống gia đình mai này và chung thủy suốt đời với lời giao ước. Amen

CLICK HERE FOR LINK TO SERMON HANDOUTS   Easter Day The Collect: O God, who for our redemption gave your only-begotten Son to the death of the cross, and by his glorious resurrection delivered us from the power of our enemy: Grant us so to die daily to sin, that we may evermore live with him in the joy of his resurrection; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. or this O God, who made this most holy night to shine with the glory of the Lord's resurrection: Stir up in your Church that Spirit of adoption which is given to us in Baptism, that we, being renewed both in body and mind, may worship you in sincerity and truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. or this Almighty God, who through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ overcame death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life: Grant that we, who celebrate with joy the day of the Lord's resurrection, may be raised from the death of sin by your life-giving Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. First Lesson: Acts 10:34-43 or Isaiah 25:6-9 34Then Peter began to speak to them: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, 35but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. 36You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ—he is Lord of all. 37That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: 38how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; 40but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, 41not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. 43All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” or 6On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines, of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear. 7And he will destroy on this mountain the shroud that is cast over all peoples, the sheet that is spread over all nations; he will swallow up death forever. 8Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces, and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken. 9It will be said on that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us. This is the Lord for whom we have waited; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation. Psalm: Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24 1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; *        his mercy endures for ever. 2 Let Israel now proclaim, *       “His mercy endures for ever.” 14 The Lord is my strength and my song, *        and he has become my salvation. 15 There is a sound of exultation and victory *        in the tents of the righteous: 16 “The right hand of the Lord has triumphed! *        the right hand of the Lord is exalted!        the right hand of the Lord has triumphed!” 17 I shall not die, but live, *        and declare the works of the Lord. 18 The Lord has punished me sorely, *        but he did not hand me over to death. 19 Open for me the gates of righteousness; *        I will enter them;        I will offer thanks to the Lord. 20 “This is the gate of the Lord; *        he who is righteous may enter.” 21 I will give thanks to you, for you answered me *        and have become my salvation. 22 The same stone which the builders rejected *        has become the chief cornerstone. 23 This is the Lord's doing, *        and it is marvelous in our eyes. 24 On this day the Lord has acted; *        we will rejoice and be glad in it. Second Lesson: 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 or Acts 10:34-43 1Now I would remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I proclaimed to you, which you in turn received, in which also you stand, 2through which also you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message that I proclaimed to you—unless you have come to believe in vain. 3For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures,4and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, 5and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died.7Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. 9For I am the least of the apostles, unfit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me has not been in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them—though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. 11Whether then it was I or they, so we proclaim and so you have come to believe. or 34Then Peter began to speak to them: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, 35but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. 36You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ—he is Lord of all. 37That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: 38how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; 40but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, 41not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. 43All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” Gospel: John 20:1-18 or Mark 16:1-8 1Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. 2So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” 3Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. 4The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, 7and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. 8Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10Then the disciples returned to their homes. 11But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; 12and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. 13They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 14When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” 16Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). 17Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'” 18Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her. or 1When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. 3They had been saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?”4When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. 5As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. 6But he 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. Look, there is the place they laid him. 7But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.” 8So they went out and fled from the tomb, for terror and amazement had seized them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.   Artwork: Carbon Dioxide Atmosphere (Planet Earth at a Green Stage), Evolution Series, 1974 by Lorraine Almeida (used with permission).

Today's Topics: 1) Gospel - Jn 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. Bishop Sheen quote of the day 2, 3, 4) Steven Mosher on his book: The Devil and Communist China: From Mao Down to Xi (TAN Books) https://tanbooks.com/products/books/the-devil-and-communist-china-from-mao-down-to-xi/

Today's Topics: 1, 2, 3, 4) Gospel - Jn 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. Bishop Strickland and Terry reflect on the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord and how the Triduum captures the meaning and power of the Mass: The Sacrifice, Death, and Resurrection of Christ really present with us

Gospel 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. Reflection The period after Jesus died is so important to understand, what did he want to say? What did he want to teach? In this particular passage, he really speaks clearly that what he longs for is an open heart, a heart filled with wisdom, and Mary had that heart. And so he first appears to her, tells her to tell the others that he is alive. But he also shares a great mystery. The fullness of what Jesus accomplished was finished in a sense, at Pentecost, when His Spirit, the Holy Spirit, entered into humanity. And what he says here is, I have to return to my father. It's hard to understand exactly what that means or how to interpret it, but it means there was a plan, and the plan includes the ending, and the ending is God inside of you, God unifying you with your brothers and sisters through His presence. Closing Prayer Father, over and over again, we see those that were most intimately connected with you, being challenged to believe in the things that you said as they are revealed, and as they are experienced. Bless us with faith and trust. We don't need to understand how things work, but we do need to understand what it is that God has planned for us. And we asked this In Jesus' name, Amen.

Mary Magdalene stayed outside the tomb weeping.And as she wept, she bent over into the tomband saw two angels in white sitting there,one at the head and one at the feetwhere 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.

+ Holy Gospel according to St. John 20: 11 – 18 Mary 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 of Magdala went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord," and what he told her. The Gospel of the Lord

“J'ai vu le Seigneur !”  (Jn 20, 11-18) Le commentaire sur l'évangile du jour : En ce temps-là, Marie Madeleine se tenait près du tombeau, au-dehors, tout en pleurs. Et en pleurant, elle se pencha vers le tombeau. Elle aperçoit deux anges vêtus de blanc, assis l'un à la tête et l'autre aux pieds, à l'endroit où avait reposé le corps de Jésus. Ils lui demandent : « Femme, pourquoi pleures-tu ? » Elle leur répond : « On a enlevé mon Seigneur, et je ne sais pas où on l'a déposé. » Ayant dit cela, elle se retourna ; elle aperçoit Jésus qui se tenait là, mais elle ne savait pas que c'était Jésus. Jésus lui dit : « Femme, pourquoi pleures-tu ? Qui cherches-tu ? » Le prenant pour le jardinier, elle lui répond : « Si c'est toi qui l'as emporté, dis-moi où tu l'as déposé, et moi, j'irai le prendre. » Jésus lui dit alors : « Marie ! » S'étant retournée, elle lui dit en hébreu : « Rabbouni ! », c'est-à-dire : Maître. Jésus reprend : « Ne me retiens pas, car je ne suis pas encore monté vers le Père. Va trouver mes frères pour leur dire que je monte vers mon Père et votre Père, vers mon Dieu et votre Dieu. » Marie Madeleine s'en va donc annoncer aux disciples : « J'ai vu le Seigneur ! », et elle raconta ce qu'il lui avait dit. Fr. Paul Adrien d'Hardemare (op)  L'Amour Vaincra ! Et l'aventure continue ! Abonnez-vous : sur

John 20:1-18   Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes. But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

“In the beginning God created…” Creation was covered in the last inversion with creation “out of nothing,” but there is more to be said about the verb “create” and how God creates. At this point, I will venture beyond the first verse of Genesis 1 (finally!). Here are the first three verses of Genesis, which are worth committing to memory:In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.The first thing to notice about this beginning, this creation, is that there is no battle or struggle. The maker here has no writer's block, no hand-cramping. He's not in a rush to complete the project. The painter doesn't run out of paint. He isn't interrupted by deliveries or doorbells or drop-ins. Neither is there any negotiation nor argument. No supply chain issues disrupt the critical path of keeping this building project on schedule. The flow of creation is gentle, as God simply states, “Let there be light.” No laser show or fireworks are needed. No soundtrack. No music video.God creates in peace. Most of all, we should notice that God is not attacked or killed or overthrown in any way. Why is that important? This inversion of a creation story flips the Greek, Sumerian, and other creation stories, which contain a battle, a struggle, or a war in which the victorious god “wins.” There is no struggle in Genesis. There is not even a competition of any kind. This is unlike the Sumerian, Norse, Greek, Minyong, Cherokee, and just about every other creation story. In other words, Genesis is about simple beauty, not struggle. Creation is an unfolding, not a mash-up. Consider the difference between humans constructing a building with metal, wood, cranes, and hard hats, versus a seed in soil receiving rain and growing into a flower. Jesus spoke of this when he compared Solomon's man-made opulence against a simple flower: “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these.” All that we can make pales to one of God's wild lilies. In the gentle act of creation, God merely speaks. “Let there be light” makes all other creation stories violent and slightly ridiculous. The false gods seem to be trying too hard. Against the beauty of “Let there be light,” the Sumerian story of Marduk's conquering of the primordial god reads like a cheesy TV drama, like Game of Thrones, or like the aptly named HBO series Succession. This is the inversion: a “succession myth” is built into nearly every pagan creation story, where the primordial god or gods fight, and the first gods are overthrown. These other creation myths tell of a victory that never happened. Genesis declares that there was no fight whatsoever. There wasn't even an argument or a dirty look. That's because there is only one God, the God Most High, the Author, the Creator, the Artist. Once again, Genesis calmly calls all other mythologies absurd - because they are. They may entertain us, but so does a gladiator fight, which doesn't make it right. James Joyce, who rejected the very God who gave him his great talent to write, knew much about the creation of literary works. In The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, Joyce wrote about a version of God that seems quite right and quite wrong at the same time:“The artist, like the God of the creation, remains within or behind or beyond or above his handiwork, invisible, refined out of existence, indifferent, paring his fingernails.” There is something wonderful about this quote and something false. The God who creates in Genesis does indeed remain within/behind/beyond/above his creation. Unlike human artists, he does not struggle in the act of creation, as it is a labor of love. When he completes the creation, he rests, like Joyce's image of the creator. I like the image of God seated in heaven “paring his fingernails,” even though he would not need to do so. Joyce is correct about God's presence and about his resting, but he makes an error in the middle where he says that God is “refined out of existence” and “indifferent.” In other words, Joyce's character is like Thomas Jefferson's view of God. He envisions God in the Deist view, like a clockmaker, who creates the heavens and earth and then moves on, not caring at all what happens to it. The God who creates in Genesis is not like that. He is not like the pagan gods who lust for power, nor is he like the Joyce version who creates and then drifts off distantly. This is indeed a central inversion to understanding the God of the Bible, in that when he speaks to create, he brings all things into being, and actively sustains the creation. While he could be “paring his fingernails” at rest, he is never indifferent or distant. He is an all-powerful creator who is also a loving Father, without being an overbearing one. Free will is granted to all, and free will often feels like a cross but is most assuredly a gift for those who read the Gospels to the end. In addition, the constraints of time and space, which seem a burden, are the teaching tools God uses to tame us after the Fall. The succession myths and science theories that throw out God only hurt us. God is fine whether we love him or ignore him. But when we do not conform our will to God's will, it is we who struggle, not God. In the Sumerian and Greek myths, the gods are paranoid about who will take their power. Even Zeus is sneaking around so Hera doesn't catch him. But the God of Genesis has no threats, no challengers, no contenders, no scolds, because God is like Joyce's all-powerful creator who is within/above/behind/beyond his creation. But he is not like Joyce's “meh” version of God who could care less about his work. This is the difference between human works of art versus human life - as in children. This is an important lesson for all those who dislike children but see their own lives as a work of art. The ultimate work of art is the generation of new life, and dying to self in favor of living to serve that life. To write a story is to create, but it is not new life. When I was young, I was obsessed with writing and publishing a novel. I succeeded. It sold about 4,000 copies. That was nice. But that creation now sits on a shelf and only comes to life if I open it, and I rarely do. Then I had children and realized that writing a novel is a dead letter compared to the work of a family. In other words, to see God as merely the writer of a story is to misunderstand the living and the dead. And James Joyce, who wrote a famous short story about “The Dead” was himself flatlined because he thought “to create” meant only writing, painting, and art alone. The greatest act of creation is life, and not just static art, but life that respirates and moves and sings and suffers. In other words, the greatest work of art respirates - it breathes - and creation comes through relationships we have with the living God and with one another. In particular, the total gift of self means handing over your whole life to God. In marriage that means being open to creating new life and serving others instead of the self. The Church is said to be the Bride of Christ, and he emptied himself to bring new life to all its members. God does the same through all creation, as life springs from his word. God calls us to life by speaking, not struggling. Jesus brought life to all the world starting with a small group of friends. They changed from ways of this world into saints by giving away their time and space to others, forgetting the struggle. With Jesus at the center, this shedding of struggle became possible. The only struggle in Jesus' earthly ministry happened when competition against God's will tried to insert itself: the Pharisees wanted control through rules, the Romans used brutal violence, James and John lobbied for top status in the kingdom, Peter was rebuked harshly when he tried to stop the path to the cross. Whenever anyone wants to make a name for himself, a struggle begins. This is a spiritual law, it seems, from the Tower of Babel to Pontius Pilate and Simon Magus. The opposite of serving is gaining a name for oneself, and those who gain fame by doing God's will tend to get new names, not from themselves but from God. Abram becomes Abraham, Jacob becomes Israel, and Simon becomes Peter. With their new name comes a mission of servitude, and status only comes with their dying to self. When Jesus says, “From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force,” he is talking about the status-seekers and the power-hungry who rule this world. To serve is to take the lowest seat, not the highest, and we should consider this whenever we admire celebrities, the wealthy, or the proud. When the guards strike Jesus, he opens not his mouth. Not once does Jesus attempt to make a name for himself. He repeatedly tells others not to announce what he has done. Healing in private he seeks no fame. This is exactly how God creates: in peace, in quiet. “Let there be light” makes no sound, it just happens. Thus, when the proud loudly mock God or take his name in vain, God allows them, for he has already won, and he just hopes his persecutors eventually stop trying to make a name for themselves and come to rest in his infinite peace. Surely when he watches us struggle, it must look foolish, since he wants us to partake in his divine nature, which does not struggle. The creation of life that God gives to the universe and each human body and soul composite is an act of love. Mothers and fathers can know this to a depth that can never be understood by the childless. Dog owners often think they understand what parenthood means, but they do not, and they sound silly when they attempt to conflate dog ownership with actual parenthood. Artists will often talk of their work as like that of a mother's love for a child. But they are ignorant of the depth of the Father's love for his children, or a mother's love for her child. The images of the Holy Family endure because that is the greatest work of art - a living family. We have a living family both earthly and spiritual. For we not only have an imperfect earthly father, we have the perfect heavenly Father who created our earthly father. Better still, we have our imperfect earthly mother, and our spiritual Mother of God, Mary, who Jesus stated from the cross for all people, “There is your Mother.” The God who created all is not an absentee deadbeat dad, he is near. Nor is he angry and controlling, he is simply calling us to listen and be listened to. In other words, there is no struggle in this relationship except for what we introduce to it. We bring the struggle. Because we chafe against our containment in time and space, we want to escape it and control it. Struggle ensues exactly when we deny God's will and try to make our own will the authority and power. This is a fool's game, but since the expulsion from the Garden we never tire of playing it until the invasion of grace enters our lives. When Jesus steps into our boat, as he did with Peter and Andrew, the struggle can end, if we let it. The creator of a work of art struggles and can love his book, painting, song, or statue that they “bring to life.” But it can never be alive like a child. A book or painting cannot bind you in flesh and bone like another person that was generated by yourself and another person. And here is where the Trinity can first be discussed (but not too much yet), because when God the Father creates, the Spirit hovers over the waters. To create is the act of love, and that which is created and living will be loved by the creator. I can be indifferent to a story that I wrote, or to a woodworking project that I complete, even if I am pleased with the result. But I cannot be indifferent to a child that is alive who came from husband and wife. This is why many parents seem somewhat insane: they love so deeply. They love so deeply that they err in strange ways. This is why the saying, “You're only as happy as your most unhappy child” hits the nail on the head for many mothers and fathers. The living creation that is generated by parents, from their shared bodies, can never be separated in a child. Genesis and Jesus both repeat: “…and the two shall become one flesh; so they are no longer two, but one flesh.” In the same way, God loves us. The Trinity is a loving family of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is the peak of love, at a greater depth, with rightly ordered balance. God does not try to control us, but allows us to err, with the hope that we will recognize the way back home. And since we are all children of God, can't we imagine how he feels when we ignore him? (We can't fully, but we can get an idea.) This is why the other creation stories feel like entertainment rather than truth. They are accounts of struggle, whereas the true God never struggles. To read the “struggle stories” of creation in the ancient world is to see what they valued, which was power. We do the same today. In poker, the big bank takes the little bank. In geopolitics, big armies and big navies control the shipping lanes. In the office, the loudest voice drives the agenda. The proud and violent “win” here, and for it, we all lose. Disorder comes from struggle and squabbling over scraps from a zero-sum game that doesn't need to be played. None of the power games we play come from God, but rather from our disordered will. What we consider creation is often destruction. Fortunately, Jesus shows us God: he is a humble servant, a loving creator, a living act of love who takes the last seat at the table. Real power is to be at rest amid the storm, like when Jesus slept in the boat that was about to capsize. The seas and the wind obey him. So should we. In America, “wealth creation” is worshipped, and the creation of wealth is an endless struggle. Yet if Jesus returned tomorrow, he would not come forth saying, “We must get the economy back on track.” The only economy of concern to God is the economy of salvation for our souls. That is the plan, and to carry out that plan we must stop struggling. But we celebrate struggle. Everything seems to be built around it today. We seek it out. Activists calling for permanent revolution crave a struggle. Sports is an endless invented struggle of those rising and falling. Cities and nations clamor for influence. We think we love struggle, but we loathe it because it is a trap. It is a container that we crawl inside, pull the lid down over ourselves, and suffocate under. We hate this competition and we want to rest, but for most of us, the draw of struggle pulls us into our own bad creation stories. Glory days and power plays are what gets remembered, not the quiet servant, the mother who made all the meals. What we should do is notice who is not struggling. God is not struggling. He is seated. After creation he is seated, not struggling, but also he is not indifferent. When people come to know the living God, who created all things, a sense of active participation in that peace comes to them, which is why St. Augustine's memorable line rings forever true throughout the centuries: “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”In case you ever wonder why people like to kneel and pray in adoration chapels, or in the pews, it is because they are talking to the one that gives life, meaning, and rest. Once you come to see that the only place without struggle is at the center, at the source, from whom all things are generated, then the attraction of the struggle in this world makes little sense. Aside from needing our daily bread, the struggles of our world have come from sin. To sin is to struggle. Once again, Jesus said, “Consider the lilies of the field who neither toil nor spin.” We have rational souls, yet we should look to the lily, or the ant, for models of living in our bodies, and for our spiritual example we must look to God - the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit - for how not to struggle but to find peace. How is it that God does not struggle? He is without pride or fear. Only we who have fallen know pride, vanity, and sensuality, and that is the source of all struggle. Sin is the absence of God. When we sin we reject God in favor of our pride, vanity, or sensuality. In choosing to sin, we choose disorder and struggle. But we do not harm God when we turn away. There is nothing that can harm God or overtake him. He does not force us to love him, but he invites us to do so. God is not “containable.” The great error is thinking that he can be contained, tricked, or boxed in. God is uncontained. His creation is an unending relationship and conversation. He creates with a living, breathing, moving, open heart toward us all. He is uncontained because he's not in competition with anything, including us. When I was in high school, I was putting dishes away one day in cupboards and drawers, and it dawned on me that everything had a container. Forks go into a drawer, but within the drawer, there is an organizer. Within the drawer container, was another container for holding the forks. I began to look around and saw that everything I did was moving things from one container to another. The world seemed to one big Containment Management System, as I would wake up in the house container, go to the shower container (containing the water) and eat breakfast moving many containers to and fro, and then get in the car container to go to school, then go into the school container, in the classroom container, and with my backpack container, I would open up my books which contained words. In this theory of containment, I realized that if I go very close with a microscope, there are smaller and smaller containers, from cells to molecules to atoms to protons. And all of these contain smaller things. Likewise, if I back up from my containers and look up, there are more containers, like the earth, the solar system, the galaxy, and the universe. So as far as my finite mind could understand, the largest container was the universe, and beyond that wall, our material selves could not go. But then there were containers for immaterial things as well, like ideas, as we categorize things as Platonic forms or mathematical constants or schools of thought. There were numbers that had rules of containment from Euclid to Einstein. There were stories that had beginnings and endings, like virtual bookends. Even our imagination is contained by time and space. This fed into a period when I discounted all spiritual things, where anything immaterial was not real, like feelings or opinions. Only scientific evidence made for knowledge. Right around that time, I became very depressed as well, as I had rejected God's existence. But I did have one realization at that time when I was looking at forks and drawers and atoms and planets. A question came to me:What would it mean to be uncontained? I felt as if this was like Zen koan, a question like “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” To be uncontained was to be free, completely elevated outside of time and space. And who could be like that? Who could always be in that place of no struggle? I know who it is. Whenever I thought of what that must feel like to be truly uncontained, without the aid of mood-altering things, I recalled a day when I was working on a farm one summer, leaning on a gate at the end of the day after making silage, watching the cattle toss the fresh, green food up in the air and onto their backs, almost joyfully, as the sun set in the big orange horizon beyond the silo silhouette. It was one of those moments where the body was tired but fulfilled and I knew that dinner would be good because I'd worked for my daily bread, and the music of the spheres, and the harmony of nature, all seemed to be flowing in concert, and I've never seen anything so true, good, and beautiful in my whole life. That day I felt uncontained basking in the beauty of creation. I had other moments like this, such as when my children were born, where the impossible occurred. There have been quite a few times like when I would be out on a long bike ride at dusk and stop for a drink of water near a cornfield, or when I would look at the stars on the hood of my car in high school with my friends, or when I hold my wife's hand, or when I listen to certain songs, or when I look at certain Caravaggio paintings like “The Conversion of St. Paul.” To be uncontained is impossible for me. I can not stay there. But I can be there from time to time. Like Mary Magdalene at the tomb, I can witness the glory, but cannot hold fast to it while I'm in this world. In these moments, I realized something that seemed profound (at the time):God is that which is uncontained. God is the only thing that is uncontainable. This is why God does not struggle. This is why he rests. Can we ever be uncontained? The answer is yes. We can partake of the divine nature. What the Eucharist means in the life of a Catholic is just this. For those who believe, receiving Communion is just what it means: we commune with God. We partake in the divine nature. In other words, we partake in the uncontained wonder and awe of the creator of the universe. Critical to the understanding of the Eucharist is that we are not God, but we are made in the image of God, and our life is entirely about moving back into his uncontainability. The key is to remember that I am not God - I am contained, but by partaking in his nature, I can be more like him, and in heaven I will be fully with him again, for we came from the uncontained and can return there - and someday we will return if we remain in his grace, for “by your endurance, you will gain your soul.” But like every original thought I've had, I found out later that my idea of uncontainment was not original at all. In St. Augustine's Confessions, Book 1, Chapter 3, the heading is: “Everywhere God wholly fills all things, but neither heaven nor earth contains Him.”Those who understand what the Catholic Church teaches have known about this notion of uncontainment for millennia. Sometimes I see Church Fathers use the term uncircumscribed, which is like saying uncontained. But most importantly for this inversion, this is why the God of the Bible is different from all the other gods. All of the gods of myth are within time and space. Even if they are in the heavens, they struggle. God does not struggle, he creates, even though he did not have to create. He chose to do so out of love, and it is only we, the fallen, who choose struggle. Because our pride, vanity, and sensuality fool us we believe that struggling against each other will gain us a higher place, but when we struggle we dig our graves. In making a name for ourselves, we will be forgotten by God on the last day. In struggling, we lose our peace and rest, because it takes our focus off of what is most good, what is the highest good, which is God, the uncontained creator who does not struggle, ever. Like the loving father in the parable of the Prodigal Son who runs out to meet his wayward son upon his return, he calls to us, he runs out to meet us, and when we return he fills us with a wealth beyond human understanding. And that is why we are here in this world as we are: we are not kicked out of the Garden as a punishment, we are kicked out for our own good, so that we may come to know God and return to him of our own free will. He invites us but never forces our hand. He calls, never coerces. He is beyond all things and sustains all things, which is why we cannot run from God. All that we create that is not living becomes rusted, corroded, and overtaken by time and nature. Every ancient temple and city dedicated to the false gods has turned to dust, just as every skyscraper, stadium, and data center today will turn to dust. Every mascot and corporate logo will be as powerless and meaningless as the eagle of Rome or the oracle at Delphi. We are passing by on our way to an eternity in one of two places. Like a bird flying by a window, our time is brief, our stay here is short, and all that we create will fade, no matter how we struggle to maintain a sense of security. The pages in books we write will turn yellow, the machines will fall into disrepair and sit like rocks. But the life we create can create more life, as the generations continue. This is why a child who plays a video game is disengaged, while a child who catches a fish is full of wonder. One is playing in the world that God created, and the other is playing in an artificial world that a programmer created. Likewise, this is why a reader of Joyce may experience something like transcendence, but a reader of the Bible (and especially the Gospels) experiences something alive. Joyce could write a book, but his book cannot generate life. But those who approach the Bible as the written word of the uncontained God who created all things and does not struggle will find life. Yes, it is a strange book that can bring a robotic modern person back to life. Interestingly, Joyce's most famous short story was called “The Dead” which referred to Jesus' saying, “Let the dead bury the dead.” This was a reference to spiritual death. When Jesus said that he is the vine, the bread of life, and the living water, he was telling us to plug into God. He was notifying us that struggling and floundering only happen when you desire something more than God. You will forever be searching and struggling until you come to realize that there is only one path to the end of struggle, and that is the path back home to God. Jesus reminds us: “In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” He has created the world, overcome it, and rests, waiting for us to recognize his ever-present voice. When we find him, in those moments, we will want to stay there and never leave. In the Eucharist at Holy Mass we can partake in the uncontained. Jesus is there - truly present under the appearance of the bread and the wine. Again, Mary Magdalene at the tomb wants to stay with the risen Lord forever, but she cannot. She has to move forward, and moving forward she is full of life, she is changed. Her sadness is swept away upon seeing the risen Jesus. How can that be? Because she is no longer struggling, and her sorrow turns to joy. She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her. (John 20:11-18)And then, once we meet him, after he surprises us, we know beyond our worldly containers what is true, good, and beautiful. He invites us into that peaceful present. Then our pain and sorrow become strangely redemptive. Coming to know how he does not struggle, we can do likewise. We can go to the chapel in the heart even when a church is nowhere near. As St. Paul said, we can pray constantly, and thus be with the one that is forever uncontained by time and space while we work and live here - for the kingdom of God is among us - in relationships, not in art or status or stuff. Once we recognize our relationship to God, we know the Father, and we know our mother Mary, and we become connected to the angels and saints - including Mary Magdalene, who will pray with you if you but ask for her intercession. Then like God, we do not have to struggle. For God alone is uncontained. And God alone satisfies. Further reading:* The Bible's Conflict-Free Creation Story* How God Redeems Pagan Imagination* St. Augustine and Cosmology* Creation in Genesis 1:1-2:3 and the Ancient Near East: Order out of Disorder after Chaoskampf - “The background of the Genesis creation story has nothing to do with the so-called Chaoskampf'myth of the Mesopotamian type, as preserved in the Babylonian "creation" myth Enuma Elish. In Gen 1, there is no hint of struggle or battle between God and this tehom—water.”* Chaoskampf - Good overview of myth systems that assume a struggle, but the article misses the inversion of Genesis entirely. God does not struggle. He just creates. He orders. There is no rival. Even Leviathan is God's plaything or pet (Psalm 104). The ancient dragon, the devil, is cast down to earth like a swatted fly falling to the floor (Revelation 12:9). He was never a threat to God, never a contender, rather just a rebel and nuisance to the good of creation, as he still is for us today. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit whydidpetersink.substack.com

On the first day of the week,Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning,while it was still dark,and saw the stone removed from the tomb.So she ran and went to Simon Peterand to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them,"They have taken the Lord from the tomb,and we don't know where they put him."Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping.And as she wept, she bent over into the tomband saw two angels in white sitting there,one at the head and one at the feetwhere 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 Magdalene went and announced to the disciples,"I have seen the Lord,"and then reported what he told her.

"Rabbouni, que je retrouve la vue ! "Méditation de l'évangile (Mc 10, 46b-52) par la pasteur Nicole FabreChant final: "Ta Grâce" par le groupe Glorious

Today's Topics: 1) Gospel - Jn 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. Bishop Sheen quote of the day 2) Not just Nashville: Attacks against churches nearly triple in 2023 https://www.dailysignal.com/2023/04/06/not-just-nashville-attacks-churches-nearly-tripled-2023-report-finds/ 3) No act of charity: A personal reflection on the Vatican's promotion of COVID-19 vaccination https://www.lifesitenews.com/opinion/no-act-of-charity-a-personal-reflection-on-the-vaticans-promotion-of-covid-19-vaccination/ 4) To bring new meaning to Easter, consider learning this Hebrew word: Dayenu https://www.dailysignal.com/2023/04/06/bring-new-meaning-easter-consider-learning-this-hebrew-word/

Gospel 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. Reflection Mary in this story is an image of who we are, who were called to be people constantly seeking and opening our hearts to whatever is true about our Savior. Think of her as the part in you that longs to know, longs to see, wants to be in touch with. And that's a work that we do together. And it's a work that always brings us to the same place. Mary Proclaiming it to those who also need to know who he is, where he is. In our hearts. The Closing prayer Bless us with the gift of longing so we can truly listen to the many signs you send to us each day. Amen.

Mary Magdalene stayed outside the tomb weeping.And as she wept, she bent over into the tomband saw two angels in white sitting there,one at the head and one at the feetwhere 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.

HOLY GOSPEL: John 20:1-18  The Holy Gospel according to John. Glory to you, O Lord.  1Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. 2So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” 3Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. 4The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, 7and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. 8Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10Then the disciples returned to their homes.  11But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; 12and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. 13They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 14When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” 16Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). 17Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' ” 18Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her. 

Easter Day Principal Service The Collect: O God, who for our redemption gave your only-begotten Son to the death of the cross, and by his glorious resurrection delivered us from the power of our enemy: Grant us so to die daily to sin, that we may evermore live with him in the joy of his resurrection; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. or this O God, who made this most holy night to shine with the glory of the Lord's resurrection: Stir up in your Church that Spirit of adoption which is given to us in Baptism, that we, being renewed both in body and mind, may worship you in sincerity and truth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. or this Almighty God, who through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ overcame death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life: Grant that we, who celebrate with joy the day of the Lord's resurrection, may be raised from the death of sin by your life-giving Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. First Lesson: Acts 10:34-43 or Jeremiah 31:1-6 34Then Peter began to speak to them: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, 35but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. 36You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ—he is Lord of all. 37That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: 38how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; 40but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, 41not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. 43All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” or 1At that time, says the Lord, I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people. 2Thus says the Lord: The people who survived the sword found grace in the wilderness; when Israel sought for rest, 3the Lord appeared to him from far away. I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you. 4Again I will build you, and you shall be built, O virgin Israel! Again you shall take your tambourines, and go forth in the dance of the merrymakers. 5Again you shall plant vineyards on the mountains of Samaria; the planters shall plant, and shall enjoy the fruit. 6For there shall be a day when sentinels will call in the hill country of Ephraim: “Come, let us go up to Zion, to the Lord our God.” Psalm: Psalm 118:1-2,14-24 1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; *        his mercy endures for ever. 2 Let Israel now proclaim, *       “His mercy endures for ever.” 14 The Lord is my strength and my song, *        and he has become my salvation. 15 There is a sound of exultation and victory *        in the tents of the righteous: 16 “The right hand of the Lord has triumphed! *        the right hand of the Lord is exalted!        the right hand of the Lord has triumphed!” 17 I shall not die, but live, *        and declare the works of the Lord. 18 The Lord has punished me sorely, *        but he did not hand me over to death. 19 Open for me the gates of righteousness; *        I will enter them;        I will offer thanks to the Lord. 20 “This is the gate of the Lord; *        he who is righteous may enter.” 21 I will give thanks to you, for you answered me *        and have become my salvation. 22 The same stone which the builders rejected *        has become the chief cornerstone. 23 This is the Lord's doing, *        and it is marvelous in our eyes. 24 On this day the Lord has acted; *        we will rejoice and be glad in it. Second Lesson: Colossians 3:1-4 or Acts 10:34-43 1So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth, 3for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory. or 34Then Peter began to speak to them: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, 35but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. 36You know the message he sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ—he is Lord of all. 37That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced: 38how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. 39We are witnesses to all that he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree; 40but God raised him on the third day and allowed him to appear, 41not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. 42He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one ordained by God as judge of the living and the dead. 43All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.” Gospel: John 20:1-18 or Matthew 28:1-10 1Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. 2So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” 3Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. 4The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, 7and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. 8Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10Then the disciples returned to their homes. 11But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; 12and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. 13They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 14When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” 16Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). 17Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'” 18Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her. or 1After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2And suddenly there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord, descending from heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. 5But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. 6He is not here; for he has been raised, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. 7Then go quickly and tell his disciples, ‘He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him.' This is my message for you.” 8So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples.9Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. 10Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

Tuesday in the Octave of EasterJn 20:11-18Jesus 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.

John 20:1-18   Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes. But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

Vigil of Samhain Old Testament Reading: Book of Wisdom [3:1-5, 9] The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,        and no torment will ever touch them.        In the eyes of the foolish they appear to have died,        and their departure was thought to be a disaster,        and their going from us to be their destruction;        but they are at peace.          For though in the sight of others they were punished,        their hope is full of immortality.        Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good,        because God tested them and found them worthy of himself; Those who trust in him will understand truth,        and the faithful will abide with him in love,        because grace and mercy are upon his holy ones,        and he watches over his elect. New Testament Reading: Book of Revelation [22:1-5] Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the Tree of Life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.  Nothing accursed will be found there anymore. But the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever. The Gospel according to John [20:11-18]  Mary Magdalen stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”  When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas' website.John 19 concludes with the burial of Jesus. Now, in John 20, it is Sunday morning, the third day since the crucifixion -- and the tomb is empty!20:1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. Only the Romans were permitted to open this tomb. We learn from Matthew 27:65-66; 28:4,11 that a guard had been dispatched there on Saturday.A copy of a decree by the emperor Claudius (41-54 AD) was found at Nazareth. It orders execution for those destroying tombs, breaking seals, or removing bodies or closure stones.2 So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” 3 Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. 4 The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, 7 and the cloth that had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. 8 Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9 for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10 Then the disciples returned to their homes.None expect the resurrection, despite Jesus' frequent and emphatic prediction of this event:John 2:19Matthew 16:21; 17:23; 20:19; 27:64Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:34Luke 9:22; 18:33Mary of Magdala is the first to find the open, empty tomb (v.1).Immediately she runs to tell the news to the apostles, who receive her message as nonsense (Luke 24:11).Peter and the Beloved Disciple run to the tomb (v.4).The Beloved Disciple sees the graveclothes (v.5). The presence of the graveclothes shows there has been no robbery.Though Peter arrives first, the Beloved Disciple allows him to enter first. Peter sees the graveclothes and the face cloth (v.7).Neither yet understood the scriptural truth that Christ must rise from the dead (v.9), and so they simply go home.Mary, on the other hand, remains at the gravesite (v.11).11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; 12 and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. 13 They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 14 When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew,“Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'” 18 Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.Mary remains at the gravesite (v.11).She is distressed. It would have been very unsettling to think that the body of her Lord has been stolen, mistreated, or abused.Looking again into the tomb, she sees angels sitting at either end of the place where the body of Jesus should have been (v.12). They ask her why she is weeping, and she tells them.Turning around, she sees Jesus (v.14), though not recognizing him. He repeats the question: "Woman, why are you weeping?"She thinks (hopes?) he is the gardener, and will be able to show her where the body has been placed (v.15).Jesus reveals his identity (v.16), and Mary falls at his feet, desiring his presence and wanting him to remain. Since Mary is one of his sheep (10:3-4,14,16,27), she recognizes his voice when he calls her by name.Jesus, however, cannot stay. He must return to heaven -- though not immediately (v.17).For a second time Mary makes an announcement to the apostles, but this time it is not only about an empty tomb, but about a risen Lord.It is clear from verse 17 that Jesus had not yet gone into heaven as of Sunday. And yet he told the penitent thief (Luke 23:43), "Today you will be with me in paradise." By far the simplest explanation is that paradise and heaven are not necessarily the same place. For more on this, click here.The fact that the gospels report the testimony of women to Jesus' resurrection is remarkable, since such testimony was not normally accepted in a court of law.If the resurrection were a fabrication, it would not have been written this way!The truth is, it isn't a fabrication at all.19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 22 When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”On Easter evening, Jesus himself appears, walking through a closed door (v.19).The doors were locked for fear of the Jewish leaders. The psychological state of the disciples is depressed. They seem to have lost hope. What can explain the metamorphosis in the apostles? (See Acts 4:13.) The resurrection of Christ from the dead explains it perfectly.Jesus, in his resurrection body, walks through closed doors.He wishes them peace (shalom); on the cross he had cried out, "It is finished!" (tetélestai); the two are connected. Now there is peace between God and man, as a result of his atoning death. See Romans 5:1ff.Jesus shows them his wounds (v.20).Again he wishes them shalom (v.21), and commissions them -- or reminds them of their commission -- as apostles (sent ones).He breathes on them (v.22), giving them the Holy Spirit.The breathing in to them is reminiscent of Genesis 2:7 and Ezekiel 37:9-10. They are being created anew.This can also be read as a prophetic action, illustrating that they will receive the Spirit (at Pentecost).In verse 23 he also gives the apostles the right to grant or refuse remission of sins (in baptism).The verb is perfect: the sins have been forgiven or possibly will have been forgiven. That is, the apostles are not forgiving sins themselves, but ratifying the action of God in forgiving others through Christ.There is a similar passage in Matthew 18:18, in the context of church discipline.For more on vv.22-23, click here.24 But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”26 A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” 28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”Thomas (Didymus, the Greek word for twin) is absent Easter evening, and expresses his skepticism (vv.24-25). But one week later (Sunday night) he is present when Jesus appears. Again Jesus walks through closed doors (v.26).His doubt confronted and overturned, Thomas sees the wounds and confesses his faith. (Despite the depictions of several famous paintings, it seems doubtful that he put hand into Jesus' wounds.)Thomas realizes that Jesus is Lord and God. He is the same Deity who appears in all of scripture. Notice that Jesus makes no effort to correct this perception, for he is God (1:1,14,18; 10:30).This passage shows us that God understands our need for evidence, for proof. Doubt can be constructive, and can be an important element in building genuine faith.Once our questions have been answered, God expects us to respond in faith and obedience.Note: "After eight days" (v.26) is inclusive reckoning (common usage). Thus the events of two consecutive Sundays are recounted.Thomas' confession of faith (v.28) stands over against the confession the evil emperor Domitian (81-96 AD) required of his subjects: Dominus et deus noster ("Our Lord and God"). The readers of this gospel would thus have been strengthened to resist temptation to cave in to pressure to join in emperor worship. Emperor worship was especially prevalent at the end of the first century in western Asia Minor -- the location of John's ministry."Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed" (v.29).Most persons, like the readers of John -- and us -- will believe in Christ without seeing any signs. Such faith is highly commended. See 2 Corinthians 5:7.Here we also find the second beatitude in John.The other is in 13:17.More beatitudes are found in Matthew 5:3ff (and parallels in Luke 6:20ff), 11:6; 13:16; 24:46; Acts 20:35; Revelation 1:3; 14:13; 16:15; 19:9; 20:6; 22:7; 22:14. But this by no means exhausts the list.30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may come to believethat Jesus is the Messiah,the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.Jesus' signs are intended to lead us to and reinforce our faith (vv.30-31).The writer has selected only a few signs for our benefit. The actual number of miracles Jesus did is much greater.It is not necessary to personally witness miracles in order to believe. Reading about them is enough. (For more on this, see Luke 16:31 and another dozen passages in the N.T. stressing the point.)Only by faith (believing) can we have life in Jesus' name.Faith is a major theme in John. The Greek nouns and verbs appear nearly 90 times in this gospel!Do you believe?Further to verse 31, there is a similar saying by Rabbi Simeon ben Laqish (c.250 AD): "The proselyte is dearer to God than all the Israelites who stood by Mount Sinai. For if all the Israelites had not seen the thunder, and the flames, and the lightnings, and the quaking mountain, and the sound of the trumpet, they would not have accepted the Law and taken upon themselves the kingdom of God. Yet this man has seen none of all these things, yet comes and gives himself to God. Is there any who is dearer than this man?" (Tanh. 6, 32a.)The Greek verb in verse 31 appears in two forms in surviving manuscripts: pisteusete and pisteuete. Though both mean "believe," the first is an aorist, meaning to believe in the sense of coming to faith. The second means to believe or continue to believe. Perhaps we do not have to choose what the writer had in mind, since both are valid responses to the evidence for Christ.Most scholars believe that the original gospel ended at verse 31. There are reasons to view chapter 21 as an appendix.Thought questions:If you were the one visiting the tomb early on Easter morning, what would have been in your thoughts on seeing the stone rolled away?If you are a man, how would you have reacted when Mary (and other women) announced that they had met he risen Lord?If you are a woman, do you relate to the question of the angels and Jesus, "Woman, why are you weeping?"? Is there something in your life that is causing you great distress? Do you know and feel that God understands and cares?Can you think of any better explanation than Jesus' resurrection for the stunning transformation in his disciples?How much do you relate to Thomas? Do doubt and questioning function in a positive way to build your faith?Compare Mary Magdalene and the apostle Thomas. How are they similar? different? What are the differences in how Jesus treats them?

Today's Topics: 1) Gospel - Jn 20:1-2, 11-18 - 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. Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene - Saint Mary Magdalene, pray for us Bishop Sheen quote of the day  2, 3) Interview with Patrick O'Hearn on his book: Parents of the Saints  (TAN)  4) Back to the sixties? Pontifical Academy for Life pushes for departure from doctrine on contraceptive sex  https://www.ncregister.com/news/analysis-pontifical-academy-for-life-pushes-to-change-churchs-opposition-to-contraception

On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don't know where they put him.” Mary 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 Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and then reported what he told her.

“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.”  John 20:15b-17bWhat a privilege!  Mary Magdalene was the first person recorded in Scripture to see the risen Lord, and there is no doubt that many would have concluded that she was the most unworthy person to receive such a blessing.Scripture states that Mary Magdalene was the woman from whom Jesus cast out seven demons. Clearly, one who was possessed by seven demons had lived a sinful life. But after encountering our Lord, Mary became His faithful follower, being one of the holy women to daily serve and care for His needs.  For that reason, we now call her “saint.”  But this passage above tells us even more about Jesus and His mercy.This passage is taken from the account of Jesus' Resurrection.  Mary had gone to the tomb only to find it empty.  She sat there weeping thinking that someone took Jesus' body away.  But suddenly, before her eyes, Jesus was there and alive.  His words were piercing and profound.  He said, “Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.”  There are two things to say about this passage.First, it was indeed a wonderful blessing that Jesus appeared to her first.  This sinful woman was now the first witness and first messenger to the Resurrection.  This tells us that Jesus does not discriminate against us because of our past sins.  He does not have a long memory holding us forever accountable for what we've done in the past.  His forgiveness is absolute when given and it completely restores us to grace if we are open.  This is what happened with Mary.  Jesus chose her, this formerly sinful woman, to be His first witness of His Resurrection.Secondly, this passage reveals that Jesus does want us to cling to Him, just not in a purely human way.  Mary had come to know Jesus on Earth and now Jesus wanted to deepen His bond with her once He ascended into Heaven.  At that time, He wanted to be more than just physically present, He wanted to dwell within her soul and unite Himself to her, and to us, in the most intimate and profound way.  Reflect, today, upon the desire in the Heart of our Lord that we cling to Him in Heaven.  Hear Him say to you, “I have now ascended to my Father and I invite you to cling to me with your whole heart.  Let me in and allow me to dwell within you in all intimacy.  I love you and want to be one with you.  Will you let me into your heart?”Lord, I do want to cling to You.  I do choose to be one with You in every way.  Come live in my heart and make me one with You.  Jesus, I trust in You.Source of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2022 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.

July 22: Saint Mary MagdaleneFirst CenturyFeast; Liturgical Color: WhitePatron Saint of perfumers, converts, and hairdressersAn Apostle to the Apostles first spreads the Good News“Cherchez la femme“ is a French phrase meaning “Look for the woman.” It is used as a convenient shortcut in movie or literary criticism to discover what is driving a plot, especially in a detective story. Why did the man risk his life? Cherchez la femme? Who had a motive to lie? Cherchez la femme? Where is the treasure buried? Cherchez la femme? It's a cliché, of course, but clichés often convey some truth. Look for the women in the Gospels, and you will not be disappointed. Search for one woman in particular, Mary Magdalene, and you will find yourself present at all the most important Gospel events: the passion, the crucifixion, the burial, and in a garden for the resurrection, just moments after a huge stone is rolled away from a tomb, allowing the Lord to step forth into a new world. Saint Mary Magdalene is present at key moments, says key things, and is a key witness. She opens the door to Gospel scenes that would otherwise remain hidden from view.Saint Mary Magdalene was among that troop of women who congregated on the outer edge of the twelve Apostles. These were probably women of means, who “provided for” Jesus and the Apostles “out of their resources” (Lk 8:3). When these women are named, Mary Magdalene is always named first, similar to Saint Peter's position in the listing of the Apostles. Mary Magdalene is named many more times in the Gospels than most of the Apostles themselves, signaling her importance. The Gospel of Luke relates that seven demons were driven from her (Lk. 8:2). But there is debate over whether Mary Magdalene is also the sinful woman who anoints Christ's feet and if she is also Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. Building on the presumption that the sinful woman was Mary Magdalene, medieval traditions wrongly described her as a repentant prostitute. Artistic depictions almost universally show her as sultry, forlorn, and repentant. Despite the dubious connection between Mary Magdalene and prostitution, this association continues today and will likely take centuries to purify.A “combined Mary” understanding rolls all three of the above Marys—the woman from whom demons were expelled, the repentant sinner, the sister of Lazarus—into the one person of Mary Magdalene. Mary was an extremely common Jewish name. It requires, then, careful attention to the text to sift which Mary is doing what in the New Testament. Magdala was a town on the Sea of Galilee. So when Mary from Magdala is referenced, the reader can trust that her town is adjoined to her name on purpose to distinguish her from other Marys.An old Christian tradition calls Mary Magdalene the “Apostle to the Apostles.” The resurrected Christ appeared to her first, before all others. She is the proto-witness. Mary and other women go to the tomb of Jesus to anoint His body. They see the stone rolled away and enter. The body is not there. An angel tells them to not be afraid, “But go, tell his disciples and Peter” (Mk 16:7), so Mary dutifully fulfills his angelic orders. It is a woman, then, who tells the men, who spreads the news of all news to everyone else. The men come running and verify her account. The tomb is empty. As usual, Mary respectfully remains on the fringe of the Apostles. She weeps outside the tomb while Peter and John are inside. Time passes as they try to absorb what this all means until, finally, the “disciples returned to their homes” (Jn 20:10). But Mary does not go home. And then it happens. Mary is alone again, crying. She just can't believe it. She has to take another look. So she bends her body in half to peer into the low empty tomb once again. When she straightens up, she notices a man standing just behind her. She thinks he is a gardener. A short, awkward conversation follows and then abruptly concludes: “Mary!”...“Rabbouni!” (Jn 20:16). Her name is in the mouth of God! A name is enunciated and a new life begins! At Baptism. At Confirmation. At religious vows. May we all hear the voice of the risen Christ speak our name, directly to us, just as Mary Magdalene did, when we hopefully walk for the first time in the garden of paradise: “Ashley!” ”Susan!” “Tom!” “Marty!” “Quinn!” “Juliette!”...and on and on and on until the end of time.Saint Mary Magdalene, assist all who seek your intercession to be humble followers of Christ, doing, from the margins, what is necessary to carry forward the ministry of Christ's Church, quietly accomplishing God's will without recognition except for its eternal reward.

- Press the PLAY button to listen to the catechesis of the day and share if you like -+ A reading from the holy Gospel, according to John +On the first day of the week,          Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning,          while it was still dark,          and saw the stone removed from the tomb.So she ran and went to Simon Peter          and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them,          “They have taken the Lord from the tomb,          and we don't know where they put him.” Mary 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 Magdalene went and announced to the disciples,          “I have seen the Lord,”          and then reported what he told her.The Gospel of the Lord.

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 of Magdala went and announced to the disciples, "I have seen the Lord," and what he told her.

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.

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.”  John 20:15–17Mary Magdalene had been outside Jesus' tomb weeping because she didn't know what had happened to His sacred body.  Jesus appears to her suddenly in her grief and she is overwhelmed, crying out “Rabbouni!”  Jesus tells her to stop holding on to Him.  Why would Jesus say this?  What did He mean?As we can imagine, this was a very emotional moment for Mary.  She had been there watching the entire Crucifixion.  She knew Jesus well and loved Him dearly.  She watched Him die and now, all of a sudden, Jesus was alive and in her presence.  Her emotions must have been overwhelming.  Jesus was not being critical of Mary when He told her not to hold on to Him.  He was actually giving her beautiful advice and direction in her spiritual journey and in her relationship with Him.  He was telling her that His relationship was now going to change, and deepen.  He told her not to hold on to Him because He had “not yet ascended to the Father.”  At that moment, Mary's relationship with Jesus was primarily on a human level.  She had spent much time with Him, been in His physical presence, and loved Him with her human heart.  But Jesus wanted more.  He wanted her, and all of us, to now love Him in a divine way.  He was soon to ascend to the Father, and from His heavenly throne He could descend to begin a new relationship with Mary, and with all of us, that was far more than one on a human level.  From His throne in Heaven He could now enter Mary's soul.  He could enter into a new and much deeper communion with her and with all of us.  He could live in us and we in Him.  He could become one with us.By letting go of the more human and emotional aspects of her relationship with Jesus, Mary could soon cling to Him in a way that she couldn't do through her human interaction with Him.  This is the divine marriage, the divine communion to which we are all called.Reflect, today, upon your own clinging to Jesus.  He is now fully resurrected and ascended and we can experience the full fruits of the Resurrection as a result.  We, with Mary, can now hold on to Him in our souls because He is primarily the one holding on to us.My exalted Lord, may I cling to You as You cling to me.  May my heart, mind and soul be Yours.  Come live in me so that I may live in You.  I give my life to You, dear Lord, help me to offer You all that I am.  Jesus, I trust in You.Source of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2022 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.