In accordance with the wishes of (the late) Pope Francis, the Vatican’s Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments issued a decree on June 10, 2016, to elevate the Memorial Day of Saint Mary Magdalene on July 22 of each year to a “Feast Day”, indicating that Mary Magdalene is the same as the other apostles. Pope Francis reiterated that Saint Mary Magdalene is “an Apostle among the Apostles”, a true messenger of the Gospel.
It is true that the church generally talks less about Mary Magdalene because her deeds were only recorded in the Gospels and there are not many scriptures involved. However, Mary Magdalene held a very important position among the disciples in Jesus’ time because she was the first eyewitness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. With such importance, it is no wonder that the Vatican gives Mary Magdalene such status, equal to the apostles. In this pastoral sharing, let us reflect on our connection with the resurrection of Jesus Christ through the ministry of Mary Magdalene and her experience on the morning of the resurrection, and how we should respond to the historical event of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
According to the Gospel of Luke, Jesus once drove seven demons out of Mary Magdalene. After experiencing Jesus’ salvation, Mary Magdalene faithfully followed Jesus to every city and village, preaching the good news that the Kingdom of Heaven was near. She and several other women became supporters and providers of Jesus’ missionary team (Luke 8:1-3). Jesus was crucified for nearly six hours, and Mary Magdalene watched the entire process from a distance (Matthew 27:55-56). When Jesus was buried, Mary Magdalene went to wait outside the tomb (Matthew 27:59-61). On the morning of Jesus’ resurrection, Mary Magdalene and other women went to the tomb again. They bought spices to anoint Jesus’ body (Mark 16:1). We see that Mary Magdalene was a faithful disciple who followed Jesus from beginning to end. It is natural for those who have been saved by the Lord to commit themselves to serving, just as Paul exhorted – “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship.” (Romans 12:1)
All four Gospels recorded women going to Jesus’ tomb on the morning of His resurrection, but the Gospel of John focused on one woman, Mary Magdalene (John 20:1-18). When we read carefully this passage in the Gospel of John, would we think about how Mary would define Jesus, who was talking to her when she met the resurrected Lord? There is reason to believe that Mary wanted to keep Jesus for longer to ask what had happened. She had clearly seen Jesus died on the cross and was buried, so why was Jesus then alive before her? There were too many mysteries and unclear points. However, the scripture shows that Mary had no opportunity to ask Jesus (John 20:17). Therefore, when Mary Magdalene met the resurrected Lord, it is possible that she could not immediately confirm that the Jesus standing in front of her was the resurrected Jesus. Indeed, the scripture explains that even Jesus’ “close disciples” Peter and John did not understand from the Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead (John 20:9). Perhaps, what Mary could confirm was that the person standing and talking to her was Jesus, with whom she had spent some time before, her own “Rabboni”.
So, when did Mary Magdalene and the disciples become convinced that Jesus Christ had been resurrected? According to the Book of Acts, after Jesus’ resurrection, he spent 40 days appearing to his followers, including Mary Magdalene, and telling them about the Kingdom of God. God may have arranged these 40 days to allow those who followed Jesus to digest the message of His resurrection. Forty days later, Jesus Christ, whose body was resurrected, ascended into heaven. Then the Holy Spirit came and was poured out on the disciples, leading them to believe that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God, and that he had been resurrected from the dead. Thus, we see that the book of Acts is a series of stories that proclaims Jesus is the Christ and that he has died and risen again.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is at the heart of our faith. Regarding the resurrection of Jesus Christ, we need to be equipped with knowledge as well as subjective experience. We must never assume that we have believed in the truth of the resurrection of Jesus Christ just because we grew up in the church or have participated in church Easter worship year after year. Faith needs to be reborn, and deep-rooted truths need to be revitalized. We must understand the truth of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the Word of God, unite with the resurrected Lord, establish a true relationship, and experience the power of His resurrection in our lives. In this way, we can proclaim with full confidence that “He is risen.” When we truly believe that Jesus Christ has been resurrected, we can join faithful believers throughout the ages in preaching to others that “He is risen.” He is risen indeed. Alleluia!
Pastor Winson Chan