Feast Of Saint Mary Magdalene

The church celebrates today the Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene. She chooses to give us, as the Gospel reading, the account of her encounter with the risen Lord on Easter Sunday. Much can be learned from this exchange, but today I want to focus on the impact that her paradigm had on her understanding of the events. The role that our own experience and knowledge play in informing how we perceive things in the spiritual life is vitally important for us to understand.

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.

Scriptural Analysis

Mary of Magdala first appeared in John’s Gospel at the crucifixion. The synoptic Gospels count her among Jesus’ women disciples from Galilee. Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, she went to the tomb of Jesus. This mention of the darkness not only describes the time of day but also Mary’s spiritual disposition after the death of Jesus. This predawn darkness describes her sadness and the loss of hope that she is feeling after seeing Jesus crucified.

When Mary arrives at the tomb, she discovers something she did not expect. The tomb has been opened because the stone covering it was removed. Not knowing why, she ran to tell Simon Peter and John, the disciples whom Jesus loved. Note what she says, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don't know where they put him.” Mary believes that someone has come and stolen the body.

Peter and John investigate the situation and return home. Mary decided to remain outside the tomb, weeping. She is disturbed because someone has stolen the body of her rabbi: someone she deeply loved. Jesus foretold of this weeping, “You will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.” (John 16:20) Pete and John only saw burial cloths when they looked inside the tomb. When Mary looks, she sees two angels clothed in white sitting there. One was at the head of where Jesus was, while the other was at the spot where his feet were.

All three of the Synoptic Gospels mention an angel at the tomb who announces Jesus’ resurrection to the women. In John’s Gospel, that announcement begins with a question: "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Her response is telling. Recall that when she discovered the empty tomb, she told Peter and John that they had taken “The Lord.” Now, when she responds to the angel, she says, “My Lord.” She is speaking of her relationship with the Lord.

Mary turns around and sees Jesus. Yet she did not immediately identify him as Jesus. This parallels the story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus in that the risen Jesus can withhold recognition of himself from people. He chooses when to reveal himself. Jesus asks Mary the same question that the angels asked her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” There are two key points to consider here. First, Mary is addressed as ‘woman’ by Jesus. Previously, when Jesus used this term, it was to define a relationship. Second, he asks her, “Whom are you looking for?” This parallels the question he asked the first disciples, “What do you seek?” (John 1:38) Jesus is redefining his relationship with his disciples after the resurrection.

Mary mistakes Jesus for the gardener, and she asks him where they have taken the body. She still believes that his corpse has been stolen even after seeing angels in the tomb. She confronts the man very directly, “Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him.” Jesus responds to her by saying only her name, “Mary.” This recalls what Jesus previously said, “The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.” (John 10:3) Mary recognizes his voice and responds, “Rabbouni,” which means my teacher and master. Mary comes to believe that Jesus is no longer dead but alive. Her sadness turns to joy.

Mary previously addressed Jesus with the title Rabbi, which indicates that she did not yet understand that his resurrection had changed everything. The relationship between Jesus and his followers is now different. The disciples now relate to him not as an earthly teacher but as the risen Lord. Jesus tells Mary to stop holding onto him as a way of telling her to stop clinging to the former idea of discipleship. His mention of his ascension is a way of ushering in the new state of afresh. Jesus will be at the Father’s right hand, and the Holy Spirit will be sent. The Father’s plan of salvation will be complete.

Jesus now gives Mary a mission. She is to go tell the disciples what Jesus is going to, ”My Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” Jesus’s death and resurrection have changed the relationship between humanity and God. Jesus has given humanity a share in his relationship with the Father. Jesus now speaks of his disciples as his brothers because through his passion, they now they the same Father. The way for eternal communion with God has been opened. Mary fulfills her mission by telling the disciples that she has seen the risen Lord. This also completes her path of discipleship, as she has moved from being in the dark, thinking he was dead, to recognizing the risen Lord and now sharing this news with others.

Daily Application

When Mary approached the tomb of Jesus on Easter Sunday morning, she did so with a paradigm: a way of viewing and understanding the world. That view was that Jesus had died on Good Friday, was buried, and his body should still be in the sealed tomb. Thus, when she arrived at the tomb and saw that it was open, her first thought was that someone had stolen the body. Even when she saw angels at the place where the body had been, she was still operating under the paradigm that Christ had died and his body must have been stolen. It was difficult for her to set aside her preconceived notions of how things should be and to view the world from a new perspective, so that she could understand what truly happened.

Purchase The Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius

We are no different than Mary. We all have a paradigm: a way of viewing the world

and understanding the events around us. While this is unavoidable (it is part of what it means to be human), it nevertheless can make it hard for us to see where the Lord is in our lives. That is why the nightly examen is such a vital component of a healthy spiritual life. Our paradigm can make us blind to God, so we need to take time to be with God and recognize how He has been active in our lives that day. Recall the five steps of the examen:

1. Place yourself in God’s presence. Give thanks for God’s great love for you.

2. Pray for the grace to understand how God is acting in your life.

3. Review your day — recall specific moments and the feelings you experienced at the time.

4. Reflect on what you did, said, or thought in those instances. Were you drawing closer to God, or further away?

5. Look toward tomorrow — think of how you might collaborate more effectively with God’s plan. Be specific, and conclude with the “Our Father.”

If we don’t stop and recognize how God has been present in our lives, then we will be just like Mary. Our Lord can be standing right in front of us, yet we fail to recognize Him. On this Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene, let us resolve not to allow that to happen. Let us shake free from our earthly paradigms, develop a catholic paradigm, and notice the risen Lord active in our lives.

Sancta Maria Magdalena, ora pro nobis!

Saint Mary Magdalene, pray for us!