Mary of Magdala visits the tomb of Jesus
Bible Accent: Synoptic Gospels
Saint for Today: St. Zita
Puzzle
Mary of Magdala visits the tomb of Jesus
On the first day of the week, before the sun had even come up, Mary of Magdala visited the tomb where Jesus had been buried. When she arrived, she was stunned to discover that the large, heavy stone that had sealed the entrance to the tomb had been rolled away. And the tomb was empty. Mary immediately ran to find Peter or one of the other apostles to tell them what she had found.
“They have taken the Lord from the tomb,” she told them, “and we don’t know where they put him.”
Peter and the other apostle ran to the site of the tomb. The other, being faster than Peter, reached the tomb first. He bent down and looked in. He could see the burial cloths The cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was rolled up apart from the other cloths.
Then Peter arrived and saw the same things. The apostles did not yet realize that the Scripture prophesying that Jesus would rise from the dead had been fulfilled. They returned home, sad and confused.
Mary stayed behind, crying alone. She looked into the tomb. Instead of seeing two piles of burial cloths, she saw two angels dressed in white. One was seated where the head of Jesus had been, the other near where his feet had been.
“Woman, why are you weeping?” they asked her.
“They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him.” Mary answered. As soon as she said this, she turned around. A man was standing behind her. It was Jesus, but she did not recognize him.
Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?”
Thinking he was the gardener, Mary said to him, “Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him.”
Then Jesus spoke Mary’s name, and she recognized him. “Rabbouni,” she said, which is the Hebrew word for teacher.
“Stop holding on to me,” Jesus said, “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 said to the apostles, “I have seen the Lord,” and she shared the message that Jesus had given to her.
READ MORE ABOUT IT:
John 20
Q&A
1. What did Mary find when she first went to the tomb?
2. What did Mary see when she reached the tomb the second time?
Bible Accent: Synoptic Gospels
The Books of Matthew, Mark and Luke are called the synoptic Gospels, which means that they tell many of the same stories about the life of Jesus. The Gospel of John is different from the other three. It tells different stories and is more poetic in its use of language. Matthew begins with the family history of Jesus, going as far back as Abraham. Mark begins with an account of the ministry of John the Baptist preparing the way for the Messiah, and Luke begins with the story of the Nativity based on eye witness reports and other records. John, however, begins with a prologue about the Word of God. This Gospel includes many reports of the miracles performed by Jesus and closes with a passage declaring that the testimony of Jesus is true.
Saint for Today: St. Zita
Zita (1212 – 1278) came from a very religious family. He sister became a nun and her uncle was a hermit who was treated as a saint in the community. At the age of twelve, Zita worked as a servant for the family of Pagano di Fatinelli, a wool and silk merchant. She rose early every day to pray and to attend the morning mass. She shared the good food she received from her employer with the poor and even gave up her bed to a homeless man. She chose to sleep on the ground after that. The family she worked for loved her as one of their own, and her gentle nature allowed her to deal with the angry outbursts of Mr. Fatinelli. She later extended her efforts to spend hours in prayer with prisoners, especially those who had received death sentences. She lived with the Fatinelli’s and served people in need for the rest of her life. We honor her on April 27.
Puzzle
