Almighty God, whose blessed Son restored Mary Magdalene to health of body and of mind, and called her to be a witness of his resurrection: Mercifully grant that by your grace we may be healed from all our infirmities and know you in the power of his unending life; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
The Psalm
42:1-7
The Readings
Judith 9:1,11-14 + 2 Corinthians 5:14-18 + John 20:11-18
From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way. So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation.
~2 Cor. 5:16-18
There is a lot of 'information' about Mary Magdalene out there (enough even for there to be a Complete Idiot's Guide book devoted solely to her!), but most of it--both in church history and in popular and esoteric culture--is based on speculation, traditions, imagination, or fabrication. What the Gospels tell us is this: Mary was a woman from whom Jesus cast out seven demons; she then became a devoted follower and supporter of Jesus' ministry; and she was among the women who followed him all the way to the foot of the cross, and afterward went to anoint his body. It was in lovingly carrying out this last act that she became the first witness to the resurrection, and was sent to proclaim the news to the other disciples.
Mary Magdalene, then, is an exemplar of the new creation of which Paul writes. Her life was transformed by a healing encounter with Jesus Christ, and would never be the same. She surely felt that transformation--the old passing away and everything becoming new--at her healing. But no doubt she also felt that everything she knew was crumbling away at Jesus' death. Yet that second and painful time of transition yielded an even greater and more joyful transformation--the breaking in of the true new creation, the resurrection life of Jesus Christ, in which we participate.
Our world now is certainly a place of painful uncertainty and confusion; and it may be that many things to which we were accustomed are indeed passing away. But as Paul also says, we have not received a spirit of fear, and the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory about to be revealed. Christians are those who, even as we look back at the resurrection of Jesus, are continually looking forward in trust and hope at the new creation being prepared by God.
Closing Prayer
O God of unchangeable power and eternal light: Look favorably on your whole Church, that wonderful and sacred mystery; by the effectual working of your providence, carry out in tranquillity the plan of salvation; let the whole world see and know that things which were being cast down are being raised up, and things which had grown old are being made new, and that all things are being brought to their perfection by him through whom all things were made, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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Mary Magdalene, 'Apostle to the Apostles,'
proclaiming the resurrection to the Twelve
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