First Reading - Song of Songs 3:1-4
Gospel - John 20:1-2,11-18
Perhaps it was a family heirloom, an important document, or even a child who had wandered away in a crowded place. In those moments, nothing else matters. You keep looking until you find what you have lost.
That is the kind of searching we see in today's readings. But this is not a search for an object. It is the search of a heart that longs for someone it loves.
In the first reading from the Song of Songs, the bride says, "On my bed at night I sought him whom my heart loves." She searches through the streets and the city until she finally finds her beloved, and when she does, she holds on to him.
The Church has long seen these beautiful words as an image of the soul searching for God. Deep within every human heart there is a longing that nothing in this world can fully satisfy. We may try to fill that longing with success, possessions, or recognition, but sooner or later we discover that our hearts were created for something greater. They were created for God.
That longing reaches its fulfillment in today's Gospel.
Early in the morning, while it is still dark, Mary Magdalene goes to the tomb. She is not expecting a miracle. She simply wants to be close to the One she loves. When she finds the tomb empty, she is heartbroken. She thinks someone has taken away the body of Jesus.
Then she remains there, weeping.
It would have been easy for her to leave like the others. But love keeps her there.
And because she stays, she becomes the first person to meet the risen Lord.
At first, she does not recognize Jesus. She mistakes Him for the gardener.
Then everything changes with one simple word.
Jesus calls her by name: "Mary."
The moment she hears her name spoken by Jesus, her eyes are opened. She recognizes Him immediately and cries out, "Rabbouni!"—"Teacher!"
Isn't that beautiful?
The risen Lord does not begin with a long explanation. He simply calls her by name.
That tells us something very important about our faith.
Christianity is not first about rules or ideas. It is about a relationship with a Person who knows each of us personally.
Jesus knows our names.
He knows our joys and our struggles.
He knows our doubts, our failures, and our hopes.
And He continues to call each one of us into a deeper friendship with Him.
But the story does not end there.
Jesus tells Mary, "Go to my brothers and tell them."
The one who came searching becomes the one who is sent.
Mary Magdalene is the first witness of the Resurrection. She becomes the bearer of the greatest news the world has ever heard: "I have seen the Lord."
That is why the Church honors her in such a special way. Her love for Jesus led her to an encounter with Him, and that encounter became a mission.
The same is true for us.
Every time we truly encounter Christ—in prayer, in the Eucharist, in His Word, or in the quiet moments of our lives—we are never meant to keep that experience to ourselves.
We are sent to share His hope with others.
Sometimes that means speaking about our faith.
More often, it means living in such a way that others can see Christ in us—through our kindness, our patience, our forgiveness, and our compassion.
Dear friends, today's readings invite us to reflect on three simple questions.
Do I seek the Lord with the same longing that Mary Magdalene sought Him?
When He calls me, am I listening closely enough to recognize His voice?
And having encountered Him, am I willing to bring the joy of the Risen Christ to the people around me?
Let us ask for the heart of Mary Magdalene—a heart that never stopped searching, never stopped loving, and never stopped believing.
May we seek the Lord every day with that same desire.
And when He calls each of us by name, may we respond with joy and go into the world proclaiming, not only with our words but with our lives: "I have seen the Lord."
0 Comments