The Gospel according to Matthew 28:8-15
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went away quickly from the tomb,
fearful yet overjoyed, and ran to announce the news to his disciples.
And behold, Jesus met them on their way and greeted them.
They approached, embraced his feet, and did him homage.
Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid.
Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee,
and there they will see me.”
While they were going, some of the guard went into the city
and told the chief priests all that had happened.
The chief priests assembled with the elders and took counsel;
then they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers,
telling them, “You are to say,
‘His disciples came by night and stole him while we were asleep.’
And if this gets to the ears of the governor,
we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.”
The soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed.
And this story has circulated among the Jews to the present day.
Reflection: We just completed the 40 days of Lent, celebrated the great joy of the Resurrection and now we are a new journey with the 50 days of Easter towards Pentecost. In the 40 days of Lent (in the desert) we developed contemplative meditation on the good and not so good; the paths that we have walked and should’ve walked; the things we should have said and shouldn’t; the things we believe and should’ve believed. And from all of these encounters we have developed new wineskins.
Today’s scripture helps us to recognize the Resurrection of Christ and our salvation! And within these new days we walk with JOY because we are now believers of everything that Jesus taught us by his examples. You see, when we witness something, we have no choice but to believe it. If you are a true believer, then you have witnessed this, Joy. We become witnesses of the deep delight, faith and fellowship and are willing to share it with others.
This Gospel highlights the contrast between the women’s joy and the guards’ fear, the believers versus the sceptics. The women represented the faithful, the believers, who pointed to the Risen Lord. While the soldiers represented the unbelievers, insisting upon the empty tomb as proof of a grave robbing. Interesting enough, both groups were given a mission to spread their testimony, the women to go to the Apostles and spread the good news, and the soldiers to the Temple officials to accept the bribe and deny Christ, along with it, a shameful reputation of dereliction of duty (sleeping on the job while on guard). The difference between the two groups, besides a matter of faith, was a matter of sight; the women saw the Lord, the soldiers did not.
You see my sisters and brothers; Galilee is where Jesus began and ended his ministry. His invitation came with a promise, “there they will see me” and so they did. He likewise sends us to a modern day ‘Galilee’: where we go to the familiar places of our neighborhoods, our families, our parishes, and our encounters with the poor and those in need. Wherever we find ourselves, there we will see him. We become witnesses like the women in the tomb where we witness to the nature and the relationship in our lives. We are witness to the empty tomb that brings us joy. We are witnesses to the Power of the Resurrection which calls us to be fearless in our faith that occurs in every day of our life.
Action of the Day: Contemplate what is different in you from the past 40 days? What are you going to do different in these upcoming 50 days?
Audio Reflection:
