But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending 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 she told them that he had said these things to her. (John 20: 11-18)
Something happened in the night. Long before the first light of day, before anyone was around to witness it, before any human hand or faith could claim any involvement or revelation – God acted in the dark. Mary finds it first. The tomb is empty, the body gone. She is grief-stricken and bewildered. So it is that the first experience of resurrection is of loss and emptiness – but there is no other way. We will not come to it by any familiar ways of human understanding. Not for the first time we encounter non-sense. Faith comes to existence where it is needed most – in the very heart of our incomprehension and helplessness. The risen Jesus is not to be recognised by human choice or will. It is for him to reveal himself and release us into freedom. Faith is a gift. He is present even without our recognition. He has found us and he waits for us.
(Extract from Dust &
Glory by David Runcorn)
Prayer
You, Lord, are risen! You are risen indeed! And with your rising comes
our reawakening, our release, our freedom for all time. Thank you, Lord, for
this journey; for the moments of revelation, of sharing, of understanding and
of joyful incomprehension at the wonder of your love. May your people face the
day ahead as Easter people, sharing the hope of new life and possibility with
all we meet.
