Homily for Easter Tuesday

Yesterday, we heard Matthew’s version of May’s Magdalene’s experience at the empty tomb on that first Easter morning. Matthew mentioned Mary’s fear but didn’t really go into it. From John, we get a few more details and find that Mary was so upset that she didn’t even recognize Jesus when she first saw Him.

In listening to the Gospels, it’s easy to mistake some of Jesus’ followers as being a little slow on the uptake because we know these stories so well.

Jesus’ followers didn’t know who He really was or what His suffering, death, and Resurrection really meant. In fact, their faith, much like ours, was something that grew slowly, through a process of revelation and moments of discovery.

Despite the fact that we know the story, we, too, can be slow in recognizing the person and presence of Jesus in our lives today. How often, when we are struggling, do we feel alone? How often, when life seems unbearable, do we wonder if God is even there?

Yet, our faith tells us that God is with us at all times, just as the LORD was standing with Mary Magdalene at the empty tomb as she mourned His “absence.”

Let us pray we may be ever-aware of God’s abiding presence in our hearts and in our lives so that, like Mary Magdalene, we may hear the voice of Jesus call to us and bring us to a full awareness of His presence and His love.+