The Memorial of Mary Magdalene

 

Mary Magdalene challenges us today to love God in true.

Reflection on Today’s Readings, Saturday of 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Year I, July 22nd, 2023 Texts: Song of Solomon 3:1-4ab; Psalm 63:2-9; John 20:1-2.11-18 

Today is the memorial of Mary Magdalene. She was a native of Magdala. The love she had for Jesus was true and powerful. She catered for Jesus during His ministry (Luke 8:2-3). She witnessed the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ and His burial (John 19:25; Mt. 27:61). Today’s gospel reading is about her visit to the tomb of Jesus. She saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. She ran to tell the apostles. Peter and the other disciple came, saw the empty tomb and left. Mary, however, remained at the tomb, seeking the Lord.  

Mary Magdalene challenges us today to love God in true, not only in words but also in deeds. Her love for Jesus did not end with the  death of Jesus. Even when there was nothing to hope for in the tomb she stayed there. The departure of Peter and the other disciple could have discouraged her but she persevered in seeking Him. Her heart must have been with Jesus throughout the night. We read, “Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark”. In today’s Psalm we read, “O God, you are my God; at dawn I seek you; For you my soul is thirsting.” 

I have seen the Lord

Mary was the first person to see the risen Christ. Jesus Christ honoured her for her love, that He revealed Himself to her first. We read, “Jesus said to her, ‘Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brethren and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” She became the first person to break the news of resurrection. We read, “Mary Magdalene went and said to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord’; and she told them that he had said these things to her.” 

It is love that makes us to cling to Jesus even when life situation beclouds His presence. We should not allow anyone or anything to stand on the way of our love for Jesus. In today’s first reading, we read, “I will seek him whom my soul loves. ‘I sought him, but found him not. The watchmen found me, as they went about in the city. ‘Have you seen him whom my soul loves?’  Scarcely had I passed them, when I found him whom my soul loves.” Let us continue to love Jesus and grow in His knowledge.    

Prayer 

O God, whose Only Begotten Son entrusted Mary Magdalene before all others with announcing the great joy of the Resurrection, grant, we pray, that, through her intercession and example, we may proclaim the living Christ and come to see him reigning in your glory. Amen   

Fr. Andrew Olowomuke