No human being witnessed what happened during that night. The Resurrection, the most important event in all the long history of mankind, occurred without anybody's being able to see it, describe it, or record it. Jesus was dead; he had died in torment on the Cross. They had buried him in a tomb newly hewn from the rock, near to the place of execu­tion on Golgotha. They had sealed up the tomb with a heavy stone, which was rolled across the entrance, so that no one could desecrate the body or steal it.  

Two respectable men had taken care of Jesus' dead body, had taken it down from the Cross and buried it with due reverence. It was not to the Apostles' credit that none of them, Jesus' closest colleagues, did this for him. Would they simply have left Jesus hanging? Then he would have been thrown into a mass grave. Were they so terrified, so over­whelmed by their disappointment and grief that they literally "left Jesus hanging there"? No wonder that the "institutional Church", time and again, behaves in the same reprehensible way. Later, the Apostles would be able to see how they had let Jesus down, would be sorry for it, and would be honest enough not to conceal it in the Gospel stories. We may be thankful for their honesty. This serves as a model for officials of the Church, to this day.  

The Church has no need to be ashamed of Mary Mag­dalene. This woman, who had been a great sinner and had found her way through Jesus to a true love, behaved quite differently. She went to the tomb before dawn. She was not fearful or self-pitying; in her heart was simply a deep sorrow that her beloved Master was dead. She, indeed, had stayed beside the Cross, had not abandoned Jesus in his final agony, while all the Apostles - apart from John, who likewise saw it out to the end beside the Cross - were so frightened that they stayed in hiding.  

When Mary got to the tomb, she found it open and empty. It was a tremendous shock. She told the Apostles about it, and they came running. John, the younger one, ran faster, while the more ponderous Peter followed behind; yet it was Peter who was first to enter the tomb. Time and again, these two have been interpreted sym­bolically. Peter is the "institutional Church", and John the "Church of love". Love is quicker, less encumbered than any institution, which has many matters of which to take ac­count. Yet love has respect for office and lets it take the lead. There should be no rivalry between the two, for the Church needs them both: love's enthusiasm and the order of official institutions.  

The two Apostles see the linen cloths lying in the tomb and realize from the way they are laying that Jesus' body cannot have been stolen. Yet where is he? They go back home with this unanswered question.

Once more, Mary Magdalene is different. She stays. She cannot go away before her Jesus has been found. Her faithful­ness and her tears are not in vain. There is a thrilling encoun­ter with Jesus, the Risen One. He addresses her by name, and then she recognizes him. She was the first of them all to be allowed to see him, him whom death could not retain.  

Since that early morning of Easter Day, innumerable peo­ple have met with Jesus. They have not necessarily seen him with their own eyes. Yet they can reaffirm it: "He is alive. He has spoken to me. I have met him."

Reprinted from:
Jesus, the Divine Physician
Encountering Christ in the Gospel of Luke
By Christoph Cardinal Schönborn,
Archbishop of Vienna, Austria
Ignatius Press, 2008
www.ignatius.com

Easter is the Highlight of all Christian celebrations.  With Ascension and Pentecost at its completion, it lasts fifty days.  Its lesson is that in Christ, who rose from the dead and ascended into glory, all will be made to live.  Through our baptism, we now share in Christ’s glorious Resurrection, but we will share it fully by partaking in His ascension into heaven.  The feast of Pentecost completes the outpouring of the pledge of our inheritance made to us at our Confirmation.

During the Season of Easter, we rejoice in Christ’s saving act and His glorification through His Resurrection in which we share.  By His Passion and Resurrection, Jesus has transformed the world.  He has overcome evil, sin, and death in such an absolute way that all who come into the world are assured of life – eternal life – if they cooperate with Him.

We should recall at this time of the year that we are an Easter people; hence we should also be a joyous people.  Death, both spiritual and physical, has lost its sting.  There is no longer any reason for prolonged sadness at life’s defeats or at the end of our earthly existence.  United with Christ, we will live forever.

Christ is risen! Alleluia!

On Easter Sunday morning we should remember that Jesus is not just a soul that's gone to heaven. The resurrected Christ, as Paul said, is the first fruits of a new life. A whole new human nature has appeared and emerged.

Resurrection can't simply mean, as many contemporary authors want us to believe, that the cause of Jesus goes on. (As though you listen to the Ninth Symphony of Beethoven and the society of Beethoven lovers says, "Well, the spirit of Beethoven goes on.") People don't give their whole lives, don't go to the end of the world preaching, don't go to their death in support of a vague metaphor. What galvanized the first Christians was that Jesus - the crucified one who had died - is now alive again.

On Easter, we Christians must avoid another problem: seeing the Resurrection simply as a return to this life. Lazarus was raised from the dead, only to die again. He still belonged to the realm of death. When Lazarus came forth, he was still wearing his grave clothes. He still belonged, in some way, to the tomb.

That's not what happens in the Resurrection. When Jesus rises from the dead, He leaves his grave clothes behind. Jesus now lives a new life exalted through the power of the Father. His relationship to space and time is now completely changed. He passes through locked doors. He comes and goes as he pleases.

Jesus is the first fruit of a new way of being, a new life. It's still a human life, but it is now lived at a higher pitch of intensity. This is such good news for us because this is what God intends for all of us: that we now will share in the risen life of Jesus.

It's our human life - yes, still bodily - but now lived at a higher level, spiritualized and glorified.

"The Resurrection of Jesus means the very foundations of the cosmos have been shaken."

Bishop Robert Barron
www.wordonfire.org