John 20:1-9 NRSVue
1Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. 2So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” 3Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. 4The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, 7and the cloth that had been on Jesus’s head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. 8Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed, 9for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead.
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Some thoughts on this scripture
Reflection
On this strange dawn we are praying in a darkness that is outside time, like
that of astronauts circling in space: beyond sunsets and sunrises, seeing the
beginning and the end of our days. We look back to that breathless morning
when the apostles saw the holy women come back from the tomb with a story of
angels. A bloodless corpse, transfixed by a spear, had risen again with a
mysterious new life. Jesus had kept his promise. Death, our oldest enemy, had
been mastered.
Reflection
Wherever we share compassion, justice, reconciliation, faith, and encourage
each other to be people of hope, we are people of the resurrection and
ministers of the resurrection. Jesus is raised from death each time we live
his way of life. We do this in our various ways of showing care and concern
for the lives and troubles of others. Easter prayer can be an asking in
prayer to be ministers of the resurrection, as we discern how best to serve
the risen Lord.
Reflection
The tomb was empty and, for the faithful ones, this was a sign of new life.
Some would remember Jesus saying he would rise from death. Others would feel
down, cheated or just lost. It is the same with ourselves: the tough times of
life can bring us close to God, or distance us; suffering can make us better
people, or make us bitter and isolated. We may feel a bit of both at times.
The empty tomb is the message that nothing is final in this life, not even
death. God's love is stronger than any human power, violence or cruelty. Love
conquers all.
Reflection
It is the 'first day of the week'. Mary Magdalene is the first witness of an
event which marks not just the beginning of a new week but the transformation
of human history. But 'it is still dark' and she does not yet understand what
has happened. I ponder the mystery.
Reflection
Peter and the other disciple, who had stood faithfully beneath the cross, run
to the tomb. The other disciple saw and believed. Peter, whose last recorded
action was to deny Jesus, still does not believe. What blocks me from fuller
faith?
Reflection
When Jesus raised Lazarus, Lazarus had to be freed from his grave-clothes.
Jesus' grave-clothes are rolled up and lying on the side, a reflection of his
mastery over death. I stand in the doorway beside the entrance and stare into
that empty tomb. Do I grasp the difference between this resurrection and that
of Lazarus?