The audio of this message, recorded at mass, is available above, right.
Imagine this scenario. A major event is about to happen in your life. Maybe it is a wedding. You have planned the event to the most minute detail. You pick the DJ, the songs he will play. You choose the Church, the bridesmaids and ushers, best man and maid of honor, flower girl, ring bearer, cantor, organist, music, readings, etc. You rehearse the wedding, placing the flower girl, bridesmaids, ushers and everyone else in place. Every detail is planned out and you are happy as you see each and everyone of your plans happen as expected.
Today, we celebrate the most important event in the history of humanity. Jesus’ resurrection. When He dies, he redeems us from our sins, when He rises he brings us into eternal life. It is the most important event in our eternal lives for without this event, we have no hope as human beings and I believe, the world would have collapsed a long time ago.
If this event is so important and you can imagine God ensures that every last detail is important. We learn that the Holy Spirit guides every event and we learn that Jesus Himself tells us that the Heavenly Father cares for us as He does for all of nature. We see an interesting mystery. Jesus first appears to Mary Magdalene and the women with her. However, when they run to tell the apostles, they are dismissed as, well, women. All of this had to be part of Jesus’ plan. There is an important reason why?
We need to look at this more deeply.
The women are the first to proclaim to the men that Jesus raised from the dead. We know that they are part of Jesus’ group of many disciples. They are not apostles, but they are disciples. What is happening here? It is a call to end the idea that the role of disciples is limited to a few.
Sin comes into the world through the devil tempting a woman and it is completed though the fall of the man. If Adam did not fall, we would not need a savior, but neither would we if Eve had not first said Yes to the devil.
The Virgin Mary is approached by an angel, the reverse of the devil, and, through her, salvation comes into the world. If Jesus did not die on the cross we would not have been saved, but neither would we if Mary said “No”.
Now Jesus’ resurrection is announced by a woman who was so sinful seven devils had been cast out of her. She becomes so devoted that she leads a contingent of woman to embalm the body, which in this culture means to use spices to care for the body, not actually embalm it as we would imagine in our time. Because they have to wait for the completion of the Sabbath at that time, they are devoted in a way that they are willing to risk the now horrible stench to care for the body.
It is to this once terribly sinful woman that the message of Jesus’ resurrection is first entrusted. The message is given to her as witness to bring everyone from unable to believe to belief. She becomes like the Samaritan woman, who did the same, but through her all came to believe. Peter runs to confirm the truth, he, unlike the others is not ready to dismiss the women’s message. He comes to believe and now we understand that Jesus’ resurrection has happened and the world has been changed. He as the first pope lives God’s message, the message of the Gospel is entrusted to all the baptized; never assume that only the ordained have all the answers.
Jesus’ resurrection is the most powerful message and event in the history of the world and it is entrusted to those who recognize their need to know it, embrace it and live it. There are many, like the pharisees who could care less, whose hearts are hardened and are unable to hear the message. There are others who are the ones who recognize their desire and hope for more than this world can offer. They hear the message, embrace it and spread it. Their descendants, men and women are us.
That same message has been entrusted to you. Many are going to dismiss you just as the pharisees dismissed the disciples of Jesus; maybe because you do not have a theology degree, or you are not good at public speaking. Maybe you are too young, or old, or did not graduate from high school or college or even, you are a woman. Maybe you have done time in prison, or suffer a horrible disease caused by your past sins. However, by your baptism,God entrusts you with the message of Jesus’ resurrection, our promise of eternal life and the truth of Church that Jesus founded. You have a choice to live it like Mary Magdalene, regardless of your history, or reject it like the pharisees as do so many in our world today, including baptized Catholics. The choice is yours, either embrace Christ or embrace the worldly powers that pretend to have all the answers, which they do not. In either case, you can, like Mary Magdalene, embody a thousand reasons why you should not be a bearer of God’s message, but it does not matter. Like Mary Magdalene, the message was entrusted to you.
This week was an interesting one for all the northern hemisphere of Europe and North America. People live in fear, terrorism raises its ugly head again, perpetrated not by disciples of Abraham but by pagans who pretend to be disciples of Abraham. The world has no idea where to turn and with each act our humanity is diminished more and more in the name of safety from terrorism. Meanwhile, those who embrace Christ are also victims of these terrorists, but they live and some die in the powerful hope of eternal life. The world has no solution but tyranny to fight tyranny. The Church has but one solution, the resurrection of Christ to bring the true element of hope and personal change to the hearts of all who believe.
The experts do not have an answer to this but more security. The lowly, the dismissed, the ones who realize that Christ is the answer, who are rejected by the movers and shakers of the world and who are threatened by the pagan terrorists have the hope of eternal life promised to them at their baptism, regardless of their status in life, or their history. They have done only one thing: changed their lives, given their lives completely over to the risen Lord through His church and allowed themselves to be transformed by the one who promises what no one else can promise: eternal life.
Do you understand what has been entrusted to you? Are you going to live it? Or are you going to take it for granted and put your hope in the teachings of those who have nothing to offer you but the world around you—good or bad—and your current place in it.
The choice is yours now and everyday. Which world do you choose?
I am reminded of the martyr saint who was to be hanged and something went wrong with the gallows. They took him down from the gallows before the process and once the problem was fixed they had to bring him back up. He ran, not from the gallows but to it. He said, if you saw what I saw that awaits me when I was first on the gallows, you would run up here too. He died a martyr. He shows us of a hope that can only be found in Christ that is beyond our imagination.
The worlds offers little. God entrusted you with the task to share the truth and Mary Magdalene shows you how. Will you?
A Blessed Easter,
Fr. Robert J Carr
Fr. Carr is member of the Segundo Elo of the Canção Nova Community. He is the pastor of Holy Trinity Quincy, MAand is the editor of this blog. He is the author of several books, blogs and hundreds of videos all of which you may find on Youtube. You can follow him on twitter as @frbobcarr and on Google plus as+FrRobertCarr. Thoughts, comments on the homily? Let us know at Facebook