OCTAVE EASTER, TUESDAY
Psalter: Proper / (White)
1st Reading: Acts 2:36-41
“Let Israel, then, know for sure, that God has made Lord and Christ this Jesus, whom you crucified.”
When they heard this, they were deeply troubled. And they asked Peter and the other apostles, “What shall we do, brothers?”
Peter answered: “Each of you must repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins may be forgiven. Then, you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise of God was made to you and your children, and to all those from afar, whom our God may call.”
With many other words Peter gave the message; and appealed to them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So, those who accepted his word were baptized; some three thousand persons were added to their number that day. The first community they were faithful to the teaching of the apostles, the common life of sharing, the breaking of bread and the prayers.
Gospel: Jn 20:11-18
Mary stood weeping outside the tomb; and as she wept, she bent down to look inside. She saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been, one at the head, and the other at the feet. They said, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She answered, “Because they have taken my Lord and I don’t know where they have put him.”
As she said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not recognize him. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?” She thought it was the gardener and answered him, “Sir, if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and take him away.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned, and said to him, “Rabboni!” – which means Master. Jesus said to her, “Do not touch me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them: I am ascending to my Father, who is your Father, to my God, who is your God.”
So Mary of Magdala went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord, and this is what he said to me.”
Reflections
I HAVE SEEN THE LORD…
It took two thousand years before the image of Mary Magdalene was changed. She is NOT a prostitute. She was not a sinful woman. In this episode at the resurrection, her real role in salvation history has been clearly defined by Christ himself. “Go to my brothers…” And so she went and told the apostles: I HAVE SEEN THE LORD AND THIS IS WHAT HE SAID TO ME. So she is the first witness of the Resurrection. She is an apostle (person sent) to the apostles themselves. To see the Lord is not just a matter of physical seeing. It meant spiritual seeing. In those words Magdalene expressed that she finally understood what Christ has often repeated to his apostles and disciples – that HE IS TRULY THE SON OF GOD. HE DIED AND HE ROSE AGAIN. HE SAVED US FROM OUR SIN AND IS NOW PRECEDING US TO THE FATHER TO WHOM WE SHALL ALSO ASCEND IN GOD’S GOOD TIME. That is the compendium of the GOSPEL, the good news of salvation. A woman, Mary Magdalene, as witness to the Resurrection, was the first to comprehend it and became an emissary to the apostles whose mission it was to spread it to the whole world.
Daily Reflection 2018
Bible Diary ® is a product of Claretian Publications, a division of Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc. (CCFI) which is a pastoral endeavor of the Claretian Missionaries in the Philippines that brings the Word of God to people from all walks of life. CCFI aims to promote integral evangelization and renewed spirituality that is geared towards empowerment and total liberation in response to the needs and challenges of the Church today.
CCFI is a member of Claret Publishing Group, a consortium of the publishing houses of the Claretian Missionaries all over the world: Bangalore, Barcelona, Buenos Aires, Chennai, Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Lagos, Madrid, Macao, Manila, Owerry, São Paolo, Varsaw , Yaoundé.
Biblical Texts are taken from Christian Community Bible, Catholic Pastoral Edition (57th Edition) The New English Translation for the ROMAN MISSAL
With permission from the EPISCOPAL COMMISION ON LITURGY of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines
Copyright © 2O17
Claretian Communications Foundation, Inc.
U.P. P.O. Box 4, Diliman,
1101 Quezon City, Philippines
Tel.: (63-2) 921-3984
Fax: (6352) 921-7429
Email: ccfi@claretianpublicationscom
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web: www.claretianph.com
