Image: Dempster Highway Vista
Acts 2.14-33 | Ps 16 | Mat 28.8-15
It is Easter Monday and the news of the resurrection of Jesus is finally starting to take hold. There is a pronounced difference in tone between John’s telling of the story, which we heard on Easter Sunday, and today’s version from the Gospel of Matthew. It is the same story but told from two different perspectives.
In John’s gospel Mary Magdalene approaches the tomb alone and in the dark. She encounters a mystery which frightens her and there is no one to help her understand what it is she is seeing. When she tells Peter and the other disciple what she has found, they too are puzzled and hesitant, unsure as to what they should do next. For John the understanding of the resurrection is not something that can be taken for granted but rather is a process which only unfolds with time.
Matthew, on the other hand, is already there. He has two women approaching the tomb together. Rather than darkness we are told that there is daylight approaching. In the ensuing calamity of the earthquake a messenger helpfully appears and not only explains to them in detail what is happening but also shares with the women what they need to do next. The icing on the cake is that, when they finally leave to tell the other disciples what they have seen, they run into the resurrected Jesus in person and he tells them that there is no need to be afraid. It is no wonder that, when the disciples find them, the women are overflowing with joy.
The same story from two perspectives. “Hindsight”, as they say, “is 20-20.” It is looking back at where we have been that we begin to see the clear path that had before looked only like the tangled mess of a rabbit trail. From this perspective we find confidence to speak about our experiences that once had weighed us down with worry. This is the confidence that now allows Peter, who had recently denied Jesus three times, to stand before the crowds and quote the faithful King David,
“I saw the Lord before me always, for with him at my right hand nothing can shake me. So my heart was glad and my tongue cried out with joy.”
We are so blessed; we have the benefit of this hindsight. We have the whole Tradition and memory of the Church to enlighten us. We have the shared faith experiences handed down to us by our families and we have our own life experiences. Looking back allows us look ahead with confidence and with surety so that, as we approach the empty tomb, we know there is no need to be afraid, “He is not here, Jesus has risen, as he said he would.”
Great photo!
Thank you