Mary Magdalene stayed outside the tomb weeping.
And as she wept, she bent over into the tomb
and saw two angels in white sitting there,
one at the head and one at the feet
where the Body of Jesus had been.
And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”
She said to them, “They have taken my Lord,
and I don’t know where they laid him.”
When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there,
but did not know it was Jesus.
Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?
Whom are you looking for?”
She thought it was the gardener and said to him,
“Sir, if you carried him away,
tell me where you laid him,
and I will take him.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary!”
She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni,”
which means Teacher.
Jesus said to her, “Stop holding on to me,
for I have not yet ascended to the Father.
But go to my brothers and tell them,
‘I am going to my Father and your Father,
to my God and your God.’”
Mary went and announced to the disciples,
“I have seen the Lord,”
and then reported what he had told her.
Lectio (Reading)
Read the passage twice and get a sense of what it is saying. Pay attention to what strikes you.Meditatio (Reflecting)
Slowly read the passage again, pausing on words or phrases that stands out. Take time to consider the meaning. particularly in your life.Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for? She thought he was the gardener…
Oratio (Responding)
Read the passage again, slowly. Consider how God has spoken to you and respond back to Him. You may want to consider how this passage is asking you to act differently.This appears at first, to be a funny and cute mistake, but in truth it was not a mistake. The Lord is the great gardener, and this world is His special garden. He created the whole universe and tends to it like any good gardener would. At the begining of time He created everything, setup the extents of the universe, He put the planets and stars in motion, He created the laws of the universe that governs its motion. Then He created Earth, and put mountains and trees and rivers and oceans, and created the seasons, and the cycle of life of all things.
He planted, watered, pruned and cultivated, all of the livng things in His garden. And finally He created man, to be His stewards, and to tend to the garden while He is away. But man is more than all of the things He created because man is capable of being in loving relationship with God, and in intimate communion with Him for all eternity. This is the greatest gift He ever bestowed on the universe, the opportunity to love and be loved by God.
This is why the garden was created in the first place. Can you even comprehend that thought. That God created everything around us, everything you see, and everything that is light years away out in space, and He created it so He could have a personal, loving, relationship with YOU, and me, and all of the people of this world. He planted you in his garden, and He is waiting for you to bear the fruit of faith and love in Him in return. That is your task right now, to bear fruit, because at the end of time He will come to harvest His fruit, and you don’t want to be found barren when He comes. So fullfill the plan that God has set forth, for you and your life, and thank Him for His garden, and for His tender care.
Contemplatio (Contemplating)
Take time to simply remain in the presence of God.Resolutio (Resolving)
Make a resolution that will improve your life, your relationships, or your faith. Make it small and attainable, and do it.Oh lord, I hope that I can be good fruit that you will harvest and take into your kingdom.