Mary Magdalene and her friends, having seen the angel who
told them Jesus was alive and that they would see Jesus, hurry to tell the others. Although the angel told them not to be afraid,
they were both fearful and overjoyed as they ran to find the disciples.
“And behold, Jesus met them on the way and greeted
them. The angel spoke the truth to them and his word is true for us also. We too will
meet Jesus as we continue on our way and he will greet us. We know from Scripture that he will never
leave us. Through the Church, his
promised presence is manifested in the sacraments, especially the Eucharist. But the Risen Christ is with us each moment
and will listen whenever we turn our minds and hearts to him.
We know from the stories of the Easter appearances that
Jesus always asked his disciples to let go of fear and in its place to know his peace. Peace was his gift to the apostles at the
Last Supper and he reminded them of that peace each time he appeared to them
after the Resurrection. That peace, like
his presence, is an Easter gift to us as well, since we too are disciples.
And as Peter preached after Pentecost, Jesus gives us
pardon from our sins through his name.
We need not fear judgment or condemnation. We do not have to be afraid that our weakness
will cause the Lord to leave us. Instead,
we put our trust in him and in the power of his name and we are forgiven.
The presence, peace, and pardon of Jesus are given to us as gifts from God as we remember and give thanks for the Pascal Mystery.
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