RBWords

     Mary Magdalen is revered by us Dominicans as the "first preacher."  Christian tradition has referred to her as "the apostle to the apostles."  She plays a big role in the post-resurrection narrative in the Gospel of John.  I cannot help but notice that, like the Samaritan woman and other dramatic characters in this gospel prior to the resurrection, she comes step by step to her recognition of Jesus.  She does not recognize the sound of his voice nor his physical appearance until he speaks her name!  (The "rule of three" in story-telling seems to be present in this gospel.)  Then she is entrusted with a powerful message.

     Jesus tells her to "Go to my brothers and tell them, 'I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'"  This line really sums up much of what Jesus says in those long discourses at the Last Supper.  We are, through his death and resurrection, given access to the One who sent him!  When Mary gets to the apostles, she does two things.  She gives her credentials for preaching:  "I have seen the Lord!" Then she tells them what the Lord told her.  Countless Christian women have done the same since that time.  Why are they excluded from preaching at the Eucharist?  Perhaps the modern Mary Magdalens will need to  speak more loudly to the "successors" of that original audience, the apostles, and cry:  "I have seen the Lord!"  AMEN