H Álvaro García, L.C.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Christ, our King, Thy Kingdom come!
Preparatory prayer (to put me in the presence of God)
Jesus, I believe that you live, I believe that the cross had meaning and that you are now here with me. Your presence fills me with peace and joy. Tell me what you want from me in my circumstances, and help me to observe the necessary silence to hear you.
Gospel of the day (to guide your meditation)
From the Holy Gospel according to John 20:11-18
On the day of resurrection, Mary remained weeping beside Jesus“ tomb. Without stopping her tears, she peered into the tomb and saw two angels dressed in white, sitting in the place where Jesus” body had been, one at the head and the other at the feet. The angels asked her, “Why are you weeping, woman?” She answered them, "Because they have taken away my Lord and I do not know where they have put him.".
Having said this, she looked back and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Then he said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Thought she that he was the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, ‘Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ’I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.“‘.
Mary Magdalene went to the disciples and announced, “I have seen the Lord!” and told them what Jesus had said to her.
Word of the Lord
Meditate on what God tells you in the Gospel
How Mary Magdalene loved the Lord! It's a pity her love was hopeless and desperate, like that of the disciples in Emmaus and Thomas. All had known the Lord, but Magdalene in a special way. She met him perhaps two years ago. Jesus appeared in her life when she was dominated by seven demons, when no one dared to approach her and they looked at her with terror. He looked at her with love and freed her from those spirits that tormented her. From then on, she followed the Lord. Jesus was her hope, her morning dream, a realized dream, a pure love and a very clear gaze, a firm rock to lean on, a river of joy beside which the leaves would never wither.
But now he is dead. She had gone very early in the morning, the Gospel says. She had gone to the tomb and found it empty. «They have taken the body of my beloved Jesus!» She alerted Peter and John, and they, instead of weeping with her and looking for the culprit, set out, saw, believed, and left happy. And Mary remained there, alone, misunderstood. «Why are you weeping, Mary?»
She turned away, not wanting to look at the farmer whom she suspected as a body snatcher. Her eyes screamed rejection and sadness. And then Jesus said, «Mary!»
«We are always tempted to satisfy the desire for the eternal with ephemeral things. We find ourselves exposed to raging seas that only end up drowning life and spirit: Just as a sailor at sea needs a lighthouse to guide him to port, so the world needs you. Be lighthouses, for those near and especially for those far away. Be torches that accompany the path of men and women in the dark night of time. Be sentinels of the dawn, announcing the sunrise. With your transformed lives and with simple words, meditated in silence, point us to Him who is the way, the truth, and the life, the only Lord who offers fullness to our existence and gives life in abundance. Like Andrew to Simon, cry out to us: “We have found the Lord”; like Mary Magdalene on the morning of the resurrection, announce: “I have seen the Lord.”
(Homily of H.H. Pope Francis, September 7, 2019)
Dialogue with Christ
This is the most important part of your prayer, prepare yourself to talk with much love with the One who loves you.
Purpose
Propose a personal one. The one that involves the most love in response to the Beloved... or, if you believe that this is what God is asking of you, live what is suggested below.
Today I will not complain. I will be the joy of the house, of my spouse, of my children, of my neighbor. Today I want to be an apostle of the joy of the Resurrection because I have encountered the Risen Jesus. Alleluia!
Farewell
We thank You, Lord, for all Your benefits, You who live and reign forever and ever.
Amen.
Christ, our King!
Thy Kingdom come!
Most prudent Virgin, Mary, Mother of the Church.
Pray for us.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
