Who was this woman? Dr. Luke, whose Gospel contains more references to women than the others, records that she was in the company of those who followed Jesus when he went from “one town and village to another proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out.” (Luke 8:1-3) With other women she was helping to support them out of their own means. She had suffered from some form of demon possession, or mental illness, or bipolar disorder, or brain disease. Whatever may have been her affliction Jesus healed her from it. He had made her whole and she was determined to devote her life to following him and serving him and his company. Her life had been changed by Jesus and she was profoundly grateful and indebted to him. She represents all those who suffer from a mental illness, which is approximately 1 in 4 adults.

The next time we find her mentioned in the Gospels is at the crucifixion of Jesus. “Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. Among them was Mary Magdalene.” (Matthew 27:55; John 19:25) She watched Jesus suffer a cruel death. When Joseph of Arimathea took the body of Jesus down from the Cross and placed it in his own new tomb and rolled a big stone in front of the entrance, Mary Magdalene was sitting there opposite the tomb (Matthew 27:61). Late on Friday night she must have returned to where the others were staying and remained there all day Saturday, it being the sabbath.

I imagine her heartbroken, mourning the death of the one who had made her whole, and from whom she had received the words of eternal life, life in all its fullness, the good news of the coming of the kingdom of God. For up to three years she sat at his feet as he taught the way the truth and the life, told parables of the kingdom, healed those who were sick and ministered to those who were harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd. To her Jesus was the Teacher – she called him Rabboni. He taught her everything that she held dear that brought her faith, hope and love. She came to him weary and burdened and he gave her rest. She followed him and learned from him who was gentle and humble in heart, and she found rest for her soul. She found following Jesus was easy and serving him was light.

Early on the Sunday, while it was still dark she went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and John and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him.” She returned with them to the tomb. They did not understand what had happened. Despite Jesus telling them several times that he would suffer, die and be raised from the dead after three days none of the disciples could envisage the resurrection of the body. So the men went back to where they were staying but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. Mary did not understand what had happened either. Neither she nor the disciples were expecting a miracle to happen. They did not make up some wishful thinking about the resurrection.

As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb, and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” Mary is given a vision of the kingdom of heaven. Angels are emissaries of the reality parallel to ours that is heaven. They entered into her world to reassure her of that reality – that there are greater things than can be contained in space and time, realities that have not yet been discovered in scientific terms. “Faith doesn’t mean hoping in what isn’t true; it means certainty about what you can’t see. And so compelling evidence, evidence that engages rationality, is one of the greatest boosts to Christian faith.” (Keller, op.cit. p.95) Mary is given new evidence of life that transcends mortality. She does not need to cry or grieve like unbelievers who have no hope. For Jesus died and rose again and so all Christians since Mary believe that God will bring to life with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him ((1 Thess.4:13,14).

But Mary isn’t there yet. She said to the angels (she must have been emotionally distraught for can you imagine having a conversation with angels?), “They have taken my Lord away, and I don’t know where they have put him.” Then she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. How many times has that happened in your life? How many times have you encountered the risen Lord and not recognized him? He repeats the question: “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Jesus is trying to get her to focus. He does the same for us when we are distressed. He asks us, not what are we looking for, but who. The answers to our questions and our troubles, our distresses and our despairs, cannot be found in a what, but a who. There is no impersonal fix to our problems, but there is a Savior to rescue us. He stands there but she does not recognize him.

Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” She is still thinking in material categories, in irrational terms because she could not have carried a body back to the tomb on her own. All too often we think that we can solve our problems with action when they are often beyond us. So Jesus has to jolt her into awareness of his presence. He calls her by her name, “Mary.” Then she recognizes him. She had been looking for the wrong Jesus – a dead Jesus. Here was a live Jesus. It was only as he called her by name that her eyes were open to a new reality. She cried out, “Rabboni,” which means Teacher, the name she had always called him and flung herself onto him, wrapping her arms around him in joy. Jesus gently disentangles himself from her arms and gives her a mission, “Go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father, and your father, to my God and your God.’” Mary becomes the first witness to the risen Jesus. She went to the disciples with the good news, “I have seen the Lord!” and she told them that he had said these things to her.

If Jesus chose Mary to be the first person he revealed himself to after the resurrection, and to become his first witness, then he can choose anyone to be his disciple. He chose a woman, a woman with a history of serious emotional and spiritual problems, recovering from a mental illness, not an insider, not one of his leaders, but a member of his support staff. “He is saying, ‘It doesn’t matter who you are or what you have done. My salvation is not based on pedigree, it’s not based on moral attainments, raw talent, level of effort, or track record. I have come not to call those who are strong, but to call those who are weak.” (Keller, p.99) I am your Savior and I will be with you forever. Trust me, follow me, believe in what I have done for you. I come for you through death to save you and heal you and to change your life through the power of my Spirit.

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