NOTES for Joh 20:11-18
Mary Magdalene came to the tomb of the One who had been her beloved Teacher. The tomb is empty—but of course she cannot even imagine that anything good could be expected. All she needs is to find His body, simply to say goodbye to Him in a human way... And something very strange happens: Mary sees the One for whom she was searching—and does not recognize Him. She had known Him for several years, yet now she thinks the gardener is standing before her. What is happening? We do not know what Mary Magdalene was experiencing at that moment, but we can reflect on how this happens in our own life. We seek the Lord; we ask the same question over and over: where is He? Yet He stands nearby and says to us, “Why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” And when we answer that we are seeking Him, He calls us by name. At that moment, His voice cannot be confused with any other. Only He can call us by name in this way, because only He truly knows each one of us.