On the first day of the week
That is, on Sunday. Sunday was the first day of creation according to the account in Genesis. Now Sunday would be the first day of a new creation.
while it was still dark
The world did not know it yet, but the light had already arisen. He was the true light who came into the world, who shined on every man (see John 1:9). But hearts like that of Mary Magdalene were still formless and void, tohu va-bodu, after experiencing the horrific events of the crucifixion of Jesus. They were still in need of the Spirit to move upon the waters of their souls, to shine new light upon them, and raise up new and more permanent foundations within them.
So she ran and went to Simon Peter
and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them,
“They have taken the Lord from the tomb,
and we don’t know where they put him.”
Mary Magdalene clearly didn't yet comprehend what had happened. And yet her action, her insistent investigation, meant there was more taking shape in her heart than despair. Her desire to know what happened was at least not closed to the possibility of some unguessed hope. And this is what made her statement to the other disciples so impactful. Even her halting inarticulate hope was infectious. Imagine how it must have been once she encountered Jesus. The way she acted seemed to indicate that she simply couldn't entirely accept that fact that her Lord was dead. His presence was such that his disappearance seemed like a fundamental contradiction of the universal order. How could the one whose words would not pass away (see Matthew 24:35) himself be lost in death? This aspect of Mary Magdalene gives hope for all of those who, without understanding everything, nevertheless sense that death must not be the end. It is implicit faith that the goodness of God must ultimately triumph over the appearance of an indifferent universe.
So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb.
They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter
and arrived at the tomb first;
he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in.
Those who rush ahead on the wings of inspiration, contemplatives and prophets, may arrive sooner. But they are meant to defer to the authority instituted by Jesus, as John did. They might have ideas about the meaning of the burial clothes within the tomb. They might be quite eager to reach conclusions about them. But they know they should wait for Peter to enter first, and they only after. Their enthusiasm cannot guarantee that the conclusions they reach are correct. The need the stable solidity of Peter to make sure that their speed doesn't make them stumble.
When Simon Peter arrived after him,
he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there,
and the cloth that had covered his head,
not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place.
What they found in the tomb were clues that pointed away from natural hypotheses. But they did not, as yet, see Jesus himself. It was unlikely that grave robbers would have taken the time the roll up the burial clothes or be especially delicate with the cloth that had covered his head. If someone responsible for the tomb had moved the body for some reason, would not they have used those things when they reburied him? It even seemed to be a different scenario than that of Lazarus, which must in some way have been in the back of their minds, although it may not have reached a conscious level. Lazarus came out bound by his burial cloths and needed someone else to unbind him. Not so here. Whatever may have happened here, any explanation that required outside intervention seemed to fall short.
Then the other disciple also went in,
the one who had arrived at the tomb first,
and he saw and believed.
For they did not yet understand the Scripture
that he had to rise from the dead.
They saw the evidence together and together they began to believe. But this was still an inchoate faith, and a hope they could not yet articulate. It was not sufficient to merely know the facts of the resurrection. They needed an encounter with Jesus himself, an encounter that was yet to come. Only by seeing the reality of the resurrection would they understand how the Scripture showed that he had to rise. This was precisely the sort of encounter that the disciples had at Emmaus (see Luke 24:32), and it is an encounter every disciple is meant to have.
If then you were raised with Christ, seek what is above,
where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.
Think of what is above, not of what is on earth.
For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.
Christ's resurrection was not merely an anomaly. Just as it happened to Jesus, so too will it happen to those in union with him. So too, in fact, has it already happened spiritually to all the baptized. But this reality is only apparent to us when we see it with a resurrection perspective, a perspective of faith. We need to encounter the risen Christ, not once, but continuously, in order live the new life he died to give us. As often as we lower our minds to the things of earth may Jesus himself, by the power of his resurrection, raise them up again.
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