Found By Jesus

Then the disciples went back to their homes, but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. 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?"

They have taken my Lord away," She said, "and I don't know where they have put him." At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

"Woman," he said, "why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?"
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."

Jesus said to her, "Mary."

She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher).
Jesus said, "Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' "

Mary magdalene went to the disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them that he had said these things to her.

John 20:10-18

After the disciples had returned home, Mary remained at the tomb, crying.

Perhaps the other disciples had also wept and felt the full measure of grief. Perhaps they had all accepted Christ's death and moved on -each at the same time.

But Mary remained at the tomb, crying.

What must have that been like?

I suppose Mary may have thought there was something wrong with her. Something that prevented her from being like the other disciples. Something that prevented her from being ... normal.

And so, Mary remained behind ... alone ...

It was true and clear that something strange and wonderful was at work in the life and ministry of that man. Now the man was somewhere else. Who was this person left behind weeping ... ?

Surely not something grand or marvelous, like the food at a banquet. Maybe more like the food at a banquet saved until the next day ... like the left overs ... a forgotten dish that was simply there.

Whatever the disciples hoped to find by going home, Mary did not desire, or at least did not pursue it.

And when, in her grief, her eyes fell upon the face of angels, she could find no consolation in their heavenly appearance.

We are told the angels were sitting down, gazing while Mary was crying. They watched ... though they did not weep. When they spoke, did they address Mary or their own confusion,

Woman, why are you crying?

The angels -the ones who worship and obey God- have a singular way about them. Their path is one of rejoicing, and they do not know any other way.

Perhaps in that moment, Mary saw them sitting, calmly, and wished that she could be an angel also, perhaps wishing that her body and her spirit could be lifted into the glory of the heavens.

But Mary was separated from her Jesus, and her spirit knew only grief.

If the disciples had seen angels, perhaps if we had seen angels, we would become excited and say, "Look! Do you see them?!" And our minds would ask questions like, "Do we have proof?" And, "What was their appearance like?" And a hundred other such places.

But Mary remained in her place, which was her sorrow.

"They have taken my Lord away," She said, "and I don't know where they have put him."

How quickly we cast aside Mary's concerns here. We consider her cares nothing because we (today) know that Jesus was not so very far from her.

Perhaps some people have even dared to laugh at Mary in her sorrow. If only she had known ... as though knowledge, the true consolation, will give us peace in our time of distress.

We think we know many things ... and that this makes us somehow better than Mary. Even if, like Mary in this passage, we do not know the day or the hour when we will see Jesus with our own eyes.

In many ways, Mary here has a knowledge of Jesus that we will not have in this life. She knows the color of his hair. How tall he stands. How deep his voice is. How he usually dresses. Now all she needs to know is what place his body is in.

Or does she need to know something else?

When Mary speaks to Jesus she does not recognize him. She sees a man who, like the angels, observes the depth of her grief, but understands it not. He asks her why she cries.

Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.

Mary is looking for someone of a certain height, with a certain color of hair, a certain style of clothing. Perhaps she is so focused on finding such a person -the person she knows with her mind- that she fails to notice the person she already knows in her spirit.

Jesus said to her, "Mary."

In that moment where she is alone, she hears the Son of God address her alone.

The Mary who truly sees and recognizes Jesus has come back to life. She is awakened again. As his words extend out of the heavens and land specifically on Mary and Mary alone, she realizes again who Jesus is.

Mary is able to see Jesus, the Jesus who was there all along.

For many of us, we may have a sense that Jesus is close to us, and truly he is! He is standing right outside the door of our lives. He is close, indeed!

When Jesus knocks on the door of our hearts, our befuddled human minds do not know what to do or how to recognize him. On our own we are confused, distressed, and of a sorrow that neither the angels in heaven nor Christ himself understands.

In the same way that Mary could not recognize Jesus by looking at him, flesh and blood cannot reveal Jesus to us. All of our historical knowledge about the Son of God will only serve to keep him at arms' length, however close he may be.

After Jesus asks Mary who it is she is looking for, he reveals himself to her. Jesus already knows who Mary is looking for, but he wants Mary to be perfectly clear with herself who it is she is looking for. In the same way, Jesus wants to know who it is we are really looking for.

Jesus gives Mary clear instruction about how he is leaving her ... and indeed how he is leaving every one of his disciples. He is leaving to return to his Father and her Father ... to the Father of everyone who knows Jesus.

This is the wonder of discovering Jesus ... to know Jesus' Father as his own Father, to know the Father as her own Father.

The day is coming when all who are in Christ will see Christ with their own eyes. Until that day, Christ is teaching people to see him without their eyes. After that he will lead them and take them back to be with his Father and their Father.

News Article On The Crucificion

During my third year in college I made a discovery in an English library.

I was looking for a book to explain Dun Scotus to me. After failing to find it, the librarian told me the book was downstairs "in the stacks". I went downstairs and found these giant shelves that could be moved by turning vault-shaped wheels.

The books were not arranged alphabetically.

While looking through a certain row of books I accidentally backed up against a manuscript that fell right off the shelf. A student walked by and said, "Americans ..." And looked up at the ceiling.

While picking up the manuscript I saw that it was actually a newspaper from mid-first century Palestine.

After reading the article I thought to myself how strangely it resembled articles of our day and age. It almost sounded like it was written by someone from the Associated Press!

The Bodlian library didn't let me borrow the book, so I had to make some clumsy xeroxes, but I have preserved the words in the exact translation I found them.

Execution May Signify Political Changes!
by Alexander Bar-Judas

City of David, Palestine.

This last Friday a Jew was executed in the tumultuous region of Palestine, which has grown deeply concerned with its foreign occupation.

So deeply, in fact, that as many as 60% of the population disapproves of it.

Historically, many in the land have been said to be the Messiah. Some say such a descendent of King David will deliver the people from Roman authority.

Many experts suggest this execution was different.

During the trials which condemned the accused man, the Judge, Pontius Pilate, asked the public if they would prefer to release Barrabas -a notorious criminal. This proved to be a suggestion that was utterly rejected by the crowd, and the accused man was soon crucified.

While this may seem trifling to many, experts note that Pontius Pilate was influenced -and finally gave into- the will of the public.

A growing school of scholars have identified similarities between a succcessful, prospering government and the way it follows popular opinion. These scholars have suggested that once a government follows the public it will prosper.

Although the death of this Jew will clearly be forgotten by the beginning of next week, he may well have played a part in shaping history. Perhaps the occasion of his death will introduce a magnificent change in government where everything will be done in a socially acceptable manner.

Of course his disciples saw things in different terms.

One of his followers, when asked about the political implications of the Jew's execution, replied cryptically, "This man will never be your king until you have personally allowed him to be your king."

Although this man called Jesus will likely be considered a failure by the few who remember him, his message did seem to have a certain value in one sense:

The condemned man seemed to distrust earthly alliances and political associations -a move that many clearly recognize now to be a mistake- but he was said to teach about love and being a servant.

He was known to speak on behalf of criminals -and in one case- a woman who was caught in the act of adultery.

Although people had found this to be offensive against what they considered to be the Law of Moses, historians will most likely recognize him as a progressive thinker far ahead of his time -looking forward to the day when people would be able to look past their feelings of guilt and shame.

Some had put their hopes on Him to deliver them from their sin, but perhaps there is also room to consider his fight against intolerance, unsocial behavior, governments which expect the people to obey them, neglecting inalienable rights, and poor tax codes.

Perhaps the governing priest, Caiaphas, was correct about him. Because the Romans hated uprisings, perhaps it was better for him to die so that the public could go on. After all ... he was just one man.

I found the article shocking because I don't really think of Jesus as a political figure. In fact, it sort of seemed like maybe he was ... I don't know ... misunderstood?

Like people wanted to make him some kind of a ruler or something?

But they didn't want him to rule over their own lives personally?

Well, one never knows what will turn up in a dusty library basement anyway. I hope you didn't find the article as confusing as I did.

Christ against Christendom

Christendom: "Do not consider anyone to be your enemy."
Christ: "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."

Christendom: "If someone acts wrongfully, pretend like you didn't notice."
Christ: "If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private;"

Christendom: "Go, and consider adultery wrong no more."
Christ: "Go and sin no more."

Christendom: "Money is a root of all sorts of evil."
James: "The love of money is a root of all sorts of evil."

Christendom: "If your brother sins against you and repents, forgive him. If he continues doing it, though, his repentence was phony and you do not need to forgive him."
Christ: "If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, `I repent,' forgive him."

Christendom: "Of course Jesus liked to laugh and joke around. Everyone does."
Christ: "That which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God."
Christ: "Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep."

Christendom: "We have to start changing the social policies, the environmental situation, the world's opinion of us and our country because we could be facing a crisis soon!"
Christ: "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. And even the hairs of your head are all counted. So do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows."

Christendom: "Sacrifice. That's what God's looking for. Don't ask God for anything, ask God what you can sacrifice for Him."
Christ: "Go and learn what this means, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice'."

Christendom: "If we provide good logic and evidence in defense of our beliefs, people will naturally want to become Christians."
Christ: "Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above."

Christendom: "Sin is going to happen. It's inevitable, really, so stop worrying about it."
Christ: "Woe to the world because of its stumbling blocks! For it is inevitable that stumbling blocks come; but woe to that man through whom the stumbling block comes! If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire."

Christendom: "It's perfectly fine to love the world and the things of the world."
John: "Do not love the world or the things in the world. The love of the Father is not in those who love the world; for all that is in the world-- the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, the pride in riches-- comes not from the Father but from the world. And the world and its desire are passing away, but those who do the will of God live forever."

Christendom: "Feed the appetites of the sick and the poor because that's all we are ... appetites."
Christ: "Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word which comes from the mouth of God."

Christendom: "Christ didn't die to make us comfortable."
Paul: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ."
Paul: "Now may our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace, comfort and strengthen your hearts in every good work and word."

Christendom: "As soon as you enter into God's presence, people will see the difference in your life and find that excellent. So if the world hates you, you're doing something bad."
Christ: "If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you."

Mother Teresa And Her Critics

"If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own."
John 15:18

I was disgusted and discouraged to read the wikipedia article on Mother Teresa.

I am convinced this woman was very close to God and lived a very righteous life. It seems to me this should be fairly undisputed, but apparently it isn't.

Wikipedia has many interesting articles (particularly on history and science), but the style of the articlces often lack seriousness of any kind, and they are often written by very worldly people.

The article on Mother Teresa is a perfect example. This woman devoted her life to serving God and her neighbor and yet the article on her is between 1/3 and 1/2 criticism.

The criticisms basically read: "Sure she made some impressive attempts at helping people, but she should have been more systematic about it." Or, "She should have been smarter about it."

This is pure foolishness. Does any system care about anyone? Are the published scholars the ones working at orphanages and hospitals? Is it not the case the secular thinkers and the athiests are too busy running universities to care about anyone?

The other criticism she received was for her effort to lead people to know Jesus. She traveled all over the world help the people no one else cared about, and people criticize her for telling people about Jesus. If she helped feed the poor and comfort the dying, yes, this is acceptable to the public, but to offer forgivenness and second chance to know God? Many people claim this is wrong.

The Catholic Church has responded to much of the criticism against Mother Teresa by suggesting she was a "sign of contradiction". The phrase is reserved for those who demonstrate the love of Christ so much they are hated by the people for it. Apparently there are enough examples of this they had to designate a category for it.

These travesity against Mother Teresa remind me that the works God calls us to are often disregarded or even hated by the world. The world is open to letting people be aided externally, but as soon as the inside of a person is addressed, they are hated.

Jesus said that before the world hated any Christians it first hated Christ. The life of true devotion is not something that people can recognize from the outside unless they themselves have found it inside of them.

On a final note, Mother Teresa once said that those who do good would have false friends and true enemies but that we are obligated to do good anyway. As good as this advice is, I emphasize that this woman actually lived it!