“I have seen the Lord!” Mary Magdalene announced to the disciples that first Easter morning, making her what we have come to call “the apostle to the apostles.” She was the first witness to the Resurrection, but not the last, as Peter told Cornelius’ household in our first lesson for today: “ . . .God raised [Jesus] on the third day and allowed him to appear, not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, and who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.” Those whose eyes were opened to the resurrection presence of Christ Jesus were called to be witnesses to the life-giving power of God’s love—as are we today when our eyes are opened to recognize God’s presence in our lives.

We who eat and drink with Christ Jesus eucharist by eucharist are called to be witnesses in our world today, to testify to the transforming work that God’s love is accomplishing in our lives day by day. Scripture says Mary Magdalene didn’t immediately recognize the resurrected Jesus. He was not what she was expecting, even after her conversation with the two angels in the empty tomb. In a garden, a gardener would most likely be the one to show up and question her presence there—so she made that natural assumption. But when Jesus called her by name, her eyes were opened, her heart exultant. She accepted her calling, her vocation as witness to the reality of resurrection, to go and tell the disciples what she had seen and heard, what she had experienced after Peter and the other disciple had returned to their homes.

Have you seen the risen Lord, who today is most usually seen through the eyes of the heart, rather than with the eyes of the physical body. Do you recognize God’s presence in your life however it may appear, inspiring, healing, challenging, comforting, unfolding Christ’s way before you one step at a time? Do you know God’s love filling you with peace and joy in all the circumstances of your life? Can you hear the Holy One calling you by name, urging you to give witness to the divine grace you experience in ways beyond number? If so, it’s time to join Mary Magdalene in the Easter chorus:

Christ the Lord is risen today!

Alleluia!