Friday - Sunday

These two days, Good Friday and Easter, serve as an insuperable center for our understanding of who we are as Christians. We are at once informed by the actions of Friday and what they meant two days later because of that day's actions. Referring to one iwthout the other is not only useless, it is in many ways dishonest.

Several years ago, I defended Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ to my friends. I thought he had every right to make a movie that told only the story of Good Friday. Just because he told the first half of the story, however, that doesn't mean that he has told a sufficient story. It's like following the story of Frodo and the ring but ignoring the journey to Mount Doom, or talking about Spider-man in reference to the death of Uncle Ben, while ignoring his internal struggle of what to do with his new powers.

On Friday of Holy Week, Jesus died. He was executed in a rebel's way (crucifixion) and his body was laid in a tomb. That was the first day. On the third day (Sunday), he had left the tomb. Mary Magdalene and two other women had come to see him, but the stone had been rolled away and Jesus was gone. Jesus appeared to Mary and told her to go ahead and tell the disciples that he would be with them in Galilee (in Luke's gospel, he says he will meet them in Jerusalem).

What does this story mean to you? How does hearing it again affect/change the way you see Jesus? Do you ever think about what the death of Jesus meant to the disciples and the other followers (including Mary)?

Jesus was followed by many people, including women. His ministry was (and is) to help those that aren't seen in our society. This was very appealing to women, as they had little power in either the Jewish or Roman cultures. Who are people that you have seen that need your help? Who are the people that need to be heard? What can you do to make that happen?