My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ,
As dawn broke on that first day of the week, little did we know that the world was about to change forever. My name is Mary, known to many as Magdalene, a title that reflects my hometown but barely encompasses the journey I have walked alongside our Lord, Jesus Christ. I write to you now, with a heart overflowing with joy and eyes that have wept tears of both sorrow and elation, to share the most profound truth I have ever known: Jesus is alive.
Our story begins in the dim light of early morning when a group of us women, united in our love for Jesus and our grief at His crucifixion, made our way to the tomb. We carried spices and perfumes, intending to anoint His body, an act of love and farewell. Yet, what we found at the tomb was beyond anything we could have imagined.
The stone was rolled away, and the tomb was empty. An angelic messenger greeted us with words that still echo in my heart: "He is not here; for He is risen, as He said." In that moment, confusion and disbelief wrestled within us, yet hope sparked like a flame in the darkness.
I ran to tell the disciples, my soul caught in a tempest of fear and wonder. Peter and John hurried back with me, only to find the empty tomb as I had described. It was then, in my deepest despair, that I encountered the risen Jesus. Though I did not recognize Him at first, the moment He spoke my name, "Mary," my world was transformed. It was Him, alive, standing before me. He asked me to go to our brothers and tell them of His resurrection, a commission I carried with all the haste my feet could muster.
Jesus' appearances did not end with me. He revealed Himself to others: to the women, to two disciples on the road to Emmaus, and to the apostles, including Thomas, who had doubted. With each appearance, Jesus fulfilled His promise and the scriptures, opening our minds to understand that His suffering, death, and resurrection were all foretold as God's plan for salvation.
In the days that followed, Jesus taught us, ate with us, and prepared us for the coming of the Holy Spirit. He commissioned us to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth, a mission that has now fallen to each of us. His resurrection is not merely an event in history; it is the cornerstone of our faith, the proof of His divinity, and the guarantee of our own resurrection.
To you who read this letter, I extend the same call that Jesus gave to us. Believe in the risen Lord. Let His life, death, and resurrection transform you as it has transformed me. Proclaim His name, for in Him alone is found salvation. We are all witnesses to these things, and through us, the story of Jesus continues to unfold in the lives of every believer.
May you find in the resurrection of Jesus Christ the same inexhaustible joy and boundless hope that have sustained me. He is risen indeed, and in His resurrection, we find the promise of eternal life, a love that conquers death, and the dawn of an unending day.
In the love of the Risen Christ,
Mary Magdalene
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