Dear brothers and sisters in Christ!
Though the Gospel of John does not state it, Mary of Magdala must have looked into the tomb of Jesus that first Easter morning before running to tell Simon Peter and the other disciples whom Jesus loved: “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him.”
Who are ‘they’? No answer is offered. Returning to the empty tomb, she remains after the two disciples leave. This time it is clear that she looks in and encounters two angels in white. When asked why she is crying, she repeats her lament: “They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him.”
As we celebrate the joy, wonder and truth of Christ’s resurrection, the victory of life and love, do we lament that it seems ‘they’ are quite active, and have managed to take our Lord out of far too many lives? For many, Jesus has been laid in the periphery of their lives. Thank God, on that >irst Easter morning there were no ‘they’, only our risen Lord, eager to return into, and transform the lives of Mary, the disciples, ours, and His Church.
May His longing to reunite and reignite all who love Him, and whom He loves. May He bless us if we should tire or forget that He sends us forth to proclaim His gospel equipped with His love, faith, and hope that even ‘they’ may come to know the One who knows their names.
Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!
Yours in Christ,
+ Lauma Zusevics
Archbishop
Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church Worldwide
