The Lord is risen! He is truly risen!
This is the greatest megafu kanyaw nga rason wawahi it is right to believe
feast for all Christians because on this day took place the
greatest work the Lord has done for us – to save us, to
redeem us. Mary’s role in the Resurrection of Christ,”
said Pope St. John Paul II, “was the completion of her
mission at the Annunciation in Nazareth.”
Kakurug nga importante ya Biernes Santo, where we
celebrate the suffering and death of our Lord Jesus
Christ; his suffering and death for us. But if we remain in
Good Friday, , nu maultimo tera laman kan biyernes
santo, we could have ended with death, we could have
remained in sin! Ngem mari nga namanda y Hesus kan
patay! Y Hesus naginnolay e pinatalaw na ya talaw ya
patay en liwat !
This is an important message for us. This is telling us
that if we have been with Jesus in his passion, in his
suffering, we shall also be with him in his triumph. This is
what Jesus proclaimed to his mother Mary first.
Now in my dear friends the Gospels mention nothing
about Jesus appearing to his mother Mary after his
Resurrection. Ang tanong nagpakita kaya si Hesus sa
kanyang ina noong siya ay nabuhay? Sa kanya kaya siya
unang nagpakita? Yes! I Maria ya unna nga napasitan y
Hesus. After all, y Maria ya ina y Hesus, igina ya unna
nga napasitan ya kulabit nga Hesus, ya nangabban kan y
Hesus katu kulabit igina. She was the first Christian from
the moment of the Annunciation and Incarnation. So,
that he appeared first to his mother.
The Gospels mention various appearances of the risen
Christ, but not a meeting between Jesus and his Mother.
This silence must not lead to the conclusion that after the
Resurrection Christ did not appear to Mary; rather it
invites us to seek the reasons why the Evangelists made
such a choice,” Mary witnessed the entire paschal
mystery and “alone remains to keep alive the flame of
faith, preparing to receive the joyful and astonishing
announcement of the Resurrection.” (relate Tenebrae)
If the evangelists didn’t write about Mary’s encounter with
her risen Son Jesus, “this can perhaps be attributed to
the fact that such a witness would have been considered
too biased by those who denied the Lord’s Resurrection,
and therefore not worthy of belief,” John Paul II continued
in 1997.
The great saint offered another reason too. The Gospels
list only a few appearances by the risen Lord, “certainly
not a complete summary of all that happened during the
40 days after Easter.” For instance, St. Paul highlights
that Jesus appeared “to more than 500 brethren at one
time” (1 Corinthians 15:6). How is it, John Paul II asked,
“that an exceptional event known to so many is not
mentioned by the Evangelists?” Obviously, the
Evangelists didn’t record all Jesus’ appearances.
“How could the Blessed Virgin, present in the first
community of disciples (Acts 1:14), be excluded from
those who met her divine Son after he had risen from the
dead?” asked John Paul II. “Indeed, it is legitimate to
think that the Mother was probably the first person to
whom the risen Jesus appeared.”
Posing another question, he asked rhetorically if Mary’s
not joining the women going to the tomb at dawn can
“indicate that she had already met Jesus? Those women
had been faithful and had been at the Cross. Of course,
Our Lady had been the most faithful of all.”
John Paul II offered yet another reason for believing
Jesus appeared first to his mother:
The unique and special character of the Blessed Virgin’s
presence at Calvary and her perfect union with the Son in
his suffering on the Cross seem to postulate a very
particular sharing on her part in the mystery of the
Resurrection.
Thus, this appearance would be part of “completing in
this way her participation in all the essential moments of
the paschal mystery.”
So it’s “reasonable to think that Mary, as the image and
model of the Church which waits for the Risen One and
meets him in the group of disciples during his Easter
appearances, had had a personal contact with her risen
Son, so that she too could delight in the fullness of
paschal joy.”
There is a beautiful tradition in our faith, that is padafun o
salubong. This dramatizes the encounter of Jesus and
his mother Mary immediately after he resurrected from
the dead. Naonna nga napasitta y Hesus kan y ina na ta
sennu iddan na kan igina ya kappia en inanama. Ammu y
Hesus ya hurung en dammat ya kanonagan y ina na. he
appeared to his mother to give the hope to his mother, an
assurance that good will always triumph over evil.
My dear friends we will not remain in suffering. We will
not remain in pain. This life will not come only after
death. No! We shall attain this even in this life. We shall
enjoy a better and greater life. We shall triumph over
evil, over sorrow, over pain right here on earth, right here
in this life! This is what the rising again to life of Christ is
telling us!
The resurrection, ang muling pagkabuhay, ang bagong
buhay did not only happen to Jesus, it also happens to
us. Siya ang nanguna, sumusunod tayo. This happens
to us if we allow our sinful self to die. This is the
summary of our Christian life, to die to sin and begin a
renewed life. Resurrection or new life only comes if we
die to sin. Resurrection or better life only comes if we
can endure the stage of death, of suffering, of struggle
and of pain. The sorrow and darkness of Good Friday
was defeated by Easter. Naginnolay si Kristo. We shall
also rise with him! We shall triumph towards the end!