It is early in the morning and a woman sits in the darkness. Her beloved teacher, whom she has followed and supported for years was placed in a tomb a few days before, after having being executed for political and religious reasons. The sun has not yet risen, and as she sits, she cries. A week ago He was being hailed as the Messiah, God’s anointed, the Davidic king come to set His people free. Yet within a few days, the same people who cried ‘Hosanna’ were shouting ‘Crucify him!’ ‘Crucify him!’. So she goes, to be near her Lord, to be close to him. And as she goes, she notices something: the stone has been rolled away. It took several people to roll it there on Friday afternoon. What is going on? Mary Magdalen runs to tell Peter and John:

“They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” 

‘Y maent wedi cymryd yr Arglwydd allan o’r bedd, ac ni wyddom lle y maent wedi ei roi i orwedd’ (John 20: 2)

Mary assumes, understandably, that grave-robbers have been at work. Or that the Jewish or Roman authorities, worried that this troublemaker might be a focus for dissent, have got rid of Him. To do so makes sense in political terms, but something greater has happened. Peter and John come running towards the tomb. John arrives first, peers inside the tomb, but stays outside. 

‘Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself.’

‘Yna daeth Simon Pedr ar ei ôl, a mynd i mewn i’r bedd. Gwelodd y llieiniau yn gorwedd yno, a hefyd y cadach oedd wedi bod am ei ben ef; nid oedd hwn yn gorwedd gyda’r llieiniau, ond ar wahân, wedi ei blygu ynghyd’ (John 20: 6-7)

What happens is a gradual process. Bit by bit, the followers of Jesus come to experience and understand this incredible and amazing event. 

Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples went back to their homes.’

‘Yna aeth y disgybl arall, y cyntaf i ddod at y bedd, yntau i mewn. Gwelodd ac fe gredodd. Oherwydd nid oeddent eto wedi deall yr hyn a ddwed yr Ysgrythur, fod yn rhaid iddo atgyfodi oddi wyth y meirw. Yna aeth y disgyblion adref yn eu holau.’ (John 20: 8-10)

A few days ago the disciples saw their Lord and Teacher killed and buried, but now the tomb is empty. The cloths that were wrapped around Jesus are there, but there is no body. John, the disciple Jesus loved, understands and believes. Peter does not yet understand or believe. Clearly it is all too much for Mary Magdalen who stays by the tomb, weeping. When the angels ask her why she is crying she replies:

“They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.”

“Y maent wedi cymryd fy Arglwydd i ffwrdd, ac ni wn i lle y maent wedi ei roi i orwedd.” (John 20: 13)

Mary’s words are understandable, she is filled with grief and sadness. She is bereft and confused. At this point, Mary Magdalen encounters the Risen Christ:

Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”

‘“Wraig,” meddai Iesu wrhti, “pam yr wyt ti’n wylo? Pwy yr wyt yn ei geisio?” Gan feddwl mai’r garddwr ydoedd, dywedodd hithau wrtho, “Os mai ti, Syr, a’i cymerodd ef, dywed wrthyf lle y rhoddaist ef i orwedd, ac fe’i cymeraf fi ef i’m gofal.”’ (John 20: 15)

Mary supposes that Jesus is the gardener, the person employed to look after the cemetery. She does not yet understand who He is, or what is going on. However, the mention of the gardener is significant. In Genesis, humanity was created by God in a garden, Eden, and given the task of tending it (Gen 2:15). The Resurrection also takes place in a garden, showing us that Christ is the second Adam. Whilst the first Adam brought death to humanity by a tree, Jesus, the Second Adam, has brought life to the world by the tree of the Cross. Humanity falls because of a tree, and because of a tree we are offered eternal life in Christ. 

It was on the first day of the week, that Creation began, and now on the first day of the week we see a New Creation. Christ has risen from the dead, and conquered Death and Hell. Our Lord is a gardener, and the plants he tends are human beings. We believe in a God who loves us, who cares for us, and who longs to see us grow and flourish.

Jesus greets Mary Magdalen by name, and suddenly she recognises Him. She understands. She believes. Then Christ talks of His Ascension, as though forty days of Easter have condensed into a single moment. Mary now knows what she must do:

‘Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her.’

‘Mair Magdalen i gyhoeddi’r newydd i’r disgyblion. “Yr wyf wedi gweld yr Arglwydd.” meddai, ac eglurodd ei fod wedi dweud y geiriau hyn wrthi’ (Jn 20:18)

Mary shares the Good News, just as Peter and Paul do in the first and second readings this morning. As Christians we are called to do likewise: to tell others that God loves us, all of us, that He died for us, and that He rose again to offer us eternal life with Him. This is the message of Easter. Good News! Christ has triumphed over Death and Hell, and humanity is healed and restored through Him.

So, my brothers and sisters in Christ, ‘Pasg hapus i chi gyd!’ ‘A Happy Easter to you all!’ May you, and those you love, be filled with Resurrection joy and strength, on this Easter Day and always. Amen.