Why Was Mary Magdalene First?

Pastor’s Column

Easter Sunday, 2025

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is at the very center of human history and the heart of our lives as Christians as well. Quite simply, it changes everything. Our faith tells us that we too are going to be raised body and soul from the dead one day, and will live forever. We strive to live as Christ taught us because we love him and so that we will reach our goal of heaven and eternal happiness.

          That said, I find it very intriguing that it was to Mary Magdalene that Christ first appeared to on that great morning—not the apostles. Why Mary Magdalene? Well, for one thing, Mary had come back to the tomb: she was still looking for Jesus. She had been prevented from anointing the body after burial as was Jewish custom by the feast of the Passover. Now, when she arrives at the tomb Sunday morning, she finds the body gone. Mary was still looking for Jesus. And her search was rewarded.

          Mary kept searching for Jesus because she loved him so much. Jesus had freed her from seven devils. Her life had been completely changed by his teaching. This is true for us as well: the more we realize how much Christ has done for us, the more we will search for him, the more faith we will have in him, the more we will love him. 

          The Pharisees, Sadducees and Caiphas, by contrast, hated Jesus and were glad he was dead. They searched for him only to kill him! It is very significant that Jesus is never recorded as having appeared to his enemies after rising from the dead (except St. Paul some years later) – only those who loved him while he walked on earth.

          Easter Sunday gives us a clear vision of what life on earth is really all about: it’s about choices. Ultimately, whether people realize it or not, we are all making an ultimate choice for or against Jesus, because Jesus is Truth itself: there simply isn’t anyone else who saves us. Each day, each hour is a choice for or against God.

          Those in our world who add sin to sin and never repent also are in a very real way, like the Pharisees, on a search-and-destroy mission to kill Jesus in their own souls.  When we choose sin and selfishness, when we hate others and cause misery to them and to ourselves, we are acting like those who hated Jesus. Such choices, if left unrepentant, lead in the end to eternal death, for they are ultimately a choice against Jesus. But as long as we live, we always have a chance to turn our lives around, as Mary Magdalene did, and to choose Jesus. He will always love us.

          As Christians, we too are searching for Jesus, everyday. We search for him in the scriptures, at mass, at home, at work. We search for him at prayer, before the Blessed Sacrament; we search for him as we go about our daily lives. Like Mary Magdalene, Jesus will reveal himself to those who love him and search for him with all their hearts. Our search begins in faith and ends in eternal life!

Father Gary