On this, the most important celebration in the Christian calendar, it is a shame that the reading chosen for the Lectionary is something of a let down. Certainly, within the gospel reading we have the discovery of the empty tomb by Mary of Magdala; the disbelieving disciples running to find things exactly as Mary had described; and the dawning realisation of what Jesus had meant when he so frequently spoke about rising from the dead. However, if the editors of the Lectionary had chosen to also include the next nine verses of the gospel we would have also heard the magnificent encounter between Mary and the risen Lord, confirming that it was a woman, Mary Magdala, who was the first witness to Christ’s resurrection. As it is, we never hear this account as part of the cycle of Sunday readings.
The discovery of the empty tomb – although so simply told – is an astounding event that completes the Paschal Mystery: the passion, death AND resurrection of Jesus. Whilst Christ’s willingness to go to his death on the cross was an extraordinary statement of God’s love for humankind, it is his rising again from death that offers all Christian people hope. It is the second disciple – the one whom Jesus loved – who is the first to grasp the meaning of what has happened inside the tomb. The gospel tells us that upon entering the tomb and seeing Jesus’ burial cloths lying there, ‘he saw and he believed’. Unlike the later encounters with the risen Lord, this disciple recognised the truth and significance of what he saw in the empty tomb. He didn’t need to see the risen Lord to believe. Perhaps it is he that we today can best identify with. Not in a position to physically encounter the risen Christ, we are capable of seeing the signs of his resurrection and continuing presence in the world and choose to believe.
Resource used: Reflection, by Greg Sunter
May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be everywhere loved……….forever!
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We Welcome Fr. Jim Monaghan to our parish this weekend.
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Parish Easter Triduum 2026:
Holy Thursday
2 April 2026 - 7:00pm
St John the Apostle Catholic Church
Altar of Repose
Evening Prayer will conclude at 9:30pm
Good Friday
3 April 2026 - 10:00am
Stations of the Cross
St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church
The Passion of the Lord
St John the Apostle Catholic Church
3:00pm
Easter Vigil
4 April 2026 – 7:00pm
St John the Apostle Catholic Church
There will be no evening Mass at St Thomas Aquinas Charnwood
Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord
5 April 2026
St Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church
9:00am
St John the Apostle Catholic Church
8:30am and 10:00am
There will be no evening Mass