When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were afraid. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’
First ending: Then they quickly reported all these instructions to those around Peter. After this, Jesus himself also sent out through them from east to west the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation.
Second ending: When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping. When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it.
Afterward Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country. These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them either. Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.
The Gospel According to Mary Magdalene Chapter 5.
When Mary had said this, she fell silent, since it was to this point that the Saviour had spoken with her.
But Andrew answered and said to the brethren, “Say what you wish to say about what she has said. I at least do not believe that the Saviour said this. For certainly these teachings are strange ideas.”
Peter answered and spoke concerning these same things. He questioned the women about the Saviour: Did He really speak privately with a woman and not openly to us? Are we to turn about and all listen to her? Did He prefer her to us?
Then Mary wept and said to Peter, “My brother Peter, what are you thinking? Do you think that I have thought this up myself in my heart, or that I am lying about the Saviour?” Levi answered and said to Peter, “Peter you have always been hot tempered. Now I see you contending against the woman like the adversaries. If the Saviour made her worthy, who are you indeed to reject her? Surely the Saviour knows her very well. That is why He loved her more than us. Rather, let us be ashamed of ourselves, and put on the perfect Man, and separate as He commanded us and preach the gospel, not laying down any other rule or other law beyond what the Saviour said. When they heard this they began to go forth to proclaim and to preach.
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Jesus was put to death on a Friday, before sundown - because if it were later, the Sabbath would have begun and he would have hung on the cross through the three days. It was important that he be prepared for burial and moved. They knew he had been laid in a new tomb - Joseph of Arimathea had taken spices for burial, and he and Zaccheus made sure the body was prepared in the proper fashion. As was the custom, a huge rock was rolled across the mouth of the tomb, to prevent animals from getting in....
Three women who stood at the foot of the cross waited with incredible anxiety all through the Sabbath. They could not go on the Sabbath, so had to wait until the next day....as soon as the first tiny rays lightened the sky, they were up. They had not had time to say goodbye properly, so they made their way to the garden where the tomb was, to weep and to grieve the loss of someone they loved so dearly.
They arrive, to find the stone rolled away, the tomb empty, and a man dressed in white sitting where Jesus had been laid. And as in all appearances of messengers or angels, the man said “Don’t be afraid.” ....but they were, and in the first ending of the Mark story, they ran away and did not tell anyone, because of their fear.
The earliest manuscripts do not have verses 9-20 of Mark, hence those verses are know as the “second ending”. They were added later, by someone else. The first ending, in the first manuscript, simply states that they went back and told Peter, and then the disciples went out preaching and teaching, as Jesus had sent them
The second piece which I read this morning is from a book called “The Gospel of Mary”. This text is found in the Berlin Gnostic Codex (or Papyrus Berolinensis 8502. This very important and well-preserved codex was discovered in the late-nineteenth century near Akhmim in upper Egypt. It was purchased in Cairo in 1896 by a German scholar, Dr. Carl Reinhardt, and then taken to Berlin.
The book (or "codex") was probably copied and bound in the late fourth or early fifth century. It contains Coptic translations of three very important early Christian texts: the Gospel of Mary, the Apocryphon of John, and the Sophia of Jesus Christ. The texts themselves date to the second century and were originally authored in Greek. Unfortunately the publication of this codex was delayed until 1955 because of two world wars. By then the collection of writings at Nag Hammadi had also been recovered, and that the Apocryphon of John and the Sophia of Jesus Christ had also been preserved in that collection.
I’ve given you this little bit of history, because it adds a dimension to the story from a woman’s point of view. It is a legitimate document, written about the same time as the other Gospels - and it’s interesting that it dovetails with the second ending of Mark.
The story throughout this weekend has made a point that the people who stayed with Jesus to the end, were the women, and one man. Joseph of Arimathea and Zaccheus did take the body off the cross and look after the burial rites, but they were not at the crucifixion. The story tells us Joseph was afraid...
In every one of the stories, consistently, it’s Mary Magdalene who is there. She is there to pour ointment over Jesus’ feet, and wipe them with her hair. It was an incredibly intimate, and pastoral act - anointing for burial. Mary understood. It’s Mary Magdalene who stands near the cross with Jesus’ mother, and it’s Mary who is the one who goes to the tomb. In Matthew’s Gospel there are two women, in Mark’s there are three, in Luke three, and in John there are four. Mary Magdalene is considered to be the first believer and the first disciple.
In John’s Gospel, Mary Magdalene sees Jesus, thinks he is the gardener - and then recognises him, and he speaks to her. And Mary reports that she has had a conversation with Jesus.
In Mary’s story, she and Jesus have a conversation about the nature of life and death, and the life which comes after. He tells her of the journey of the soul, and the good news which accompanies the soul. She returns to the others and tells them the things Jesus said to her. - and what happens? Andrew says Jesus could not possibly have said these things, as they were just too strange to come from Jesus - hence they had to be Mary’s imagination. Peter accuses her of lying, of making up a story. How could Jesus possibly have said those things to her? He would surely have said them to the men first, wouldn’t he? In other words, why would he say anything to Mary when he said nothing to Peter or any of the others.
In one way or another, the Gospel writers have all focussed on the women, on Jesus’ willingness to treat women as people, not property as in Jewish law. So the very first recognition of resurrection is through a woman, the first words of new life are to a woman, Mary Magdalene. Mary was able to turn their minds and hearts to the good, and bring them together as a group once more. And once the disciples get over their little fit of pique that Jesus spoke to Mary first, they agree to divide up into pairs and go out into the world and tell the story.
...and the little group of first believers went into the world full of joy and thanksgiving.
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