After being delivered from all her sins, exorcised from all her devils, Mary Magdalene, light and radiant due to the God’s forgiveness, was willing to follow Christ and to assist Him with her goods. Christ called her to take her place among his flock. Christ, pastor par excellence, gathered his sheep. He built his body. From the apostles to the holy women, they all set out. They went from village to village proclaiming the Kingdom of Heaven. The disciples and women (included Mary Magdalene) had the privilege of receiving special teachings. Christ teached them one of the main points of His teaching: the spiritual disposition to have in order to be a disciple. Mary Magdalene listened attentively to the words of the master. She remembered two fundamental pillars: being poor as Christ became poor and being docile to the Holy Spirit.

After being touched by the grace, Mary Magdalene conceived the joy proposed by the Christ. This happiness surpasses our human expectations, it is divine one. Like all true happiness, it has to be built. The building of the happiness from God is demanding. This requirement is first a call to poverty. The poverty proposed by the Christ is first and foremost a spiritual one more than material. Material poverty is only the visible sign of the true spiritual poverty. This poverty consists in renouncing oneself, that is, renouncing all things that prevent us from going freely to God. To refuse our selfish pleasures to be all turned towards God and towards the others. Christ calls us to renounce all our earthly treasures, our impure desires, our manners so human to think, to reflect, to love, to act. He invites us to lay on our shoulders all our burdens, our difficulties, our failures, our problems, our human joys and to take the concerns of the Christ. To lay down his burdens with Christ is to take charge of his yoke. He invites us to see our concerns with His eyes. « Come unto me, all ye that labor under the burden, and I will comfort you: Load ye my yoke, and put me in my school: for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find relief for yourselves. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light « (Mt 11: 28-30). To renounce is to lay at the feet of Christ our whole being so that by his grace he may elevate us to the life which God wants for us. « Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but who will lose his life because of me, he will save it » (Lk 9:24). To renounce oneself is to say a free and sincere yes to the call of God.

This poverty to which Christ invites us is a disposition to welcome the treasures of God and to be shaped by grace. The grace of God acts in the heart of man who is available to His grace. Being available requires humility of heart, and docility to the Holy Spirit. Mary Magdalene prepared herself by humility and the grace acted in the most intimate of herself. In her prayers, she asked God to come into her to make His home. « Lord, allow me to be shaped by your grace, let me be reconciled by your forgiveness, let me be transformed by your word, let me be carried by Christ, let me be led by your Son, I let myself be cured by the true doctor of hearts, in order to be put back in the right direction by the one You have sent, the way, the truth and the life.

Being docile to the Spirit also means having an unalterable trust in God. By trusting God, I allow him to act in the most intimate of my heart. I trust in Him because I know that He alone knows me, He alone knows the path to find the ultimate happiness. He alone knows the true good which corresponds to what I am. He alone knows the good to which He calls me to serve Him. He alone knows the place where I can be the happiest and give myself without counting as He Himself has totally given Himself.

Mary Magdelene, you understand why Christ asks His disciples the renunciation and the docility to the grace. These dispositions are indispensable in order to set you in motion, to  place you in the footsteps of Christ. And now, let the beautiful things begin.

She was always the first to ask questions, to beg the teachings, to open her ears when the master spoke. For one thing is to prepare oneself to receive everything from Christ. Another one is to receive, to listen to the word of God, to try to put it into practice and build a virtuous person. For the disposition of the heart is worth only if we are in search of truth and love of God. Mary Magdalene understood then the importance of biblical wisdom. Listen, Israel. Listen. Give ear to the truth, receive it from your God, receive the word of God sown in your heart, root yourself in the Word of God, let the seed that Christ has deposited in your mind germinate. Be enlightened by the light of the prophet par excellence. And then you will understand how God loves and will only desire one thing from you, to love as God loves. You will love God more than anything and your brothers in a true love for the good of God. The more you utter love words, the more you will do thoughful acts, the more virtues will arise in you, the more you will proclaim the wonders of God. Following Christ, once freed from all her sins and devils, Mary Magdalene was aware of her chance to be with Christ. She allowed Him to lead he ; nothing, she though, could disturb her. Christ is there, Jesus is present in my life, why shall I fear?

By remaining at the feet of Christ, by being near the source of living water, by quenching your true thirst, you show us the importance, the necessity, the ultimate task of all human life, our being, our expectations . In taking up your defense, Christ showed you the goal of your life, to see God in eternal life. He made you understand why he has created us: to be in God and to share His life. He assured you that he was the one who could quench your thirst. What a joy to listen to his voice ! You looked at him and you saw him, the Word that was with God and took our human condition. Christ gave you to live a privileged moment and no one can take it. At that moment you tasted what will be the delights of eternal life, the sweetness of the divine word. You were nourished by Christ. You now enjoyed the delights of what would be the divine banquet in the Kingdom. You feeded on the Lord’s table. You remembered at this moment this meeting that Christ had with the Samaritan woman. Christ said to her, « I am the living water, who drinks of this water shall live forever, and the water which I give shall be in those that receive it the spring of water gushing forth into eternal life » (Jn 4:14) . Did you understand Madeleine what Christ showed you? What will be eternal life. Eternal life is the contemplation of the mystery of God, His truth, His goodness, His unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit, His simplicity, His love, His beauty. Will we be hungry and thirsty always? « One day we will be intimately and definitively united to the pure and perfect goodness of God, we will no longer need to meet the needs of the body, and we shall be fully happy: lacking nothing, possessing everything, having nothing left. We shall be filled with the abundance of the house of God, and we shall be satisfied when His glory will manifested, and this is what Mary understood: if she did not possess this life intimately and definitively, she possessed at least the one who, being everything, can satisfy: such was the best part that Mary had chosen, never will she be taken from her » Saint Augustine.

This friendship with Christ was real. Jesus loved Martha, Mary and Lazarus. Four times in this text, the evangelist John ensured it. When Jesus first learnt that Lazarus was sick, Martha and Mary made Jesus be informed: « that man that you love is sick. » Immediately afterwards, when Jesus decided despite the news to remain two days in the place where he was, John made this remark: Jesus loved Martha, his sister and Lazarus. Then, when Jesus began his journey to Bethany, he mentionned Lazarus as His friend to His disciples. The Jews themselves, when they saw Jesus weeping near Mary Magdalene in tears, said: « See how he loved her. » All these words show us the friendship that existed between Jesus and the family from Bethany.

This friendship is an opportunity to understand the true meaning of friendship, a true love that transcends our human horizons. Knowing that his friend Lazarus was sick, Jesus did not immediately go to his bedside. The first step he undertook is to make himself present to his friend by thought, by prayer. He took the time to confide it to God, to discern the most perfect good for his friend. Christ teached us that the best good to wish for his friend is the good that God wants for him and his entourage. Jesus could have set out immediately to relieve Lazarus of his illness. Instead, he waited for the moment to shoot Lazarus from death. Christ then decided to go to meet Lazarus and his sisters when they most needed His friendship.

And yet, they had many friendships. How many Jews had come to see the family in Bethany to be with them and console them? But the presence of their friends was not enough to get them out of their pain. And instead of getting them out of their mourning, they crushed them with their tears. Jesus arrived at the gates of the city. As soon as Marthe knew that, she rose to meet Christ. She told her sister in secret that the master was there: she rose in turn to meet her Lord. Tenderness overflowed in this narrative about consolation. Christ took the time to be with each member of the family. He carried their grief. Seeing Mary so sad, Christ shuddered with all his being. He was troubled and wept with the weeping Mary. Christ consoled Martha and Mary by taking their grief upon him. He understood the state of their heart, the state of their soul. He wept with those who cried. This consolation that Christ testified to his friends is not just a feeling of complacency, it is a moment of total confidence, of understanding the other.

They both came to Jesus and said, « If you had been there, my brother would not have died. » To Martha, the Lord answered with these words of hope: « Do not worry, I am the Resurrection and life, only believe and your brother will live. » To Mary, the Lord answered with tears and the steps to go to the tomb of Lazarus. Standing in front of the door of the tomb, he pronounced this word which was realizing: « Lazarus, come outside, come out of your tomb! » Was not this word the sign of the most beautiful friendship of Christ with Lazarus and his sisters, and with all the witnesses of this scene? Christ, by this act, revealed all the depth of his friendship. The friend wants the good of his friends: may they live. Christ wants the most perfect good that is to lead us to his Father and live his life. He wishes thereby to explain to what he says: there is no greater love than to give our life for those we love.

After the resurrection of Lazarus, Christ was finding refuge in Ephraim. He was far from the threat due to the Jews who have decided to seize him and kill him. He remains alone with his disciples. The Passover is coming closer. Before entering solemnly at Jerusalem, Christ made a stop at Bethany. He found his friends there: Lazare, Marthe and Marie. They were all invited to a dinner given in honor of Christ. Mary slipped near Christ with a perfume of great price and finesse. In the middle of the meal, she removed the top of the bottle of perfume. The room was full of its pleasant odor. From all sides, the eyes of the guests searched where this odor comes from. They saw Mary Magdalene with the bottle in her hand, delicately pouring the precious nard on Jesus’ feet. She wiped them tenderly with her hair.

This gesture of Mary gave rise to lively comments. Judas was offended. This gesture was useless, luxurious and scandalous. It was useless because it did not meet any need. It was luxurious due to its price and value, by spending so much money for this gesture. It was scandalous : it would have been much more profitable to sell this perfume and give the money to the poors. Christ took once again the defense of Mary because this gesture was so profund, so rich and so free!

This gesture was profound because it showed all the gratitude from Mary Magdalene for the works of God. Through this gesture, Mary Magdalene rendered thanks for all the work of Salvation that the Lord had accomplished towards her friends, herself and all men. Her gesture was the fruit of a prayer where she recognized in Christ all the saving actions that he has done for all the people he met in these crossed cities and paths. Following Christ, she could recognize that all his actions and words can not come from the power of man. Only God is able to do such works.

This gesture was rich in adoration. The work of the Lord manifested His divinity. Marie-Madeleine was not mistaken. She saw and believed. Through this action, Mary Magdalene paid tribute homage to the entire Trinity. She adored the Father who sent his only son to dispense his Spirit, the Holy Spirit. She adored the pastor according to the heart of God so long awaited by the prophets : he come to seek sinners in order to lead them to eternal life. She adored the Son of God who had come to fulfill in every way the will of his Father. She worshiped the one who is the Resurrection and life as he said in words and actions when he rose Lazarus from the tomb.

This gesture was a genuine gift, completely free, that required no return. Mary Magdalene offered to Jesus the most beautiful, the dearest gift. « And yet, » she said to herself, « what is this gift compared to God’s gift ? » God give us life. Is it not for Him useless, luxurious or even scandalous? What can He expect in return? God does not need us in order to live, to be greater, more beautiful, more true, more good, more perfect. God is sufficient for Himself. The life He gives us adds nothing to His perfection, to His being. The life that God gives us is luxurious because He gives us everything. He gives us to be from His image. He invites us to His likeness. The man with the freedom given by God wanted to be like God and without God. God, faithful to Himself, has come to us by preparing the coming of His Son, to give us His Son so that Christ will give Himself and open us the gates of eternal life. He gives us to be His sons by the Spirit of His Son, the Holy Spirit which He gives in fullness. Mary Magdalene was right to give all she had. Moreover, this gesture, Christ told us, will be announced wherever the gospel will be announced.

After this tribute given in honor of Christ, Jesus ascended to Jerusalem. He entered this city, acclaimed by the crowd. Then he asked his apostles to prepare the feast of the Passover. The Passover meal took a special atmosphere. Jesus gave them His spiritual will, He gives the bread and the wine, signs of the spiritual nourishment of His body and His blood. Judas left the meal to betray Jesus, Peter promised fidelity to Him when Jesus told him that he would disown Him this evening three times. They went to the Garden of Olives. Christ prayed and accepted the cup that His father offered him. He was arrested by the soldiers. He was led in front of the Sanhedrin. The morning he was in front of Pilate, who did not find in Jesus grounds for conviction. In front of the screaming crowd: « Crucify Him! », Pilate yielded, liberated Barabas, and condemned Christ to death.

Christ was charged with His cross. He climbed the death hill. His mother and Mary Magdalene, accompanied by some other women and Jean, followed him from afar. He falled three times. Interminable was the pain that Christ underwent. On the other side, Mary Magdalene had a ray of hope, hoping for a moment that Jesus would be delivered from the punishment that falled on the pastor. She had seen so many miracles happened from the hands of Christ. Arriving at the place of the last torture, she realized that nothing will be able to get out Jesus from this situation. She understood nothing and accepted the sad fate of the one who declared Himself to be the source of water springing into eternal life (Jn 4:14), who comes to fulfill the will of the one who sent Him (Jn 6:35), the Good Shepherd (Jn 10:11), the Son of God (Jn 10:36), the Resurrection (Jn. Jn 11:24), the Way, the Truth, the Life (Jn 14: 6). He arrived at the Calvary where He is has been stripped. Mary Magdalene saw Him rise from the ground, and laid His arms upon the wood of the cross. She heard the last words that Jesus spoke to his Father, the good thief, his mother, John, the centurion.

Jesus did not speak to Mary Magdalene. Mary Magdalene did not speak to Jesus. They remained in a suffering silence. « In the past she silently poured out her tears and odors to Jesus, and you can see that in the Pharisee she did not say a word, and at the banquet in Bethany, where she did the same with her perfumes, she did it without words. She spread her tears and odors on Jesus in silence, Jesus now sheded His blood on Mary Magdalene in silence. So she was without words but not without love towards Jesus, and now Jesus was not without love towards Mary, although he was without a word, and the power of His spirit, and of His suffering spirit, was extended to Mary, and she entered by love in conformity of mind and state with Jesus. She suffered by love what Jesus suffered from the Jews, and this cross crucified Mary Magdalene in Jesus and with Jesus ; these thorns crown and sadden Mary Magdalene as well as Jesus, and that spear that pierced the dead heart of Jesus pierced the living heart of Mary. » Pierre de Bérulle, extracted from ‘At the foot of the cross’

Mary Magdalene remained for a moment at the foot of the cross. The guards descended the body of Jesus. They gave it to Mary her mother. She took her son on her knees, rose her head to the sky and cried. Mary Magdalene, on her knees, also wept on the feet of Jesus. For his part, Joseph of Arimathea removed the body of Jesus (Jn 20:38). He wraped it in a shroud and deposited it in the tomb that he had made buried in the rock (Mt 27, 59). Mary Magdalene closely followed Joseph of Arimathea. She saw where he deposited it (Mk 15:47). Mary Magdalene remained seated for a moment near the sepulcher (Mt 27: 59). She was dejected, tired, annihilated … Her look was empty. The tears of sadness flowed over her face. Her master was now lying in the tomb, lifeless. She retraced in her mind all these last moments from the arrest of Jesus to His death on the cross.

A thousand questions arose in her mind. Why did He cry to his Father: « Forgive them, they do not know what they are doing »? Why did He say to one of the two thieves « today you will be in the eternal Kingdom with me » ? Why did He say, « Elijah, why have you forsaken me » ? Why when He groans « I’m thirsty », do they give Him vinegar? Why did He turn to His mother and look at John: « Woman, this is your son? » Why did He turn to John and look at His mother: « John, this is your mother »? Why did He proclaim in a final effort: « All is accomplished, in your hands I give my spirit »? Why did not the soldiers break his legs like the two thieves? Why did the soldiers pierce his heart with a spear once he died? Why did water and blood sprout from the wound? Why? Why? Why?

All these questions had no answer in Mary Magdalene. After so much agitation in her mind, Mary Magdalene returned to reality. Looking up, she saw the tomb where the master’s body rested. He was dead. It was unavoidable that Mary Magdelene ask all these questions. It would not solve the fact that Jesus died. She accepted that the only truth she holded was His death. The only thing to do at this moment is to accept His death: Jesus was dead. In the tomb Mary Magdalene dropped all her questions, all her weakness. She accepted that Jesus was no more. Was absent. He was no longer alive with her. But then, what shall I do without Him? Who do she follow? Who di she can listen to? What does she do? Accepting His dead, I accept. But how can we live without Him? Did He not have the words of eternal life? Was He not the way, the truth, the life? Oh Lord, I am understanding and realizing that life without You is so sad, so empty, so dead. Oh Lord, how can I be without you? Oh Lord, I experience painfully that without your word, without Your love, I am no more. Oh Lord, I become aware of my human weakness. Without you I am nothing.

On Sunday, at dawn, Mary Magdalene, accompanied by some women, came to the tomb. Along the way, they wondered who would going to open the door for them. Stupor, on their arrival, they saw that the door was open. Mary Magdalene rushed to the apostles closed in the cenacle. Pierre opened it. Mary Magdalene exclaimed: « The body of the Lord has been taken away. » Peter and the beloved disciple run to the tomb. The disciple came first and passed his head. Peter joined him and entered the tomb first. The body was no longer there, the cloths were arranged and folded. Peter and the beloved disciple returned home. Mary Magdalene remained. She had only one desire, to find the body of her master. Two angels appeared to her and say: « Why do you seek the living one among the dead ones? » She saw a man. She went to meet him. The man said to her, « Who are you looking for, why are you weeping? » And she replied: « If you took the body of Jesus, tell me where you put it. » And there, the man pronounced a word, her first name: « Mary ». And there Mary, in an instant, recognized the man who was in front of her, Christ. He was alive, he was risen. The meeting of the Easter morning between the Resurrected and Mary Magdalene ended with this prodigious talk in which Mary Magdalene, in her joy, throwed herself at His feet. Christ was holding her back and saying, « Noli me tangere », « Do not touch me, I have not yet ascended to the Father, but go to my brothers and say to them: « I ascend to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God (John 20:17) ». In His reply, Christ wanted to explain Her all the reasons why He should have die and rosen from the dead.

If he has accepted to die on the cross, it was in order to resurrect and take his place with his Father and our Father, his God and our God. Now that he was risen, it was no longer necessary for Mary Magdalene to retain Christ. Because if Christ was risen, he was ascending to his Father. Thus, Christ would henceforth always be with her. It would be in a different way. Certainly Mary Magdalene would no longer see Him; she would no longer follow Him. His presence with her will be in some way stronger because He was ascending to His Father, He will be present in the most intimate of her heart. Christ has abandoned himself to the will of His Father, he has lived the Passion, all his sufferings, all his humiliations in union with the Father and the Holy Spirit. He offered himself as a taskless victim, pure and holy. He offered the perfect sacrifice. He was nailed to the wood of the cross, the place whe He offered His life. He was dead. He was deposited in the tomb. He came down to hell so that his Father would come and fetch him on the third day. He has drawn Him from this place of indifference to lead Him among the angels in the throne that He has prepared on His right for Him from eternity. And in this Ascension he opened the gates for Adam, all the patriarchs, and all the prophets, all those who believed in Him, all those who threw themselves into His mercy. « Mary, he said, my father is not my father, He is your Father. My God is not my God, He is your God. Do not hold me back. My place is no longer here. I finished the work that the Father had entrusted to me. My place is now with my Father. »

Our Father has allowed me to meet you so that you may know, that you understand, that you become aware of everything. Mary, believe me, I have conquered death. Death did not have no hold over me. I am alive. I have risen. Mary, believe me, death has no hold on you, on Peter, on my disciples, on all those who go to my school and follow me as you have followed me. I opened the doors of eternal life. The kingdom of my Father is now available for you. By my death, my resurrection and my ascension, I offer you the grace necessary for your purification, your sanctification, your glorification. By my death and resurrection, you are delivered from the consequence of original sin. Through my death and resurrection, I give you as adoptive father my Father in heaven. You are His adopted sons and daughters. You saw on my pierced side water and blood. Blood is the living water of which I have spoken so much to you. Water means my body which is the Church of which you are the members by this grace acquired on the cross by my death. By grace and by the Church, you are integrated as a member into my body. I give you to share my life, the life of my father with the Holy Spirit in eternity. Are you aware of the immense gift that my Father offers you and offers to all men? Because all men are His children. All men were created in His image and likeness. All men of every race, language, people and nation are invited to enjoy the banquet of the lamb’s wedding. Be aware of the life that you and your brothers are called to live. Live it now because it is worth living. Respect it because it is beautiful. Understand that it is a gift from God. Understand its invaluable value.

You now understand why I was the so long awaited and proclaimed pastor by the prophets. You now perceive better the pasture I have spoken to you. Imagine that the beautiful moments we have exchanged with the disciples are only the first fruits – I call you for and in eternity. I am the promised bliss. I am the poor of heart who opens the Kingdom of Heaven. I am the sweet who promises and brings the promised land. I am the consoler of the afflicted ones. I am the one who satisfies the hungry and thirsty for justice. I am the merciful who has mercy. I am the pure heart that makes you see God. I am the peacemaker by whom you are sons of God. I am persecuted for the righteousness that opens the doors of the Kingdom of Heaven. Mary Magdalene, be in the joy of being filled by Christ and be sure that you will find rest near me, peace and blessing. I have opened for you the doors of happiness that you are not able to not grasp and from which the desire is inscribed in the depths of your being.