The following sermon is the first of six in the series titled, The Easter People, presented by the Reverend John W.

Howe, Rector of Truro Episcopal Church in Fairfax, Virginia.

The title of this sermon is, Mary Magdalene.

I've always thought that one of the most intriguing aspects about the story of that first Easter Sunday morning is that the four gospel writers can't quite agree on who was there.

Matthew says it was Mary Magdalene and the other Mary Mark says Mary Magdalene Mary the mother of James and Salome Luke says Mary Magdalene Mary the mother of James Joanna and the other women and John mentions only Mary Magdalene I don't mean to suggest a major discrepancy here That's exactly the sort of thing we've learned to expect in flipping from one channel to another looking for the evening news.

The same story told from slightly different points of view, emphasizing slightly different details, differing characters being highlighted, differing amounts of information.

In the words of J.B.

Phillips, these slight differences actually seem to give the story the ring of truth. what is clear is that there was no official party no specifically designated group sent back to check on the tomb on Easter morning just various women coming in in ones and twos from various directions to complete their sad labor of love what were they about they were coming to finish the job of burying their friend.

The Jewish method of embalming was nowhere near as complicated as the Egyptian but it was still no mean task.

You had to wash the body, pour oil into the wounds and then begin to wrap it with layer upon layer of linen shroud with perfumes and spices interleaved between the layers.

And the archaeologists tell us it was common to use up to 100 pounds of spices and up to 100 yards of linen.

What happened was they ran out of time on Friday at sundown, the beginning of the Sabbath.

And so at first light on Sunday morning, the next opportunity to get back to the job, they came to finish it.

There are two important details on which the Gospels are very much in agreement.

The first is that whoever else was present, Mary Magdalene, was the central figure in this little band of women coming to complete the burial.

And thus it is that Mary Magdalene turns out to be God's choice of the very first of the Easter people.

I wonder if she would have been yours.

I mean, if you were writing the story, or if you were staging it as a drama, wouldn't you have had the first appearance be to Peter, or to James, or John, or possibly to Jesus' own mother, or even to Caiaphas, the high priest, or Pontius Pilate?

I mean, wouldn't you have Jesus come back to Pilate and say, Gotcha!

The wise men were surprised when the Christmas announcement went to shepherds on a hillside instead of to kings in palaces or priests in the temple.

Shepherds were despised.

It was the lowest occupation that you could have in society.

And that's where God sent that first Christmas announcement.

And now once again, the God who sent angels to make that announcement sends angels to make this one, in both cases, to people the world would have totally ignored.

Easter is seen first through the eyes of a woman that most of us probably would not have chosen.

Mary Magdalene is introduced in Luke chapter 8 with the simple statement that Jesus cast seven demons out of her. how'd you like that as your biographical footnote you can't strictly prove that they were demons of immorality they might have afflicted her in some other way it might have been a matter of physical illness or mental or emotional distress but the majority of commentators down through the ages have identified Mary Magdalene with the woman of the streets who appears in the previous chapter of Luke's gospel who comes into the home of a Pharisee who's entertaining Jesus at a dinner party.

I want you to get the picture.

This is a very proper dinner party.

Everything is being done exactly according to the book.

In good Jewish fashion, they're all reclining around a low table, probably leaning on pillows, and in comes this woman, clearly a harlot, And she stands near the feet of Jesus, weeping so profusely that her tears are wetting his feet.

And suddenly she notices it and is terribly embarrassed about what she's doing and stoops down to wipe his feet.

And then is even more embarrassed because she realizes she doesn't have anything to wipe with.

Except her hair.

And she begins wiping his feet with her hair.

And in a conflict of emotions, begins kissing those feet as she wipes them.

And the Pharisee is appalled.

If he knew what sort of a woman she was, he'd have nothing to do with her.

And Jesus says, Simon, let me tell you something.

Etiquette requires that you give me water upon entering your home to wash my feet.

And you didn't. but this woman has bathed them with her tears.

Etiquette requires that you kiss me on the cheek as a greeting of welcome and you didn't do that but this woman is smothering me with her kisses.

And I want to tell you something.

Her sins, though many, are forgiven because she has loved much.

Was that Mary Magdalene or was that someone else?

We don't really know for sure.

All we know for certain is that Mary was like that woman in one regard, if indeed she wasn't that woman.

And that is she was wonderfully ministered to, wonderfully delivered by, wonderfully loved by the Lord Jesus, and she became his devoted follower as a result.

You hear a lot of nonsense these days about the masculine bias of the New Testament, that women have no important role to play in the New Testament.

You take another look at Mary Magdalene.

She participated in Jesus' itinerant ministry in Galilee.

She traveled with him from town to town and participated in his ministry, Luke 8, verse 2.

She contributed significantly financially to support it.

In fact, the whole mission was largely dependent upon her generosity.

Chapter 8, verse 3.

She accompanied Jesus on his final journey to Jerusalem, Mark 15.

And she was present for the entire wrenching agony of the crucifixion, John 19.

Those sturdy male apostles fled.

With the exception of John.

They fled out of fear of being openly identified with Jesus in the moment of his execution.

But Mary stood there at the foot of the cross for the whole six hours watching the life drip out of him.

Not caring what anybody else thought of her.

And now here she is again.

Sunday morning coming back to complete the burial.

Second thing the gospel makes unarguably clear is that Mary hadn't the slightest expectation of finding anything there but a sealed tomb and a dead body already beginning to decay.

Please, please don't talk to me about gullible women and superstitious fishermen.

She didn't come expecting a resurrection.

In fact, Mark tells us the only question she had was, who's going to move the stone for us?

The tomb was well sealed.

A stone weighing hundreds of pounds was rolled in front of its entrance, and it was sealed.

And then, just to prevent anybody tampering with the tomb or touching the body, a crack Roman guard of soldiers was posted in front of it.

And here come three, four, maybe more women quite unable to move the stone without help.

They didn't come expecting a resurrection.

They came expecting a burial.

And Matthew says suddenly there was a tremendous earthquake as the angel of the Lord descended from heaven. with one mighty shove, pushed that rock that they felt unable to tackle out of the way, went and sat on it and said, Don't be afraid!

His appearance was like lightning.

Dazzling snow, you couldn't stand to look at him.

And he says, Don't be afraid.

I know you seek Jesus who is crucified.

He's not here.

He's risen.

Go tell his disciples.

But read the story carefully, friends.

You'll find they were afraid, and they weren't convinced.

Gullible women?

Mark says they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had come upon them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

Luke says these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they didn't believe them.

John says that Mary's report to the apostles was they've taken the Lord out of the tomb and we do not know where they've laid him in spite of everything somebody got there stole the body and we don't know where it is if you'd been there and felt the earthquake and seen the angel and heard the proclamation would you have believed it?

they didn't While everybody else was in an uproar, Peter and John running to the tomb to check it out for themselves, everybody else running around in circles, Mary returned to the tomb and stood there weeping.

She did a lot of that.

And then suddenly noticing a man she took to be the gardener, she said, Sir, if you've taken him away, tell me where you've laid his body and I'll come get it.

And then he spoke her name, Mary.

And that was enough.

How well she knew that voice.

I wonder if you find yourself in this story.

Have you been touched by the love of Jesus?

He knows exactly what you are.

Exactly what you've done.

Others, if they knew that, might despise you, but he doesn't.

And so you don't care what anybody else thinks. you want to kneel down at his feet and kiss them.

Have you been touched by the ministry of Jesus?

Everybody else thought you were a hopeless case, but the demons that you had in your life were no match for him.

And so you don't care what anybody else thinks, you're going to stand there at the foot of the cross, openly identifying yourself with him, come what may. have you been touched by the death of Jesus bewildering, confusing saddening how could one so lovely be so cruelly rejected and horribly destroyed you don't really care what anybody else thinks you're going to go back to that tomb and do for him even in his death whatever you can have you been touched by the proclamation of his resurrection I wonder if that's why you're here this morning do you want to believe it with all your heart and yet something in you still doubts well I invite you to take one step further this morning come with Mary come to the tomb wait long enough listen closely enough and you'll hear him speak your name George Eleanor Richard Beverly Fred that's what it's all about don't take it on somebody's second hand announcement listen for yourself Jesus is alive and the whole point is that you might know him personally some folks Easter celebration is coming and laying flowers at a dead man's tomb how tragic to miss the whole point Jeremiah says behold the days are coming when I'll make a new covenant with my people and they shall all know me from the least of them to the greatest and in knowing him you'll know what it is to live I am the resurrection and I am the life he who believes in me though he were dead yet shall he live and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die because He lives I can face tomorrow because He lives all fear is gone because I know He holds the future and life is worth the living just because He lives He is risen He is risen indeed Hallelujah