RESURRECTION SUNDAY

 When he had risen, early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. Mary came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. An angel of the Lord descended from heaven, approached, rolled back the very large stone, and sat upon it. His appearance was like lightning and his clothing was white as snow. The guards were shaken with fear of him and became like dead men. She ran and told his companions Simon Peter and the other disciple whom Jesus loved, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and I don’t know where they put him.” Therefore, Peter and the other disciple got up and went to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. When Simon Peter arrived after him, he bent down, went into the tomb, and saw the burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed. They did not yet understand the scripture that he had to rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned home amazed at what had happened. However, Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping. As she wept, she bent over into the tomb and saw two angels in white sitting there, one at the head and one at the feet where the body of Jesus had been. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there, but did not know it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Who are you looking for?” She thought it was the gardener and said to him, “Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni,” which means Teacher. Jesus said to her, “Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them, “I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.”” While they were going, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had happened. They assembled with the elders and took counsel; then they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, telling them, “You are to say, “His disciples came by night and stole him while we were asleep.” And if this gets to the ears of the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” The soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. This story has circulated among the Jews to the present day. Mary of Magdala went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and what he told her. When they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe. As the day was dawning, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go and anoint him. Very early when the sun had risen, they took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They were saying to one another, “Who will roll back the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?” When they looked, they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. Then the angel said to the women in reply, “Do not be afraid! I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified. He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples, “He has been raised from the dead, and he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him.” Behold, I have told you.” On entering the tomb, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were puzzling over this, behold, two men in dazzling garments appeared to them. They were utterly amazed. They were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground. They said to them, “Do not be amazed! Why do you seek the living one among the dead? You seek Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Behold the place where they laid him. Remember what he said to you while he was still in Galilee. The Son of Man must be handed over to sinners and be crucified, and rise on the third day.” They remembered his words. “Go and tell his disciples and Peter, “He is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him, as he told you.”” Then they went away quickly from the tomb, fearful yet overjoyed. They said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid, and ran to announce this to his disciples. Jesus met them on their way and greeted them. They approached, embraced his feet, and did him homage. Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.” Then they returned from the tomb and announced all these things to the eleven and to all the others. The women were Joanna, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James; the others who accompanied them also told this to the apostles, but their story seemed like nonsense and they did not believe them. After this, he appeared in another form to two of them walking along on their way to the country. Now, that very day, two of them were going to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus, and they were conversing about all the things that had occurred. It happened that while they were conversing and debating, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them, but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him. He asked them, "What are you discussing as you walk along?” They stopped, looking downcast. One of them, named Cleopas, said to him in reply, "Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know of the things that have taken place there in these days?" He replied to them, “What sort of things?” They said to him, "The things that happened to Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, how our chief priests and rulers both handed him over to a sentence of death and crucified him. We were hoping that he would be the one to redeem Israel; and besides all this, it is now the third day since this took place. Some women from our group, however, have astounded us: they were at the tomb early in the morning and did not find his body; they came back and reported that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who announced that he was alive. Then some of those with us went to the tomb and found things just as the women had described, but him they did not see." He said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and enter into his glory?" Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to him in all the scriptures. As they approached the village to which they were going, he gave the impression that he was going on farther. They urged him, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.” Therefore, he went in to stay with them. It happened that, while he was with them at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them. With that, their eyes were opened and they recognized him, but he vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the scriptures to us?" So they set out at once and returned to Jerusalem where they found gathered the eleven and those with them who were saying, "The Lord has truly been raised and has appeared to Simon!" Then the two recounted what had taken place on the way and how he was made known to them in the breaking of the bread; but they did not believe them either. Return