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Thinking it was the gardener... Jn xx 15b NEB
by Rev. Antony W. Ball
The encounter between Mary Magdalene and the Risen Christ outside His empty tomb on Easter morning
is bewilderingly believable. Something utterly unbelievable is supposed to have happened – a man executed by the
Roman authorities has turned up, apparently alive and well, two days later. Scripture doesn’t seem to be trying
to persuade us to believe the story – the Gospel accounts of the resurrection differ and only John mentions this encounter
with Mary Magdalene. According to John, other disciples have been and gone – they’d found the tomb empty
(except for angels / youths in white), and had gone back to tell the others, leaving just Mary alone, sobbing inconsolably.
Just think how any good storyteller would handle this: Jesus appears and says her name; she recognizes His voice; she turns
around, sees Him and rushes over to hug Him. Told in that way it would make a wonderful story, but John is not telling
a story. According to John, Mary did not recognize Jesus, even after having a brief conversation with Him…
Jesus said to her, ‘Why
are you weeping? Who is it you are looking for?’
Thinking
it was the gardener, she said, ‘If it is you, sir, who removed Him,
tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.’
It was not until Jesus said her name in a particular way that was peculiar to Him that
she realised Who He was, and even then Jesus stopped her from hugging Him…
Jesus said, ‘Do not cling to me…’
If this were just a story, John could have done so much better, but he is
trying to write down what actually happened, as Mary had described it to him. We can imagine Mary’s embarrassment
as she told John “I didn’t even recognize Him – I thought He was just a gardener” and instead of leaving
out that detail (which doesn’t help the story) John faithfully recorded it.
We each encounter Jesus –
in a whole variety of different ways – if we’re prepared to meet Him. He may act through someone
else: someone who can help us or someone who needs help from us. He may implant ideas into our minds or feelings into
our emotions. He may speak to us through scripture or sermons, or even through dreams or visions. Being prepared
to meet Him involves living with Him by consciously, constantly keeping Him in our minds so that He never has to
force Himself on us against our will. Most important of all, perhaps, is ‘keeping in touch’ with Him through
regular, daily prayer – not just formally at set times but as part of that ‘living with Him’ process by
which we instinctively thank Him for good things as they happen and seek His help or comfort with bad things. Mary Magdalene
had lived with Him for years – may we come to share her experience..
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