“The Best Friend I Ever
Had” by Colleen O’Sullivan
I will rise
then and go about the city; in the streets and crossings, I will seek him whom
my heart loves. I sought him, but I did not find him. The watchmen came upon me, as they made their
rounds of the city: Have you seen him whom my heart loves? I had hardly left them when I found him whom
my heart loves. (Song of Songs 3:2-4a)
Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping.
And 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. And 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? Whom 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.
(John 20:11-16)
Piety
O Lord, may each of our
hearts be filled with the depth of love for you that we see in Saint Mary Magdalene.
Study
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| Rogier Van der Weyden, Mary Magdalene detail from Descent from the Cross, between 1443-1463, Museo del Prado, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons |
(St. Mary Magdalene’s thoughts
many years after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension)
I can’t have many more
years on this earth. My hair is white,
and I am a stooped old woman now. I am entitled
to rest for a few hours each day. But today,
I am not sleeping, simply savoring my memories of the best friend I ever
had. I can’t believe how much time had
gone by since that day when I first laid eyes on our Lord. He was surrounded by a group of followers, all
laughing and talking together. I envied
them their camaraderie. I was alone and
feeling it. Jesus extricated himself
from his little group and sought me out, a nobody. I was a bit frightened. Why would this person everyone was talking about
want to have anything to do with me? But he spoke my name and asked me to look at
him. When I did, I saw great kindness
and compassion in his eyes. He could see
my suffering. He reached out, laid his hands upon my head, and
healed me! I had carried my burden for
so long, and, just like that, he made me whole again! “Thank you, thank you!” I cried. He smiled at me and went back to his friends
as if this were simply all part of a day’s work. But for me, it meant I had my life back!
I remember that moment
filling me with the greatest joy imaginable.
I wanted to dance in the streets. I was so happy and thankful! Instead, I began to follow him, to listen to
his stories, to watch him restore others to the land of the living. I felt like the sun shone brightly whenever
Jesus was around. I am not a clueless
person, however, and I knew that evil, envy, and fear lurked in the shadows
everywhere we went. Some thought he was a
sort of magician. I knew it was far more
than that. Others feared the loss of stature
and power if everything my friend said was true. I
believed Jesus when he said the Father sent him. I even believed Peter when he said Jesus was
the Messiah. But the more I saw the
truth, the more afraid I was for Jesus because a growing number of influential
people wanted to see him gone.
And, just as I feared, at
Passover, he was betrayed and seized in the Garden at Gethsemane. Deep down, I knew it was the end for Jesus on
earth. He was beaten and mocked. He appeared before Pilate, who, the weak man
that he was allowed the crowd to condemn Jesus to death.
That Friday, standing on Golgotha, holding his mother’s hand in mine, I watched as the Romans
crucified the most loving person I have ever known. I alternately wanted to do something terrible
to his torturers and to hide where I didn’t have to see my Lord’s great suffering
and hear the few things he managed to say.
But he was my greatest friend, and friends don’t desert friends. So, I stayed until the end. I wanted to die with him. Sorrow consumed me.
I didn’t want to leave
him, even in death. After Joseph of
Arimathea helped to bury him, I stayed beside the tomb. Two mornings
later, I saw that someone moved the stone that sealed the tomb. I looked in and saw two angels. They asked why I was crying. I wanted to find my friend’s body, but when I
turned around, there was Jesus! I didn’t
recognize him until he said my name, and then there was no mistaking his
identity. My Lord had risen!
I often wonder how it
came about that I was privileged to know Jesus and to witness his resurrection. It could only have been love, a love greater
than I had ever known before or since. I
will be joining him soon, I hope. Many
dread the thought of death, but there is nothing to fear when you are going to
join a beloved friend for all eternity.
Action
Jesus Christ has touched many of us in the same way
he moved Saint Mary Magdalene, forgiving our sins, healing our weaknesses, and restoring
us to wholeness. When you are praying
today, bring to mind something that our Lord has done for you. Pray with gratitude for a Friend like no
other.
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