REFLECTIONS TODAY
John 20:1-9
Today’s Gospel shows the significant role the women play in the proclamation of Jesus’ resurrection.All four evangelists agree on one vital detail about Easter morning: while it is still dark, women rush to Jesus’ tomb. Indeed, the presence of the women at the foot of the cross and after Jesus has risen is a constant.
The Gospels call our attention to the indispensable role women play in the unfolding of Jesus’ story.
For one, John gives us a fresh outlook on the women’s vital contribution by presenting a paradigm of discipleship in Mary of Magdala. She symbolizes the commitment a woman can make in the work of evangelization. She is a missionary who goes out of her way to proclaim the good news of Jesus’ resurrection.
John Paul II writes in his Letter to Women (29 June 1995): “Thank you, every woman, for the simple fact of being a woman! Through the insight which is so much a part of your womanhood you enrich the world’s understanding and help to make human relations more honest and authentic” (n 2). Likewise, in his message after reciting the Regina Caeli on the Monday after Easter (13 April 2020), Pope Francis reflects not only on how the women “proclaimed Jesus’ Resurrection to the disciples,” but that the women also did contribute significantly during the coronavirus crisis. He specifically mentions women who are “doctors, nurses, agents of law enforcement and prisons, employees in stores providing basic necessities…, and many mothers and sisters and grandmothers who are confined to their homes with their entire family, with children, the elderly, and the disabled.” Thus, these two popes echo the longing of the whole Church to enhance the dignity of women and to give importance to their invaluable contribution in evangelization. Not only do women protect and nurture life and relationships, they are also active in every sphere of human existence—social, economic, cultural, and political. *Source: “365 Days with the Lord 2023,” St. Paul’s, 7708 St. Paul Rd., SAV, Makati City (Phils.); Tel.: 632-895-9701; Fax 632-895-7328; E-mail: [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]); Website: [http://www.stpauls.ph](http://www.stpauls.ph).*