Mary of Magdala is often dubbed as the “apostle to the Apostles” since she was the first to announce to the disciples that she had seen the risen Lord. At first, Mary did not understand the signs of the empty tomb; she surmises that some must have taken away the body of Jesus. Only when she hears Jesus’ calling her by name does she realize that it is Jesus, the Good Shepherd who calls his own sheep by name and leads them out (Jn 10:3). Jesus is now more than her “Rabbouni” (v 16)—he is “Lord” (Kyrios) by reason of his being raised from the dead. And to see and recognize the glorified Savior is a privilege given only to a few and marks them as “apostles.”

Pope Francis has elevated her memorial to be celebrated as a feast in the liturgy, an honor given to the Apostles. He draws a lesson from today’s Gospel, “May her intercession also help us live this experience: in times of woe and in times of abandonment, to listen to the Risen Jesus who calls us by name and, with a heart full of joy, to go forth and proclaim: ‘I have seen the Lord!’ I have changed my life because I have seen the Lord! I am now different than before. I am another person. I have changed because I have seen the Lord” (General Audience, 17 May 2017).

The Bride says: On my bed at night I sought him whom my heart loves—I sought him but I did not find him. 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.

On the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him.”

But 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. 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.’ ” Mary of Magdala went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and what he told her.