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Gospel – John 20:11-18
“I have seen the Lord, and He said to me…”
A reading from the Holy Gospel according to John:
At that time, Mary Magdalene was weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had been, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She replied, “Because they have taken my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”
After saying this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not recognize that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Thinking He was the gardener, she said to Him, “Sir, if you have taken Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him.”
Jesus said to her, “Mary!”
She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!”—which means “Teacher!”
Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to My brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God.’”
Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and she told them what He had said to her.
The Gospel of the Lord.
Lectio Divina in a Time of Departure to the Father’s Home
🌿 Contemplation and Silence
In reverent silence, let us allow ourselves to be touched by the mystery of this encounter between Mary Magdalene and the Risen One, in the light of Pope Francis’ departure to the Father’s Home, Like Mary at the tomb, we too weep. We weep for the absence of a familiar face, the longing for a voice that, like Jesus’, knew how to call us by name: “brothers, sisters, pray for me.” We weep, but… are we ready to see Him?
In the garden where death seemed to triumph, Life now shines forth. Mary, image of the Church, walks from mourning to mission. Upon hearing her name, she is reborn into a new vision: she no longer seeks a dead body, but encounters the Living Lord. This is how all true prayer begins: when we allow God to call us in the deepest part of ourselves, and we respond: “Master!”
🌿 Meditation: A Presence that Transforms
Today, Mary’s lament is ours: “They have taken my Lord…” Do we not feel this cry in our souls as we witness the departure of the one who showed us Jesus through simple gestures, courageous words, and a fatherly heart?
But Jesus is here, even when we do not recognize Him. And He calls us by name. And if, in this very moment, He says to you: “Joseph… Mary… John… Peter…”—will you recognize His voice?
Do you feel the warmth of His love lifting you from sorrow? Or are you still trapped in the tomb of your own disillusionment?
Pope Francis taught us, like Mary, to go out to meet others with the joy of the Gospel — not to hold on to Jesus, but to proclaim Him. Now it is he who goes up to the Father, like Christ, in peace. And we? What do we do with the treasure he left us?
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, Master and Friend, 
Like Mary Magdalene, we often weep at the doors of tombs — of loss, of silence, of longing.
But You are alive, present, risen!
You call us by name, lift us with Your voice, send us with Your mission.
Today, as we remember Pope Francis, we give You thanks for the gift of his life.
May his passing lead us to true conversion, to deeper prayer, to a more vibrant faith.
May we too be able to say with burning hearts:
“I have seen the Lord!”
And bear witness to Him with our lives. Amen.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, Master and Friend,