Going to the Tomb

Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where the body was laid.
When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. They had been saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?” When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; he is not here. Look, there is the place they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him, just as he told you.”Mark 15:47-16:7 



Going to the Tomb

There were not guards or politicians
no lords or lawyers or physicians there
only several heart broken women
tears spilling down exhausted faces.

The important people the governors
sat satisfied in their soft linen seats
knowing they pulled off an impossible task
proud of their legacy and control.

They were not out at the crack of dawn
did not gather spices and weep all night
they proudly danced and fully feasted
resting in their warm and soft beds.

The dark early morning was silent
they might have sung an ancient hymn
they solemnly went to pay loving tribute
and were greeted with an outrageous miracle.

Miracles are not for the powerful and set
resurrection withheld from the overlords
healing does not come to the proud and vain
but to outcast women, rejected and the scorned.

The price of our freedom is our pride
our offering of self for others and the world
our humility in the hardest task of life
the care with which we go to the tomb.