There’s something insidious about the power of death, and about the feelings of helplessness that come with it. Today we see the consequences of death’s power, when Mary Magdalene approaches the tomb and finds it open, the body of Jesus, who she saw die just a few days prior, presumably removed from its resting place. And even though Mary Magdalene was with Jesus for much of his ministry, and had doubtless heard Jesus talk that he would rise on the third day, had even witnessed the resurrection of Lazarus, Mary can’t see past the power of death. She can’t see past the feelings of helplessness that she experienced as she watched her teacher die in agony on a cross, after being tortured by his Roman captors. Her grief and her frustration at the powers of this world hold sway, and she cannot see. She dares not hope. And because she dares not hope, she trusts the insidious lie of the grave this day, that this end is the end. This end is all there is, and all there ever will be. Mary Magdalene sees the empty tomb, and it’s as if she herself is still shut inside of it.
And in this moment, the only thing she knows is that the body is gone. And because the body is gone, she runs to where the disciples have been hiding and tells them what she thinks she knows – that death has won out and the oppressor has committed one last insult to the body of Jesus. Even death does not end the suffering for those who follow Jesus.