WEDNESDAY, SIXTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Feast of St Mary Magdalene
Song 3: 1-4 or 2 Cor 5: 14-17 Ps: 63: 2-6, 8-9 Jn 20: 1-2, 11-18
SEEKING THE BELOVED UNTIL HE IS FOUND
The Feast of Mary Magdalene invites us into one of the deepest experiences of the spiritual life: the restless search for the Beloved. Both the First Reading from the Song of Solomon and the Gospel of John are united by one powerful theme; a heart that refuses to stop seeking God. In the Song of Solomon, the Bride says: “Upon my bed at night I sought him whom my soul loves; I sought him but found him not. I will rise now and go about the city… seeking him whom my soul loves” (Song 3:1-2). This is not merely romantic poetry. In biblical spirituality, the Bride represents the human soul longing for God. Love cannot remain passive. True love searches, waits, longs, and perseveres.
This becomes beautifully fulfilled in Mary Magdalene on Easter morning. She is the Bride of the Song of Solomon walking through the city looking for her Beloved. There is something striking in the Gospel: Mary does not stop seeking even when she finds the tomb empty. Peter and the beloved disciple leave, but Mary stays. Love makes her remain near the place where she last encountered Jesus. She stands outside the tomb weeping. Her tears themselves become a prayer. Sometimes the deepest prayer is not words, but longing. Then comes the most beautiful moment in the Gospel. Jesus appears, but Mary does not recognize Him immediately. She mistakes Him for the gardener. John intentionally uses this image. The Resurrection takes place in a garden because Christ is beginning a new creation. In Eden humanity lost God; in this garden humanity finds Him again.
This is the spiritual journey of every believer. The Christian life is not first about rituals, duties, or even theological knowledge. It is about seeking Christ with the heart of a lover. Many people know about Jesus, but few truly seek Him. Mary Magdalene teaches us that the soul that genuinely longs for Christ will never be abandoned. The soul that seeks Him with love will one day hear Him speak its name. And that encounter changes everything.
Response: My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
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