Saint of the Day: St. Mary Magdalene

First Witness of the Resurrection (First Century)

Her life

+ Mary of Magdala features prominently in each of the gospels and she is most especially celebrated for her fidelity to Jesus during his Passion. 

+ The Gospel of John highlights her importance when it describes her as going to Jesus’ tomb alone and discovering that the body of the Lord is missing. In tears, she says to the angels at the tomb, “They have taken my Lord away sand I do not know where have put him” (20:1-18). Moments later, Jesus appeared to her, making her the first witness of the Resurrection. 

+ Various legends grew up around Mary Magdalene, including the unfounded assumption that she was a reformed prostitute. Today she is honored as a patron saint of contemplative nuns. 

+ In 2016 Pope Francis elevated the liturgical celebration of Saint Mary Magdalene to the rank of “Feast,” making her liturgical celebration equal to that of the other Apostles. 

For prayer and reflection

“The first to arrive was Mary Magdalene. She was one of the disciples who had accompanied Jesus from Galilee, putting herself at the service of the burgeoning Church. Her walk to the sepulcher mirrors the fidelity of many women who spend years in the small alleyways of cemeteries remembering someone who is no longer there. The most authentic bonds are not broken even in death: there are those who continue loving even if their loved one is gone forever.”—Pope Francis 

Spiritual bonus

On this day we also remember three martyrs who were killed during China’s anti-Western “Boxer Rebellion”: Saint Anna Wang (age 14), Saint Lucia Wang Wangshi and her child, Saint Andreas Wang Tianoing (age 9). These three Christians died for their faith on July 22, 1900, in Machiazhuang, Weixian, Hebei, China. They were canonized with other Chinese martyrs in 2000. 

Prayer

O God, whose Only Begotten Son
entrusted Mary Magdalene before all others
with announcing the great joy of the Resurrection,
grant, we pray,
that through her intercession and example
we may proclaim the living Christ
and come to see him reigning in your glory.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever. Amen. 

(from The Roman Missal)
Saint profiles prepared by Fr. Silas Henderson, S.D.S.