July 22, 2026
Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene
Gospel: John 20:1-2, 11-18

Today is Wednesday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time. The Church celebrates the Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene today. The recently published Roman Missal tells us: Saint Mary Magdalene (1st century), from the city of Magdala in Galilee, was one of the Lord’s most intimate disciples and is commonly identified as the woman from whom the Lord drove out seven demons. She remained with the Lord during His Passion, standing by the Cross in His final agony; according to the accounts of Saint Mark and Saint John, she was also the first to see the Risen Lord. Ecclesiastical tradition relates that she spent her later years as a hermit in Provence, France, where she lived out the remainder of her life.

Prior to 2016, the Church commemorated this saint with the rank of a Memorial. On June 3, 2016, the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, in accordance with the wishes of Pope Francis, elevated the Memorial of Mary Magdalene to the rank of a Feast in the Roman Calendar. In its decree, the Congregation describes this holy woman thus: “This woman, known for her love of Christ and for being greatly loved by Him, was called by Saint Gregory the Great ‘a witness to God’s mercy,’ and by Saint Thomas Aquinas ‘the Apostle to the Apostles.’ Henceforth, the faithful may look to her as a model for the role of women in the Church.” (cf. Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, Decree Elevating the Memorial of Saint Mary Magdalene to the Rank of Feast in the Roman Calendar, Prot. No. 257/16)

Today’s Gospel passage from Saint John presents the story of Saint Mary Magdalene’s encounter with the Risen Lord Jesus Christ. I wish to offer some reflections on this occasion.

We know that the tomb is a sign of death. When we approach a tomb, it is natural for us to recall those friends or family members buried there. This is because we view life and death according to the logic of this world, rather than through the eyes of faith.

Today, when Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found it empty, what did she do? She did not enter the tomb immediately. Instead, she went to Peter and the disciple whom Jesus loved, indeed to all the Apostles in Jerusalem and those gathered with them, to announce what had happened. What did she proclaim? She said: “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” (cf. John 20:1-2) At that moment, she still viewed these events according to the logic of this passing world. She remained weeping outside the tomb. Later, summoning her courage, she entered the tomb where Jesus had lain and saw two angels clothed in white—the Gospel passage selected does not recount their words to her. But when she emerged from that tomb, she encountered the Risen Lord. He called her by the name she knew so well: “Mary!” Instantly, she recognized that the person before her was the Jesus she sought. She longed to remain with Jesus.

Today, we too long to remain with Jesus. Yet He says to us: “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father, to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” (cf. John 20:17) For He is always with us. He meets us in the sacraments, in prayer, in every suffering person we encounter—in the least, the marginalized, and those in distress—in the tabernacle, and on the Cross, under diverse forms. He desires even more that we bring the joyful news of His Resurrection to all people, so that through our service, and especially through the renewal of our own way of life, the world may rediscover the Savior hidden within their lives.

May we all imitate the virtuous example of Saint Mary Magdalene, following Jesus Christ with undivided hearts, docile to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, becoming worthy preachers of the Risen Lord Jesus Christ to the world, and bearing courageous witness to the truth through the concrete experience of our lives.

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.

©Totus Tuus 2026
Cum Approbatione Ecclesiastica