Today we celebrate the Feast of Mary Magdalene. She has been called “the Apostle to the Apostles;” a title started by Saint Augustine because she was the first one to bring news of the Resurrection to the apostles. But who was this woman who always professed a special love to Jesus and the Kingdom?
First, we can say that after she encountered Jesus, she was moved by what the Song of Songs book in the first reading says: “I have found the One whom my heart loves.” Second, she is the brave woman present in the important moments of the life and death of Jesus: leaving at dawn and alone towards the tomb, always seeking to be with Him, crying next to the tomb in vigilance, seeking an answer from the angels, offering to seek His body, embracing the Lord, and announcing Him as risen.
Jesus has a special consideration for her and for all the women disciples. They are an example of faith, educators of hope, and witnesses of the Kingdom in the Christian communities. Today’s feast is an invitation to recognize and value the great contribution of women in the Church, who have always been relegated to the last services and, even so, they have shown courage and total availability in the ministerial life of the Church.
Let us pray for all women, especially those who serve to the Body of Christ, the Church, as Mary Magdalene did. And let us ask God to help us all to imitate her virtues which continue teaching and challenging us.