“Jesus is gone. I saw him die on that cross and his mother in the arms of John. I know he’s been put into the new tomb that belongs to Joseph of Arimathea, but there was so little time to prepare his body for a proper burial. Nobody had better try to stop me and my friends from attending to him!"

These are some of the thoughts that may have been going through the mind of Mary Magdalene on the morning of the third day following Jesus’ death.

“I wonder how we’ll be able to move the sealing stone – it sure is heavy…but wait..what’s that light up ahead?” Arriving at the entrance to the tomb in the early hours of down, Mary and the women slowly advance to where they laid Jesus’ body. Only they did not find Jesus’ body. Instead a stranger clothed in light asked her why she sought the living among the dead. She and the other women accompanying her must have been confused and terrified. It is not often that an angel appears to you.

Then, according to the Gospel of St. Matthew, shortly thereafter, Jesus appeared to Mary and the other women, telling her not to touch him when she recognized him, but to go quickly to inform his friends that she had seen and spoken with him, and that he would be with them soon.

Can you imagine Mary’s astonishment? Not only had she seen this man die, but now he is alive and having her go quickly to do his bidding.  Such a joyous occasion for her, and such a singular honor.  Here is a woman, a fallen woman in the eyes of many, and she is the first one to see the risen Lord.

Following Jesus’ directive, Mary and the women run to the house where Peter is staying. These friends of Jesus have to have been so afraid. Here they saw their mentor being led away to be scourged, whipped and crucified and why… only because the hierarchy of their faith were afraid of Jesus’ message of love. This same fate could befall them. They, too, could be tracked down and taken away just because they followed this man from Galilee. They, too, could be thrown into prison, beaten, whipped, beheaded, crucified, just because they were passing along the message Jesus taught. What were they to do now? “He is gone. He is dead. Many have seen us traveling with him. They know our names and they know we have families. Who will care for my family if I am taken from them?" How frightened these men must have been.

When Mary told Peter and some of the other disciples that she had seen Jesus and what he had said, do you think they readily believed her? I think not. They probably thought that this female was crazy. There was no way any of what she relayed could be true, and even if it were true, Jesus surely would appear to one of them, his trusted friends and disciples, first.

Peter, though, did go to the tomb and found it empty. “Could Mary be right? Has Jesus risen from the dead? Is what he was saying all this time really coming to pass?”

And, of course, Jesus did arise…the glorious resurrection had occurred. The greatest gift mankind had ever been given was presented. The sacrifice of love to save all men and women, and to obtain forgiveness of sin, had been offered to God on the cross.

Has this gift a special meaning for you? How strong is your belief in the resurrection of Jesus? Is it just a tale, or is it life itself to you?

As for me…I can only tell you, and I firmly believe…Alleluia…He is Risen Indeed!

I wish to take a moment to say “Thank You” to Sr. Rose for allowing me to share these reflections with you over the past few weeks. I hope those of you that have read them may have found them thought provoking and a point for discussion with others.

Submitted by Rose Ann Kassel.

"Stewardship", "Stewards of Hope", and "Evangelization" have been used frequently during the past two years. What meaning or challenges do these concepts present to us?

These may be confusing at times, but they all have the same connotation: Spirituality.

Stewardship is frequently confused with money. Actually, Stewardship prompts us to make proper use of what God has given us. We are to become more and more aware of how we take care of things; not be be wasteful. Stewardship asks of us: how do we share our time and talent, not only in our work areas, but also for the church and the world? Then treasures will follow.

Stewards of Hope has emerged by studying the Pastoral Letter sent to us by former Bishop Coakley. The study of this letter urges us to take inventory of our spiritual lives. Do we attend Mass on the weekend; do we step away from our busy lives and take time for God, such as morning and evening prayer and prayer time with our families?

Evangelization prompts us to bring the Gospel message to our homes and the workplace. Contrary to what we perceive, it is not a door to door endeavor, but how will we be witnesses of our Christian lives to others?   - Sr. Rose Walters, CSA

• In the weeks ahead, our parish representative from Solutio, Inc., will be setting up the advertising for our website for the year.

• Please consider participating in this effort since the revenue from the ads is what makes the website possible at no cost to the parish.

• It’s a great way to get your name in front of the families in the parish.  Advertisements may be purchased for a business, family memorial, or you can sponsor an ad supporting Catholic Charities, Knights of Columbus, Vocations, etc.

• Please give these ideas some thought. We need and appreciate your help!  If you are interested or just curious as to prices and want more information, please contact 785.246.5424 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Catholics Come Home, Inc. is an independent non-profit Catholic apostolate that creates effective and compassionate media messages and broadcasts them nationally and internationally, in order to inspire, educate and evangelize inactive Catholics and others, and invite them to live a deeper faith in Jesus Christ, in accord with the magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church. Visit the website at http://www.catholicscomehome.org.