Telling the Beads Bead 16 - Episode 2 We have seen Him

B16 - E2 We have seen Him

With tears still running down her face as she turned around to make her way out of the garden, Mary almost ran into a man who was standing in front of her. The man asked her, as the angels had done, why she was crying and who she was looking for. Assuming him to be the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have moved the body of Jesus somewhere, please tell me where it is and I will go and take it away.” 

The man spoke just one word to her. “Mary,” he said. Her eyes had been blinded by tears but when she looked again, she saw it was Jesus. Gazing in wonder, almost unable to believe her own eyes, she whispered, “Rabboni!” which means ‘Teacher” in her native language of Aramaic. She instinctively opened her arms to embrace him but Jesus gently prevented her from holding on to him, saying, “Don’t cling to me, Mary. Go back to my friends and tell them that I am alive and that you have seen me.”

Mary ran out of the garden as fast as her legs would carry her to tell the disciples that she had actually seen Jesus, that he really was alive but sadly, when she reached the upper room and gave them the wondrous news, they were still so wrapped up in their grief, they were completely unable to believe such a miracle could be possible. Mary left the room to return to the garden to rejoin the other women but as she retraced her steps, she saw them coming towards her, full of excitement and joy.

They explained that after she had left them, they began to walk around the garden when who should they meet but Jesus himself. “We could hardly believe our eyes, Mary. He told us we mustn’t be afraid but must go and tell everyone the good news.” Mary went back with them to the upper room to share their joy but even the testimony of all four of them wasn’t enough to convince their companions.

During the day, some of them managed to slip out to buy food and prepare meals for everyone. They tried to come to terms with what had happened and to decide what to do next. Some of them were unable to see a future ahead of them and made plans to return to their own homes to try to pick up the pieces of their former lives. One couple, Mary and Cleopas, decided to go back to their home town of Emmaus which was only seven miles from Jerusalem. They bid their sad farewells and set off on their journey early in the evening.

As they walked along feeling completely dejected, a stranger appeared as if from nowhere. He fell into step with them and asked what they had been discussing so seriously. Cleopas replied, ‘’You must be the only person around who doesn’t know what's happened during these last few days in Jerusalem. ‘’Why, what has happened,’’ said the man? ‘‘A man we have been following for three years was crucified unjustly,’’ Mary replied. ‘’He was named Jesus and was a prophet from Nazareth who taught us how much God loves us and how to live good lives. He performed amazing miracles as well.’’

Cleopas continued the story, ‘’Our leaders became jealous of him and had him put to death by the Romans! Then this morning, some of the women who were also followers of Jesus went to his tomb and found the body was missing, Then, shortly afterwards, they said they’d seen him alive and he had spoken to them and told them to tell everyone the good news but most of us can’t believe it which is why we’re returning home.’’

As they walked along together, the stranger began to explain how all these events had been foretold in their own scriptures. They were so completely caught up in listening to him that they hardly noticed they were nearly home but when they happened to spot an inn and realised they were hungry, they decided to stop for a meal. The man made as if to travel on but they pressed him to join them which he did. 

As they were waiting for the meal to be served, the innkeeper brought them a basket of bread. Their companion took some in his hands, said a blessing over it then broke it into pieces and passed a piece to each of them. At that moment, Mary and Cleopas realised it was Jesus who had walked alongside them and was sitting with them now but he vanished from their sight as quickly as he had appeared and they said to each other, “It’s no wonder he set our hearts on fire as he talked to us on the road,” and with no more ado, they set off to return to Jerusalem.