Lectio Divina Meditation for Easter Sunday

Easter Sunday
April 4
The Empty Tomb

1. Lectio
Jn 20:1-9
1 It was very early on the first day of the week and still dark, when Mary of Magdala came to the tomb. She saw that the stone had been moved away from the tomb 2 and came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. 'They have taken the Lord out of the tomb,' she said, 'and we don't know where they have put him.'
3 So Peter set out with the other disciple to go to the tomb. 4 They ran together, but the other disciple, running faster than Peter, reached the tomb first; 5 he bent down and saw the linen cloths lying on the ground, but did not go in.
6 Simon Peter, following him, also came up, went into the tomb, saw the linen cloths lying on the ground 7 and also the cloth that had been over his head; this was not with the linen cloths but rolled up in a place by itself.
8 Then the other disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in; he saw and he believed.
9 Till this moment they had still not understood the scripture, that he must rise from the dead.

Lectio Comments
“To see is to believe”, places considerable trust in our sense of sight as the guarantor of truth. But today’s gospel reading reminds us that Truth is beyond the grasp of senses. We are invited to see with the eyes of faith. Our physical eyes can only see what is there and what is not there. But the eyes of faith help us to see God even when we do not feel his presence. Faith helps us to recognise that God is present and continues working in our moments of pain, emptiness, loneliness, failure, and disappointment. Our physical eyes can only see an empty tomb on Easter morning. But our eyes of faith sees the risen Christ present in our homes, our families, our BECs, our parish, our society and the world.

2. Meditatio
1. Taking the position of Peter in the above story, what are some of the occasions where I feel that God is absent or far away from me? Why couldn’t I recognise His presence? Was it because I was blinded by my pain, selfishness, sinfulness or laziness to pray?
2. Taking the position of the beloved disciple, and asking the help of the Holy Spirit to make us ‘see’, try now to recognise the presence of God and Jesus in those same occasions where I felt that he was absent and far away from me. Use your imagination to try and see Jesus present on those occasions. Listen to what he is saying to you.

3. Oratio
God our Father,
by raising Christ your Son
you conquered the power of death
and opened for us the way to eternal life.
Let our celebration today
raise us up and renew our lives
by the Spirit that is within us.
Help us to rely not on our physical sight and senses
But on faith.
Help us to recognise your risen presence in our daily lives
Especially in moments of pain, loneliness and despair.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God for ever and ever.
Amen

4. Contemplatio
Picture the empty tomb and use this mantra, if its helpful, “He has risen from the dead!”.

5. Actio
1. Personal Life –Participate in Easter Triduum and pay special attention to the liturgy.
2. Communal Life – Write an Easter Card to a member of your family, BEC or neighbourhood.