The Gospel for the Saturday and the octave of Easter is taken from St Mark 16:9th through the 15th verse. When Jesus had risen early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. She went and told his companions who were mourning and weeping. When they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe. After this, he appeared in another form to two of them walking along the way to the country. They returned and told the others, but they did not believe them either.

But later, as the 11 were at table, he appeared to them and rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart because they had not believed. Who saw him after he had been raised? He said to them, go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature. Each of the four gospels have many differences about what happened after Jesus rose from the dead. But it’s clear that one of the things that Mark is stressing is how difficult it is to believe it. Jesus said it would happen.

Witnesses saw him and told them it had happened, and they simply could not believe it. And they only believed it when they had the most amazing sense of the reality of it all. When he appeared in the flesh and ate with him and talked with him. We need that kind of experience. And so be sure you’re open. Open to listen for the ways in which he wants to manifest his presence to you.

Personal. Sam. Satan. Satan. Sam. Let us pray.

God, we can see only with our minds so often and not with our hearts. So open our heart to the mysterious ways in which signs are all around us. Ways in which you’re continually entering into our consciousness. And as those grow and as we become more in tune with you, we find ourselves in a new place of wonder and peace. Amen.