On Good Friday we published ‘The Golgotha Monologues’ four monologues written from the perspectives of people who would have been there on the very first Good Friday. But we know that after Good Friday comes Easter Sunday, after Jesus’ death comes his resurrection, and so, today we are publishing ‘The Resurrection Monologues’!

The second is from the perspective of Mary Magdalene

‘Why are you crying?’

What a simple question – but oh, how complex the answer.

We had spent so much time with him – we thought we understood. We thought we knew where this was all going. How wrong could we be.

After the devastation of Friday, after the silence of the sabbath, early on the first day - me, Joanna, Mary, Salome and the others had gone to the tomb with the spices. We’d prepared them not really knowing how we were going to move the stone. And there it was – the gapping entrance, revealing the empty tomb.

You can imagine our confusion. We were in tears, and still crying when Peter and the others arrived. They were no better. And then it was just me – sitting there trying to piece it all together.

Then the angels were there, seated quite calmly, where Jesus had been laid, and they asked me -

‘Why are you crying?’

I tried to explain and then in a moment he was there. He was different, and at first I didn’t recognise him. He asked me the same infuriating question.

‘Why are you crying?’

And then, as I was still blubbing, trying to tell him – he spoke my name.

And everything changed.

He told me to go tell the others – but it wasn’t til he showed himself to them too, that they really believed. I can’t blame them. Something this wonderful, this miraculous… It’s hard to get your head around.

And he explained it to us - what he’d been telling us over the previous years, it all fell into place.

“The resurrection and the life.”

So, believe me when I tell you – I was there.

Jesus, our Jesus, is alive. He is our Lord and God and you can know him for yourself.