Taking A Second Look

The Gospel reading for Holy Saturday—the two Marys visiting Jesus’s tomb—undoubtedly ranks among the most recognizable sets of Gospel verses in existence. This account from Matthew, along with Sunday’s Gospel reading from John, present the reality of Jesus’s rising from the dead. They consequently serve not only as the foundation for each year’s Easter masses, but also as the quintessential scripture upon which the entirety of Christianity is based. Christians who attend one or more Easter services each year have listened to them many, many times. Have they truly heard the passages’ details and considered their messages, though?

To the television commercial I have viewed twenty-seven times: I’ve seen you so much that I don’t need to look at the screen or anymore since I know your product. To the classic rock song I have heard literally hundreds of times over the years: I hum your melody and quietly sing your lyrics without even thinking about the meaning of the words anymore. To the famous football touchdown pass highlight clip: I’ve watched you enough over the years to recite in rote fashion the route run, the pass thrown and your result of a touchdown, yet so many intricate details of your play have I never paused to consider. Suffice it to say that sometimes the most watched commercials, the most heard songs, the most played highlights, and the most listened to scripture verses are the ones we glaze over and neglect to devote our fullest attention. We think that, because we’ve seen it or heard it multiple times before, we still recall all its parts and features.

I read and reread several times this gospel passage from Matthew 28, doing my best to carefully notice and consider each word in each verse. In doing so, details popped out that I did not remember with great clarity: “his appearance was like lightning,” “fearful yet overjoyed,” “embraced his feet.” I particularly liked how the tomb guards were so shaken with fear they “became like dead men”—what a clever and full-circle reference back to death! Dedicating my full attention to these verses made an already-familiar story even more vibrant and real. I plan to do this again from the pews on Sunday, with the hopes of other phrases or details from these Gospel readings catching my ear and awakening my senses to a story I’ve heard so many times I thought I truly knew it.

Author: Seth Waits, Language Department