This year I have tried to enter into the rhythm of Palm Sunday through Holy Week through Easter mindfully.  As part of being mindful, I spent some time on Good Friday reflecting on the mysteries of death and resurrection – of the seasons of life.  As always, I am impressed with the faith and commitment of the courageous women, who must have beaten down an incredible amount of anxiety and sorrow, as they gathered at the foot of the cross.  And as always, I am moved by the mixture of grief and love that sent the women to the tomb early on Easter morning.  So much of the New Testament focuses attention on the male disciples, yet Jesus always seems to be going out of his way to talk to women.  And all four gospels describe women as being present at the central Christian events, the death and resurrection of Jesus.  I believe it is a huge credit to the faith, strength and loyalty of these women, and it is a gift to women today that it was written down and preserved over the years.  Engulfed by grief, the women went to the tomb – just doing the things that women normally do – taking care of the details of life and death.  They go to anoint the body of Jesus, only to find in amazement the stone rolled away, an empty tomb and the burial linens on the ground!  We can also be inspired by the account of the resurrection in the gospel of John.  In this account, Mary Magdalene was the first disciple to see the risen Christ in the garden near the empty tomb and, rushing to tell the others, becomes the Apostle to the Apostles.

Ron Rolheiser writes that one possibility for the presence of women at both the cross and tomb is that “something new is being born in the resurrection, and women [as midwives] are the ones that attend to birth.”  In the process of birth, a good midwife reassures the mother and gives support and instruction on how to breathe and when to push. In addition, she may use her experienced hands to actively help in pulling the new life through the birth canal.  Rolheiser suggests that we are all called to be present as midwives of hope in response to the resurrection of Jesus, but how can we accomplish this?  I believe that one way is by attending to our own resurrection events – by reflecting on the Easter story and becoming aware of the working of the Spirit within the context of our lives.  In this process, we become aware of the underlying forces at work within us, so that we can make hopeful adjustments that will help bring to birth a new and resurrected life.  And it matters that we engage in the process of being midwives of hope, because we have within us the power to change the world.  Dorothy Day said that no one has the right to sit down and feel hopeless.  As midwives of hope, we must find the conviction and faith to come through the fire and struggle of finding our voices, so that we will be an encouraging and visible presence in our world.  And of course in our times of joy, we must then share our resurrection stories with each other.  Alleluia!  Life is good!  Happy Easter!

Reference: Ron Rolheiser, blog post, March 27, 2005, http://ronrolheiser.com/midwives-of-hope/#.WPKPS6LauM8.

Image: “Easter 2017,” Julie Henkener, 2017.