The Gospel of Mark
The Women and the Tomb: Mk 15,40-16,8
Right at the end of the story, it is the women who see everything: they see Jesus dead on the cross (15,40), Jesus in the tomb (15,47) and they see the empty tomb (16,4-5). Uniquely, the women are witnesses to everything: Jesus dying, being buried and then the proclamation that he has risen. That is why I think it is important that we read these final verses together.
The evidence of women as the first witnesses of the resurrection is found in all four Gospels. Given the lowly status of women and the unreliability generally given to their witness this is a surprising emphasis in Christianity. However, they have already been portrayed favourably in the Gospel (5,25, 6,25), as they are here (15,40-41). The men by contrast have all run away (14,50) and have not returned to the story.
Not appearing in these verses is Jesus himself, except as a body for burial in the first scene.
Here in Mark three women are involved (16,1). Apart from Herodias (6,17) this is the first time women are named in this Gospel, one after a place (Magdala) and one after her son. We must not try to harmonise these women, especially Mary Magdelene, with the way they are presented in the other Gospels.
The three days are emphasised in all three predictions of his fate by Jesus. It is the sabbath (15,42; 16,1) which provides the central second day with the first and third days on either side.
(In modern practice, the Easter Triduum is from Thursday evening to Sunday evening. The body of Jesus therefore must be in the tomb from sunset on Friday to sunset on Saturday.)
The Women and the burial of Jesus: 15,40-47
It's notable that the women fulfill the requirements of St Peter for an extra apostle (Acts 21-22). Their witness goes back to the beginning in Galilee as well as being the key in these last scenes.
Evening in verse 42 normally begins the sabbath. Mark therefore makes the point that the sabbath and the day of rest had yet to begin. Otherwise all the activity in these verses would have been breaking the sabbath and Deuteronomy commands that the burial itself be completed before the sabbath.
The world of a story is often different to the real world. So it does seem that Mark is packing a lot into the first three hours of this story (15,1-25) and a lot into this evening hour. Such are the needs of his story.
Joseph of Arimathea is present as an exception to his colleagues who condemned Jesus to death. He is open to God in his expectation of the kingdom. Yet by asking Pilate for the body he was "breaking ranks" with his fellow Jews as well as risking the curiosity of Pilate. Comparison with Mt 27,58 shows that the detail of verses 44 and 45 is unique to Mark.
Crucifixion was normally a slow and agonising death by suffocation taking days rather than hours. Thus the death of Jesus after only a few hours was a surprise which needed confirmation. As with all the Gospels though, the evangelist took great care to emphasise that Jesus really was dead. Thus Jesus' body in verse 43 is called a corpse in verse 45, though most translations do not make the distinction.
If there was time to buy a linen cloth then presumably there was time to buy spices as well, as in the Gospel of John. Perhaps Mark is making a reason for the women to return to the tomb after the sabbath. Otherwise Jesus is given a normal burial in a tomb which is closed. The story could almost end there, Jesus is dead and buried, confirmed by the women. There is nothing to suggest that that was not the end. But more is to come.
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The women and the resurrection of Jesus: 16,1-8
We are told nothing about the women on the sabbath day but going off to buy spices that evening is a sign that they considered Jesus truly dead. Putting spices on the body after three days seems a bit odd as Mary noted about the body of her brother Lazarus (Jn 11,39).
The indication of time is also symbolic: Jesus is the rising sun. Thus John begins his resurrection story while it is still dark (Jn 20,1).
The evangelist keeps up the tension as the women make their way to the tomb in verse 2-4. What is going on, we may well wonder, especially as the stone of 15,46 is now described as very large.
In verse 5, though, the women might well have run away as they would do in verse 8. But into the tomb they go. They see not a body but a young man in a white robe. From Matthew (Mt 28,2) onward, he is usually identified with an angel. However, passages like the angel appearing to the wife of Gideon (Judges 13,2-6) to which reference is made are quite different. Mark simply says he is a young man.
There is however another young man in this Gospel, he was the one who ran away naked from the Garden (14,51-52). Now he reappears dressed in a white robe as though he is newly baptised. White garments are a sign of victory, as in the letter to Sardis (Apoc 3,5). Whilst we must not read too much into the text, it is possible to see him as following the baptismal journey, dying with Christ and rising with him to new life (Rm 6,1-5).
The announcement of the young man in verse 6 begins with the Jesus they had known, the man who had been crucified. The young man then announces either that Jesus has been raised or that Jesus has risen. Both are possible, either Jesus has risen through his own power or Jesus has been raised by God. Then the evidence is provided, the absence of Jesus from the tomb pointing to the place where he had been laid. We remember that the women saw the body of Jesus being laid in the tomb (15,47).
A commissioning then follows: the women are to become the first messengers or apostles of the resurrection. The promise is that Jesus will see the disciples in Galilee as he said at the last supper (14,28). As with Jesus' public ministry so now with the ministry of the resurrection, the announcement is to be made in wide open spaces, not within the walls of a town.
Apart from wondering how the tomb stone would be unrolled (16,3), the women say nothing more. There is just increasing alarm (verse 5). Now terror takes over and they run away "for they were afraid". Fear in the presence of God but quite likely a simple human terror. And that is the end of the story.
We need to hear this as Mark's community would have done: this is the end of the story but they knew as we know that the Easter proclamation was made. In due course, the other three Gospels in their different ways made this clear.
Thus in the end the women are echoing the message of failed discipleship which has been such a strong theme in the Gospel. As the men failed Jesus (8,21, 14,50 and elsewhere) so too the women have now failed as well despite their greater staying power. Yet despite the weakness and failure of the disciples of all generations, the Gospel continues to be proclaimed.
we continue to hear that proclamation of the Gospel: He is not here, he is risen.
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