John 19:25b
Meanwhile, standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
It’s always the women.
Have you noticed that? In each of the four Gospel accounts, it is only the women who remain with Jesus to the end. Judas betrays, Peter denies, and the rest desert and flee Jesus in his time of need. Except the women, who remain with Jesus until the end.
John – naturally, after all this is John we’re talking about 🙂 – tells it a little differently. As we’ll see soon enough, in John’s account there is one male disciple who remains, and we’ll get to that part in just a moment.
But for now, let’s just notice that it’s the women who remain, the women who don’t run, the women who bear witness, both now at the foot of the cross and again at the empty tomb, as the women are the first heralds of the resurrection as well.
Which makes me wonder…. For while I have tremendous respect for the variety of Christian traditions in the Church, I also grieve that women too often are overlooked for positions of leadership, are not considered eligible for particular roles, and do not receive the level of responsibility that they not only can handle but at which they would excel.
Here – and indeed throughout the Gospels – it is the women who prove the most faithful of disciples. Perhaps this is something to which we should pay closer attention.
Prayer: Let us recognize and celebrate the gifts of the women of the Church of all times and places and advocate that they can exercise their gifts fully and freely for the sake of the Church and world. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Post image: “The Yellow Christ,” Paul Gauguin, 1899.
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