Our understanding of “Holy Week”—which begins with Palm Sunday, continues with Maundy Thursday and Good Friday, and culminates with Easter Sunday—comes from the Gospel accounts given by Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. These narratives invite us not only to see Jesus and his ministry in new ways but also to reflect on ourselves through the different people we meet as Jesus travels to Jerusalem to celebrate Passover after three years with his twelve disciples.
The Gospels do not simply offer us stories; they provide a unique “twist” in the Easter story. Despite the overwhelming power of the Roman Empire and the self-serving actions of religious leaders, which lead Jesus to the cross at Golgotha, the story does not end with tears at a grave. Instead, it concludes with an empty tomb and the beginning of a new chapter. This new story, recounted in the Book of Acts, tells how the Holy Spirit comes upon those who gather in Jerusalem for forty days after Jesus’ resurrection. This community becomes known as “Christians,” and they carry the Easter Story to the farthest reaches of the Roman Empire and beyond, even into 2026. The Easter story is not about bunnies, eggs, or candy; it is about Jesus’s faithfulness to God, to the kin-dom of God, and, through this, his faithfulness to all humanity—demonstrated through his encounters on the way to Jerusalem, each providing a mirror for us to see ourselves more clearly.
As Jesus journeys, he meets ten lepers and, moved by compassion for those shunned by society, heals them. Although all ten plead for pity and are healed, only one—a Samaritan—returns to give thanks, to whom Jesus says, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.” (Luke 17:19) The care Jesus showed this group of “untouchables” demonstrates Jesus’ compassion and love, yet the fact that only one leper was willing to give thanks, an outsider to the Jewish community, reminds us of the selfish impulses we harbor that do not allow us to be grateful nor to admit our need for deep spiritual healing.
Another encounter involves Bartimaeus, a blind beggar from Jericho. Hearing that Jesus is near, Bartimaeus refuses to remain sitting. He jumps up and approaches Jesus, asking for his sight. Jesus responds, “‘Go, your faith has healed you.’ Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.” (Mark 10:52) The healing of this unwanted blind beggar not only restores his future but offers an opportunity for him to become a disciple, to become an active participant in the work of the kin-dom of God and not just remain a frightened bystander.
In Bethany, a short distance from Jerusalem, Jesus raises his dear friend Lazarus, who had been dead for four days. This miracle not only demonstrates Jesus’ love for his friends but also becomes a turning point, leading the religious leaders to plot against Jesus, fearing his increasing influence. Martha and Mary, Lazarus’s sisters, move from deep grief to joy and praise, with Martha declaring, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.” (John 11:25) It is Mary who also anoints Jesus with expensive perfume and wipes his feet with her hair, filling the house with its fragrance. (John 12:3) Her anointing is a presage of the death awaiting Jesus in Jerusalem but more than that, we see in Mary a spiritual awakening that allows her to truly know who Jesus was and the power of his ministry.
Arriving in Jerusalem, Jesus faces both denial and betrayal from his closest followers. Peter, out of fear for his life, denies Jesus three times, saying, “I don’t know the man!” (Matthew 26:72) Judas Iscariot, meanwhile, goes to the chief priests and asks, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver him over to you?” He receives thirty pieces of silver and looks for an opportunity to hand Jesus over. (Matthew 26:14) Yet despite these moments of betrayals, Jesus’ love and compassion are not diminished. Jesus meets Peter after his resurrection along the Sea of Galilee and cooks the disciples a breakfast of forgiveness and acceptance, telling Peter to “feed my sheep” and inviting him to once again follow him making him a disciple once more. (John 21)
And finally, we find Mary Jesus’ mother, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and Joseph, and Salome — wife of Zebedee, mother of James and John, along with John, who filled with despair and grief dared go to the foot of the cross to be near Jesus as his life ebbs away. Yet, and here comes the “twist”, it is also Mary and Mary Magdalene who go early on a Sunday morning to the tomb only to find it empty and there are told by an angel, “He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee’.” (Matthew 28:6) The brokenness of our world, the great loss of life across the globe happening today reminds us of the pain and grief humanity faces daily. Yet the empty tomb continues to remind us that hope and joy are possible since death will not hold the final word.
In 2024, after celebrating Easter Mass, Pope Francis told the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square that Easter Christ alone “has the power to roll away the stones that block the path to life”. It is in that empty tomb that we discover that a new way to live and a new way to experience the world and to encounter others is truly possible as the stones that block the path to true life are rolled away. That is the twist of the Easter story—the impossible becomes possible. It is my prayer that this Easter the words of the angel ring true for you:
“Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus,
who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.”
