"He saw and believed"
In the gospel we find three people who get involved in that resurrection scene of John 20:1-9. We first see Mary Magdalene who witnessed that the stone had been moved away and was worried that the body of Jesus was taken away by others. So she ran back to the apostles and reported it to them. Peter and the disciple whom Jesus loved ran to the tomb to find out for themselves. We are told that the disciple whom Jesus loved arrived at the tomb first but did not enter. This was because he was young and his body was lighter and thus it was quite natural that he would outran Peter. When Peter arrived at the tomb, it was Peter who entered the tomb and saw the cloths of the Lord on the ground. Peter did not fear entering for we know he was a man who was close to the Lord in terms of authority. When the disciple whom Jesus loved saw Peter enter, he himself entered. And the gospel reports, "He saw and believed."
Three persons who were close to the scene of the resurrection. And three responses to it. Mary Magdalene's response was one of worry and anxiety. But she acted on her worry and informed the apostles. Of the apostles, it was Peter and the beloved disciple who responded to the 'problem' Mary presented to them. Peter courageously entered the tomb and saw the absence of the Lord's body and the evidence of the cloths being on the ground. If we imagine what Peter may have thought, we may surmise that he probably was puzzled as to what may have happened and the thought kept rolling over his head while he examined the cloths on the ground. But the main thing he did was to observe what was in the tomb of the resurrection itself. The beloved disciple on the other hand, "saw and believed". It was a simple response of faith.
Mary was worried. Peter observed. The beloved disciple believed.
Three responses to the resurrection of Jesus. What would have been our response if we too were part of the apostolic team and suddenly learn about the absence of Jesus' body in the tomb? Would we be worried like Mary and act in haste to solve the problem? Or would we 'examine and observe all the facts' and see what is in them like Peter? Or would we like John simply believe because of what we remember the Lord said to us that He would rise again? Maybe we can answer this question if we read again the gospel passage of John 20:1-9 and enter the scene of the gospel. Let us examine our own feelings as we place ourselves in the gospel scene. Do what I experience in entering the gospel passage by imagining myself in it close to Mary's, Peter's or John's reaction and response? Let us see for ourselves so that we may learn more about the mystery of the Lord's resurrection. And let us place ourselves in a prayerful attitude afterwards and thank the Lord that He had died for us and given us the blessing of a new life to live after all the misgivings we have caused Him.
