Pastor's Page, March 2010

“and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.”
-Luke 7:38

Dear Friends,

While staying with mymother for a few days last month I would visit a nearby chapel for morning prayer. She lives near the church of St. Mary Magdalen in Camarillo. It’s a beautiful old church situated on a hill above the town and the Ventura freeway. The chapel was built by Adolfo and Isabel Camarillo and dedicated on July 4th, 1914.

Entering the chapel I picked up the monthly prayer book entitled “5 Minutos de Oracion en el Hogar” (5 Minutes of Prayer in the Home ) . This seemed like a good place to begin a prayer time, rooted in the Spanish culture and the Mexican land grant of the 1800s that had originally established this area. I chose a back pew to make myself comfortable, taking in the sanctuary and stations of the cross, while noticing a few other people who had come to pray. Before leaving I thumbed through the hymnals, reading a few of the Spanish songs. Leaving I looked forward to the next day.

I never could find any information on why the chapel was named after Mary Magdalene, as I spell her name. We remember that she was also called Mary of Magdala, from the Gentile town where she lived. Many stories were told of her, as Luke does in the quote above. She was one who loved Jesus. She felt great emotion and gratitude to him. Mary Magdalene was known as a sinner, who showed Jesus hospitality by washing his feet and anointing them with oil, while his host showed indifference to this custom. Some people were surprised that Jesus let such a sinner touch Him, but Jesus understood Mary's heart, and He said: "Many sins are forgiven her, because she has loved very much." Then to Mary He said kindly, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."

The Gospels tell us that from then on, with the other holy women, Mary humbly served Jesus and His Apostles. When Our Lord was crucified, she was there at the foot of His cross, unafraid for herself, and thinking only of His sufferings. No wonder Jesus said of her: “She has loved much.” After Jesus’ body had been placed in the tomb, Mary went to anoint it with spices early Easter Sunday morning. Not finding the Sacred Body, she began to weep, and seeing someone whom she thought was the gardener, she asked him if he knew where the Body of her beloved Master had been taken. But then the person spoke in a voice she knew so well: "Mary!" It was Jesus, risen from the dead! He had chosen to show Himself first to Mary Magdalene, the repentant sinner.

Like this Mary, we too are sinners. Like Mary we too have been redeemed and have joy in serving our Lord Jesus. During this month of March we will relive some of these stories in our preparation for Easter. Maybe we will ask how Mary came to know that she was so loved by Jesus, or how such love changed her life. Maybe we will have an opportunity to show this same grace to a modern day Mary Magdalene, that she (or he) is valued and loved by God. Yes, we even understand her grief as she goes to the tomb, prodding our hearts to beat just as rapidly as hers when she encounters the Risen Lord. The end of the story became the beginning of a new and greater story of Love! I like to think that this is the reason that Adolfo and Isabel named “their” chapel in her honor.

We too were born, and reborn in Christ, to manifest the glory of God,
Pastor Gary Petersen

Pastor Gary Petersen's biography