Jump to Any Step (31 of 36 · Click to Expand All 36 Days & Exercises)
01. The Presupposition & How to Enter the Exercises02. Principle and Foundation03. The Daily & Particular Examen04. Meditation with the Three Powers on the First, Second & Third Sin05. Meditation on Personal Sins & The Exclamation of Wonder at God’s Mercy06. Repetitions of the First & Second Exercises with the Triple Colloquy07. Meditation with the Five Senses on Ultimate Separation08. The Call of the Temporal King & The Oblation to the Eternal King09. The First Contemplation: The Incarnation10. The Second Contemplation: The Nativity & Application of the Five Senses11. The Presentation in the Temple & The Flight into Egypt12. The Hidden Life at Nazareth & Finding the Boy Jesus in the Temple13. Meditation on the Two Standards & Second Week Rules for Discernment14. Meditation on the Three Pairs of Men15. Departure from Nazareth & Baptism in the River Jordan16. Christ Fasting & Tempted in the Desert17. The Call of the Apostles & The Wedding at Cana18. The Sermon on the Mount19. Calming the Storm & Walking on the Waters20. Sending the Apostles, The Sinful Woman Forgiven, Feeding the 5,000, The Transfiguration & Preaching in the Temple21. The Raising of Lazarus & The Supper at Bethany22. Palm Sunday: The Humble Entry into Jerusalem23. The Three Manners of Humility24. Making an Election25. The Last Supper, Washing the Feet & The Agony in Gethsemane26. Betrayal, Arrest & The Night at the Houses of Annas and Caiaphas27. Christ Before Pilate & Before Herod28. The Scourging at the Pillar, Crowning with Thorns & ‘Ecce Homo’29. Carrying the Cross & The Crucifixion30. The Descent from the Cross, The Burial & The Silence of Holy Saturday31. The Resurrection: Christ Appears to His Mother & to Mary Magdalene32. The Road to Emmaus, The Appearance to St. Peter & The Upper Room33. St. Thomas’s Confession & Breakfast by the Sea of Galilee34. The Great Commission & The Ascension of Christ Our Lord35. Contemplation to Gain Love36. The Three Methods of Prayer
Movement IV · The Fourth Week (Unitive Way) · Step 31 · Week 4, Day 1
St. Ignatius of Loyola · Exx. 218–229, 299–301

The Resurrection: Christ Appears to His Mother & to Mary Magdalene

Entering the Fourth Week: asking for the grace to rejoice intensely at the joy of the Risen Christ—not for our own comfort, but purely because He whom we love is glorious—and watching how He performs the office of Consoler, as friend consoles friend.

Assigned Scripture Reading (NIV) & Mystery Points

Scripture Reading: Matthew 28:1–10 · Mark 16:1–11 · John 20:1–18

Matthew 28:1–10 (NIV)
1After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 5The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.” 8So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
Mark 16:1–11 (NIV)
1When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. 2Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb 3and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” 4But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. 5As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. 6“Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’” 8Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid. 9When Jesus rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. 10She went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping. 11When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it.
John 20:1–18 (NIV)
1Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” 3So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. 8Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9(They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) 10Then the disciples went back to where they were staying. 11Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. 13They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” 14At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. 15He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” 16Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”). 17Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” 18Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.

Points of the Mystery from St. Ignatius

Step 1 · Entering the Hour (2 Minutes)

Before You Start

Read John 20:1–18 and Matthew 28:1–10. Notice how Ignatius changes the Additions in the Fourth Week (Exx. 227, 229): as soon as you wake up, set before yourself the joy of the Risen Christ; let sunlit air, springtime beauty, and gentle warmth remind you of His Resurrection! Stand for an Our Father (Exx. 75) and pray the Preparatory Prayer (Exx. 46).

Step 2 · Orienting the Heart & Imagination (5 Minutes)

The Preludes

First Prelude · The Narrative (Exx. 219, 299–300)

Recall how Christ our Lord, rising glorious from the dead at dawn on the third day, appears first in quiet intimacy to His Blessed Mother in her room, and then in the garden tomb to weeping Mary Magdalene, calling her by name.

Second Prelude · Composition of Place (Exx. 220)

See the arrangement of the Holy Sepulchre with the heavy stone rolled away in the morning light, and the house or room of Our Lady where the Risen Son greets His Mother.

Third Prelude · Asking for What I Desire (Exx. 221)

Here is the radiant grace of the entire Fourth Week: ask for grace to be glad and rejoice intensely at the great glory and joy of Christ our Lord. Notice: up till now you asked for graces for yourself (mercy in Week 1, knowledge to follow Him in Week 2, sorrow in Week 3). In Week 4, self-concern drops away—you rejoice simply because your Friend is alive and glorious!

Step 3 · The Body of the Exercise (30–40 Minutes)

How to Pray the First Day of the Resurrection (Five Points)

Ignatius gives Five Points for every contemplation of the Fourth Week (Exx. 222–224):

1. The First Apparition · The Risen Son Appears to His Mother (Exx. 219–225, 299)

  • SEE, HEAR & WATCH (Points 1–3): Why do the four Gospels not describe Jesus’ first meeting with His Mother? Ignatius answers with warm common sense (Exx. 299): because the public Gospels record the legal witnesses sent to announce the Resurrection to the world, taking for granted that any loving Son would go first to the Mother who stood beneath His Cross!
  • Step quietly into Mary’s room before dawn. See her kneeling in prayer through the night of Holy Saturday. Suddenly the room is filled with Easter light, and Jesus stands before her, risen and glorious, His five wounds now shining like stars. Watch the embrace of Mother and Son; hear what they say to one another after Friday’s agony.

2. The Second Apparition · Mary Magdalene in the Garden (John 20:11–18, Exx. 300)

  • SEE, HEAR & WATCH (Points 1–3): Now step into the garden outside the empty tomb at sunrise. Everyone else has gone back to town, but Mary Magdalene stands outside the sepulchre weeping because she cannot bear a world without Jesus.
  • See Jesus standing behind her; hear Him ask gently, “Woman, why weepest thou? Whom seekest thou?” She thinks He is the gardener—until He speaks one single word: her name, “Mary.”
  • Instantly her eyes open: “Rabboni!” Watch Him send her as the Apostle to the Apostles with the message: “Go to My brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto My Father, and your Father; and to My God, and your God.”

3. Fourth Point · How the Divinity Now Shines Forth (Exx. 223)

  • In Week 3 you watched how the Divinity hid Itself under weakness and blood. Now in Point 4, consider how the Divinity appears and shows Itself so miraculously in the most holy Resurrection by Its true and most holy effects—turning terror into courage, grief into joy, and death into indestructible life.

4. Fifth Point · Watching Christ Exercise the Office of Consoler (Exx. 224)

  • This is one of Ignatius’s loveliest invitations in the whole book: “To look at the office of Consoler which Christ our Lord bears, and to compare how friends are accustomed to console one another.”
  • Think of how a true, wise human friend comforts you when you are heartbroken or exhausted—by showing up in person, speaking your name warmly, wiping your tears, and restoring your hope. Now watch how the Risen Jesus goes around Jerusalem all day on Easter Sunday doing nothing else but consoling His friends one by one!
Step 4 · Friend to Friend & Looking Back (15–20 Minutes)

Colloquy, Post-Prayer Review & Repetitions

1. The Colloquy (5 Minutes)

Speak to the Risen Christ as friend to Friend, rejoicing in His joy and letting Him exercise His office of Consoler toward your own heart, speaking your name just as He spoke “Mary.” Close with an Our Father.

2. The Post-Prayer Examen of Prayer (15 Minutes · Exx. 77)

After finishing the Our Father, remain quiet for ten to fifteen minutes (sitting or walking slowly) to examine how your prayer went. Ask: Where did my heart feel warmed, expanded, drawn to trust, or moved to tears (consolation)? Where did I feel dry, distracted, defensive, or negotiating with God (desolation or resistance)? Write down two or three honest sentences in your notebook.

3. Repetitions & Carrying the Mystery Through the Day

In the Fourth Week, Ignatius reduces the number of daily exercises from five to four (omitting the midnight rise, Exx. 226–227) so that the body too shares in the restful peace of the Resurrection.

Primary Text · From St. Ignatius’s Spiritual Exercises (Exx. 218–229, 299–301)
[221] Third Prelude. The third, to ask for what I want, and it will be here to ask for grace to be glad and rejoice intensely at the great glory and joy of Christ our Lord. [223] Fourth Point. The fourth, to consider how the Divinity, which seemed to hide Itself in the Passion, now appears and shows Itself so miraculously in the most holy Resurrection by Its true and most holy effects. [224] Fifth Point. The fifth, to look at the office of Consoler which Christ our Lord bears, and to compare how friends are accustomed to console one another. [299] OF THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST OUR LORD: OF HIS FIRST APPARITION First Point. First: He appeared to the Virgin Mary; which, although it is not said in Scripture, is included in the saying that He appeared to so many others, because Scripture presupposes that we have understanding, as it is written: "Are you also without understanding?"
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