It is interesting to see the reaction of people who wake up and do not have anything urgent at hand, compared to people who wake up and realise that there is a pressing task ahead. Those who do not have any urgent matter at hand may likely find it difficult to get out of bed, and they may try to catch a few moments more of sleep. But what if there is a pressing task ahead and due to some reason or another, we have not completed the task? When we realise that the task is still pending, we may likely get out of bed quickly and start cracking on the task. Some of us may even wake up earlier than usual hoping to gain more time to work on the task at hand.
When Jesus rose from the dead, some people “woke up” and realised that an important event had happened and they had an important and urgent task to perform. In the Gospel, the women were filled with awe and great joy and they came quickly away from the tomb and ran to tell the disciples. The Gospel then tells us: “And there, coming to meet them, was Jesus. ‘Greetings’ he said. And the women came up to him and, falling down before him, clasped his feet. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers that they must leave for Galilee; they will see me there.'” Naturally, the women became quite excited and anxious to fulfil the task given to them, and they when on their way quickly to tell the disciples. At the mean time, we also come across some soldiers who were the guards at the tomb. These soldiers went off quickly into the city to tell the chief priests all that had happened. From here, we can see two different groups “waking up” and having urgent news to convey, and from the Gospel, we know the outcome of the story. One group chose to tell the truth, the other chose to spread lies. One group chose to do God’s will, the other was more interested in protecting their own interests and saving their own skin.
What about us? When we “wake up” and come to realise of an important matter, are we willing to face the facts, face the truth, admit our failings or wrongdoings if any, seek forgiveness where necessary and move on? Or are we trying to avoid and hide the truth? The truth may hurt at times, but we can choose to get over it and be at peace, or we can choose to live in denial, live in fear, and suffer the consequences.