Tuesday within the Octave of Easter
Solemnity
- Feast Day
- April 7
Tuesday within the Octave of Easter, like every day of the Octave, is celebrated as a Solemnity of the Lord. The Gospel is John 20:11-18, the appearance of the risen Christ to Mary Magdalene at the tomb, in which she at first mistakes him for the gardener and is then sent by him to announce the Resurrection to the apostles, an episode from which Mary Magdalene takes her ancient title of Apostle to the Apostles.
The first reading continues the Easter cycle from Acts of the Apostles (Acts 2:36-41), recording Saint Peter's first proclamation of the Resurrection on Pentecost and the baptism of three thousand who heard him. The structure of the Easter Octave Masses, with the Gloria, the double Alleluia at dismissal, and the optional Sequence, is preserved through Easter Saturday.
Easter Tuesday's Gospel of Mary Magdalene meeting the risen Lord teaches that the Resurrection is recognized in personal encounter, in the calling of one's name. The pairing with the first reading from Acts shows how this individual encounter becomes the apostolic proclamation that founds the Church.
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