The resurrection happened in secret, the actual moment hidden in the dark hours of early morning. But for each of Jesus’ friends and followers there was a special moment when the resurrection became real for them, when life came out of death for them, when the stone was rolled away from the tomb of their own doubt and fear and confusion.
For Mary, that moment comes when the risen Christ, mistaken for the gardener in the half-light of dawn, speaks her name and she recognises him for who he is. At baptism, God calls each of us by name, allowing us to recognise God at work in us and around us in the world, and giving us access to the light and love of the resurrection.
Over the last almost two thousand years there have been many moments of resurrection, many moments when individuals and whole peoples have been freed from the tyranny of sin (of their own sin, or the sins of others that have oppressed them). The resurrection is therefore not only a past event, but an eternal moment of rebirth, hope, light and life, which still transforms the dark places of this world.