Each year, FutureChurch gathers to celebrate the witness of Mary Magdalene—Apostle to the Apostles, first preacher of theRresurrection, and bearer of Easter hope. This year, we invite you into a powerful theme: “Joy as Resistance.”
In a world marked by division, violence, injustice, and uncertainty, it can feel easier to remain in grief or despair. Mary Magdalene knows that reality. She comes to the tomb carrying loss and the weight of crucifixion. She does not deny the suffering of her world, yet her faithful love endures. And in the garden, she encounters the Risen Christ—who calls her by name and sends her to proclaim resurrection.
Her joy is not naïve. It is born through grief. Moreover, it is a defiant proclamation that death does not have the final word.
To proclaim resurrection, as Mary Magdalene did, is to resist everything that tells us hope is foolish, that love cannot endure, that new life is impossible. Embodying Easter joy becomes an act of holy resistance.
In this celebration, we will gather to pray, reflect, and embody this radical joy together—exploring what it means to live as resurrection people in a wounded world.
Join us in person at the chapel of the Congregation of Saint Joseph Motherhouse in Cleveland, or participate via livestream from wherever you are. Together, we will follow Mary Magdalene—choosing joy, proclaiming resurrection!