Do not cling to me

My favorite resurrection account is from the gospel of John. I like it because it’s the most vivid, emotional, and personal account of Jesus’ appearances that morning. It’s very moving. I also love what Jesus said to Mary Magdalene once she recognized Him:

Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.”
–John 20:17

Jesus’ focus was His ascension to heaven—and rather than viewing His ascension as separating Him from His followers, He saw it as one that would bring them closer to Him. He told Mary that she shouldn’t cling to Him in His present form (apparently, she was a hugger). Instead, Jesus’ ascension would unite Him with her and with His “brothers.” His Father would be their Father, and His God would be their God.

Jesus was simply echoing the words that He spoke to them during the Last Supper, when He told them, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live” (John 14:18-19).