Proofs of Jesus’ Resurrection from Scriptures, Saints, and Experience

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Editor’s Note: Originally published April 18th, 2017.

resurrection of Jesus
Love is an open door.

Christianity across the world celebrates the Resurrection of Jesus Christ this past Sunday. Easter is a celebration of a miraculous—and seemingly impossible—event. The feast of Jesus’ Resurrection holds a special place in my heart.  I wish to share the basic biblical proof of the Resurrection, examples from some saints, and my own personal experience.

Note: If you still have questions related to a more cerebral and logical argument for the Resurrection of Jesus I highly recommend Carl Olson’s: Did Jesus Really Rise from the Dead?

Gospel evidence

Since there a lot of evidence to refer to and I prefer to keep today’s post as concise as possible I will only focus on the two strongest pieces of evidence I found to be convincing for me in showing validity in Jesus’ Resurrection. First, the witness of the women being the initial people to notice the empty tomb is strong evidence. The reason for this is due to in 1st century Palestine life women did not enjoy the benefits of voting, membership in the workforce, or even respect to be witnesses in events like today.

The Gospel writers uniformly state that women were the first witnesses to the empty tomb and the first to proclaim Jesus as risen. This does not make sense unless it was true. Why would the gospel writers embarrass the apostles by placing women in a place of honor as the first evangelizers of Jesus’ Resurrection, unless that was the truth?

Saint Mary Magdalene and Risen Jesus
Saint Mary Magdalene is known as the Apostle to the Apostles.

Secondly, the Gospel of Matthew already shows alternative explanations already surfacing to explain the disappearance of Jesus’ body when the tomb was opened. According to Matthew, the priests and elders charged the Roman soldiers to create a story to explain why the tomb was empty. They [priests and elders] state, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him while we were asleep’. If any word of this gets to the procurator, we will straighten it out with him and keep you out of trouble.” (Matthew 28:13-14).  This never made sense to me. If the apostles were fraudulent, why the Matthew plainly write about the theory of the stolen body of Jesus? Such a theory only makes sense as a lie developed by the priests and elders.

Saintly Sources

Because of the vast array of saints to attest to the truth of the Resurrection, I will only focus on two for conciseness’ sake—St. Peter and St. Paul. The thing that I really love about St. Peter is his fervor to follow the gospel after Jesus’ Resurrection. In addition to being the 1st pope of the Catholic Church, Peter testified to the truth of the Gospel as a martyr via crucifixion.

St. Paul represents arguably the greatest conversion in the history of Christianity. Paul went from being a murderer of Christians to the Church’s great evangelizer and writer of almost 2/3 of the New Testament. These two men show us that they encountered someone who transformed them. Peter and Paul’s conversions are an effect of the power of Jesus’ Resurrection!

peter and paul

My Testimony

While my own testimony does not hold the same weight at Scripture and Tradition, I still am convinced that certain things in my life transpired due to a power outside of my control and full understanding. During my darkest days a few years ago I learned of the power of God. He rose me up from the loss of a job and our miscarriages. God continues to demonstrate the glory of His Resurrected Son in seemingly ordinary things too. For example, I asked my cousin to pray for my wife for an important interview. My cousin told me, “Of course, and incidentally she [my wife] was the person my cousin and his fiancée scheduled to pray for, in a special way, anyways.” This is not the first time this seeming coincidence happened to my cousin.

Through Scripture, Tradition [the saints], and my personal experience with daily and extraordinary events I have come to more deeply realize the Resurrection of Jesus as an historical fact. I pray that you come to enjoy this truth in Scripture, Tradition, and your own life’s experiences!

Related Links

Evidence for the Resurrection- Catholic Digest

Resurrection- Catholic Answers

What Exactly Does Jesus Mean in John 14:12?

Will Our Resurrected Bodies Grant Us Superpowers?

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The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies: Episode 30

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Welcome to another The Simple Catholic Sunday Funnies! Growing up, one of my favorite parts of Sunday was flipping to the comics section of the newspaper: a little pocket of humor, color, and light-heartedness to start the week.

Now, in that same spirit, I’m excited to share this weekly collection of wholesome, funny Catholic comic strips. Thanks to the incredible talents of artists like Father Alvaro Comics, The Catholic Cartoonist, Sam Estrada, Tomics, and Fr. Michael DeBlanc. These comics bring a joyful twist to our shared faith, reminding us that laughter is one of God’s great gifts.

Enjoy Catholic comics!

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Saints Who Guide Us Through the Digital Age: Holy Helpers for Modern Technology

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Sponsored: This article is made possible by Truthly, supporting quality and engaging Catholic content.

In our family home, we have a running joke about my parents calling me or my siblings whenever they have a technology problem. “The router’s not working!” or “How do I save this document?” We’ve become the default tech support. This experience got me thinking about how we use technology as Catholics in today’s digital environment.

Technology itself—whether it’s smartphones, artificial intelligence, or social media—is morally neutral. Like a hammer, car, or telephone, these tools aren’t inherently good or evil. It’s how we choose to use them that matters. This perspective isn’t new to Catholic thinking. The Church has always recognized that human innovation serves a purpose in God’s plan when used properly. 

While seeking digital balance, I discovered we have spiritual guides for this journey too. The communion of saints offers us models for using technology virtuously, even saints who lived long before the internet age.

Saint Isidore of Seville: The Ancient Patron of the Internet

“The 7th century patron saint of the internet seems odd, but Saint Isidore of Seville connects logically to our digital world.

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A 709 Word Interview with Sweet Catholic Life

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Editor’s Note: Matthew Chicoine interviewed Katie Luangkhot, Founder of Sweet Catholic Life, via phone on February 20th, 2026. Some of the questions/answers have been rearranged, edited, and paraphrased to provide the best reader experience without losing any integrity of the answers given.

What first inspired you to start Sweet Catholic Life?

I was on Instagram as a mom blogger in 2018 and I was feeling unfulfilled, so I shut down my page. I reopened the page in 2019 and started by praying a Rosary live. I shifted my name from Sweet Momma Life to Sweet Catholic Life. 

Because my kids were getting older I had to shift my prayers to the afternoon from the morning. We pray a live Chapel of Divine Mercy at 3pm. We read a little bit from Maria Faustina’s Diary. And we aim for a weekly Rosary in the evening at 8pm. 

And the community has grown and it’s been incredible.

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The Holy of Mercy

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Guest post by: Franci Revel Eckensberger

As often as you hear the clock strike the third hour, immerse yourself completely in My mercy, adoring and glorifying it; invoke its omnipotence for the whole world, and particularly for poor sinners; for at that moment mercy was opened wide for every soul. In this hour you can obtain everything for yourself and for others for the asking; it was the hour of grace for the whole world — mercy triumphed over justice. (Diary of Faustina Kowalska, 1572)

After the Easter Octave, the Alleluias linger in our hearts. The Gospel draws our gaze once again to Christ—not only risen but wounded, and showing His wounds to His disciples. The marks of the Passion remain visible and integral to how He is known in His victory, His love, and His Mercy. The suffering that precedes the Resurrection is made radiant in His form.

Divine Mercy

Jesus as Divine Mercy

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Jesus, I Trust in You: Living Divine Mercy Every Day

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Guest Post by: David Tonaszuck

A reflection on the Gospel of John 20:19-31

Dear friends in Christ,

There once was a man named David. For over twenty years, he had built a solid career—an expert in his field, respected, reliable, always the first to arrive and the last to leave. But then, without warning, he was let go. At first, David was sure another job would come quickly; after all, he had experience and skills. But weeks turned to months, and door after door closed in his face.

In that long season of waiting, as uncertainty crept in, David’s wife Anne was diagnosed with a serious illness. Suddenly, the reason for his unemployment became clear. God had placed him at home for this very moment—to care for Anne, to be her rock, to offer comfort only a loving husband could give. David surrendered his anxiety and whispered, “Jesus, I trust in You.” In time, Anne’s health improved, and David was led to a new job, one that allowed him to help not only his family, but others in need, too. Looking back, he saw God’s hand guiding him, every step of the way, through disappointment to hope.

From Fear and Doubt to Faith and Trust: The Journey of Thomas and the Disciples

This story, friends, is not so different from the journey of the disciples in our Gospel today. They are locked away in fear, their lives turned upside down by loss and bewilderment. Jesus, the one they trusted, had died. Their hopes seemed finished. Yet into that locked room, Jesus appears, speaking words that must have sounded almost impossible: “Peace be with you.” He shows them His wounds—the marks of His suffering and love—and the disciples rejoice. But Thomas isn’t there. When the others tell him, “We have seen the Lord,” Thomas cannot bring himself to believe. Maybe he’s protecting himself from more heartbreak. Maybe he’s just being honest about his doubts.

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3 Reasons Why I Am Thankful for Divine Mercy Sunday!

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On April 30th, 2000 Pope John Paul II officially designated the second Sunday of Easter as Divine Mercy Sunday. The designation was in celebration of the canonization of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska—the Polish nun who received the devotion from Jesus! My wife’s Confirmation saint is St. Maria Faustina and in recent years of our marriage I have been more familiar with her teaching by reading the Polish nun’s diary. While I could write for pages about the joys of this feast, I will limit myself to three reasons for why I am grateful for Divine Mercy Sunday.

divine mercy.jpg

Judgment + _____________= Love

I bet you can’t guess blank to fill out the equation. Let me give you a clue: the word is in the title of today’s post. You guessed it—mercy! The Church’s renewed focus on Divine Mercy to start the new millennium gave me a renewed focus as well. I grew up usually thinking about the power of God and His ability to judge us. For whatever reason I viewed God more as a judge and less like a merciful Father. Divine Mercy Sunday is a gift that helps remind me that God, though a judge, is a merciful judge and will give me many chances to correct the mistakes I make.

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