“7 fascinating facts (you may not have known) about Mary Magdalene”
Introduction
In recent
years, Mary Magdalene has become something of a sensation, even among those who
don’t consider themselves to be “religious”.
Though she is not mentioned frequently in the Bible, in recent “Jesus
movies”, she is portrayed as a kind of “13th member” of the group of
Jesus’ closest followers. Considering
how women were viewed in the Jewish culture of the time, the fact that the Gospels
mention the women in Jesus’ life is quite remarkable in itself.
It’s
important to realize that the Bible was written in a time and place very
different from our own. It is completely
normal that the Bible strike us – people living in modern, liberal democracies
– as being misogynistic, patriarchal, old fashioned and often, just plain
weird. This is a natural reaction to
have when reading a 2,000-year-old text from the Middle East. However, this reaction might make us feel a
bit guilty; we’ve been taught that the Bible is the “Word of God”. Surely, we should always experience warm,
fuzzy feelings when reading the Bible, right?
In fact, most of the Bible isn’t about warm, fuzzy feelings. The Bible is a very realistic book –
it honestly, and sometimes embarrassingly, portrays human nature at the time it
was written. Come to think of it, human
nature hasn’t really changed that much… But
things are stranger still. The fascinating
thing about the Bible is that not only does it painfully portray human nature,
but it also reveals a God who loves his human creatures anyway and does
what has to be done to rescue them from themselves. That’s good news (in any century)!
Let’s begin
by debunking 2 common misconceptions about Mary Magdalene.
1.
Mary
Magdalene was most probably NOT a prostitute.
From at
least the 6th century onwards, it has been a commonplace among Christians
to conceive of Mary Magdalene as having been a prostitute[1]
– this can be seen in the many paintings, icons and, more recently, movies that
have been made of her. This
misconception began when Mary Magdalene was identified with the anonymous “sinful
woman” who anointed Jesus’ feet with perfume[2]
(Lk. 7.36-50). This was a strange move
to make, since Mary Magdalene is named just a few verses later in a different
context (Lk. 8.2). Not for the last
time, the Gospel author was assumed to have been “modest” by not naming the
“sinful woman”; however, St. Luke is not at all shy about identifying Mary
Magdalene as a woman “from whom seven demons had gone out” (8.2). The Gospel writers don’t hesitate to paint
honest portraits of those people we now consider to be “heroes” (e.g. Peter,
James & John, etc.). As St.
Augustine said, “Every saint has a past and ever sinner has a future”. In other words, no one is born a saint; we
are all called to journey towards holiness.
The Bible gives us a glimpse into the lives of many saints while they
were still “sinners”. The Evangelists
make it very clear that prostitutes could indeed often be found in Jesus’
entourage (e.g. Mt. 9.10-13, 11.19, 21.31-32).
Jesus often got into trouble for sharing meals with all the wrong
people. Once again, if Mary Magdalene
had been one of the many prostitutes that Jesus spent time speaking with, the
Evangelists would have mentioned it.
Since they didn’t, we can safely conclude that Mary Magdalene was not,
in fact, a prostitute.
2.
Mary
Magdalene was most probably NOT Jesus’ wife and/or mother of his child.
Several
recent novels/movies have portrayed Mary Magdalene as having been Jesus’ wife
and the mother of his child. Two
examples: The Last Temptation of Christ (book: 1955; movie: 1988) & The
DaVinci Code (2003; 2006). Among the
many legends of gospel characters travelling to Europe is the one mentioned in The
DaVinci Code, according to which the pregnant Mary journeyed to France with
Joseph of Arimathea, where she gave birth to Jesus’ daughter, whom she named
Sarah. According to other legends,
Joseph of Arimathea then made his way to England, where he hid the chalice from
the Last Supper (= Holy Grail). The
DaVinci Code makes much of the (supposed) conspiracy by the Church to cover
up this embarrassing “truth” about Jesus having fathered a child. Apparently, if this fact ever got out, it
would be impossible to believe in Jesus’ divinity, and therefore the Christian
faith would collapse, and the Church would be exposed as a corrupt institution
who turned the human Jesus into a divine being in order to control the
population of Europe and to extort money from people by offering forgiveness of
sins and access to heaven in Jesus’ name.
Wow! (in case you didn’t read The
DaVinci Code, I just spared you the trouble. In case you’re wondering what Leonardo
DaVinci (supposedly) has to do with Mary Magdalene, the movie is on Netflix).
What to do
with all of this? Well, The DaVinci
Code is pretty easy to debunk for anyone with a bit of historical
knowledge. Let’s tackle the main points,
one by one:
·
The Church
invented Jesus’ divinity to control people and get rich.
Well, it’s obvious to anyone who watches the news that
the Church has often proved itself to be a very corrupt institution. Pope St. John Paul II (papacy: 1978-2005) repented
publicly for the many “sins of the Church” throughout its history, including
its complicity in the slave trade and the evils of colonialism, its frequent
repression of women, its involvement in racism, and many other things. Popes Benedict and Francis have had to begin
dealing with the aftermath of the sex abuse scandal. The (sad) fact is that the Church didn’t need
to invent myths about Jesus in order to be corrupt. The Church has always been a deeply flawed
and sinful organization, like all other human institutions. But let’s not forget the saints! The story of the Church is a story full of
evil, sin and tragedy, but also one full of goodness, beauty and heroic women
and men who gave their lives to help others and make the world a better place.
·
If Jesus
fathered a child, he couldn’t have been divine.
It’s funny how people outside the Church often assume
to know what the Church believes. The
Church never argued that Jesus was divine because he had lived his life
as a celibate (though the evidence suggests that Jesus did indeed remain single
throughout his life). What the Council
of Chalcedon (451) declared about Jesus is that he had two natures: one human
and one divine. The reason this Council
was convened was because there were some people at the time saying that Jesus
was only divine, and not human at all.
Chalcedon’s conclusions became the official (“orthodox”) Catholic belief,
according to which Jesus was 100% human AND 100% divine. False beliefs (“heresy”) are always
over-simplifications of the truth of what God has revealed. The truth of the Christian faith is always
mysterious and beyond our (complete) comprehension. Once again, the Church never said that Jesus
was divine because he was single, but rather that he was divine because
he did what only God could do (e.g. forgive sins: Mk. 2.5-12) and because
of the resurrection.
·
Jesus &
Mary Magdalene were lovers.
The DaVinci Code claims that if it could be proved that Jesus had had an intimate
relationship with Mary Magdalene, it would be a huge embarrassment to the
Church. Well, let’s look at what the Gospels
do in fact say:
-St. Peter was married (Mk. 1.29-31).
-many apostles (early Christian missionaries) were married (1 Cor. 9.5).
-married couples were active in the mission of the early Church (e.g. Priscilla & Aquila who travelled with St. Paul: Ac. 18.1-4, 18-28).
Marriage
was of course the norm for Jewish men, even for priests (e.g. Zechariah and
Elizabeth: Lk. 1.5-25). However, there
was a long-standing tradition within Judaism of prophets remaining celibate,
either after the death of a spouse (e.g. Ezekiel 24.15-27) or because of their prophetic
vocation (e.g. Jeremiah 16.1-4). The
evidence suggests that both John the Baptist and Jesus made a commitment to
celibacy because of their unique vocations, which resembled that of the ancient
prophets in many ways (cf. Mt. 16.13-14).
However, if Jesus had been married, there would have been no reason
for the Evangelists to “cover it up”.
As they wrote their Gospels, the Evangelists were not trying to make
Jesus look “divine”; they were simply writing what they had seen and heard
Jesus do and say. The Evangelists were
as shocked as everyone else when Jesus said things like, “Whoever has seen me
has seen the Father” (Jn. 14.9) or told people that their sins were forgiven
(Mk. 2.5ff). The incarnation was as
shocking an idea to those who followed Jesus as it was to those who eventually
read the Gospels. As with the question
of Mary Magdalene having been a prostitute, so with the question of Jesus and
Mary having had a child together – the Evangelists didn’t mention it, not
because they were embarrassed by it, but because it didn’t happen.
So, who was Mary Magdalene? Glad you asked.
3.
Mary
Magdalene helped finance Jesus’ ministry.
St. Luke
(who is particularly concerned with showing how Jesus treated women and
children) says:
“Soon afterwards [Jesus] went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. The twelve were with him, as well as some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Herod’s steward Chuza, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their resources” (Lk. 8.1-3).
Jesus was an itinerant preacher – he was always on the road. He didn’t have a ready source of income; he depended on the generosity of people like Mary Magdalene and the other women that St. Luke mentions, as well as people like the 3 siblings from Bethany: Mary (a different one), Martha & Lazarus (cf. Lk. 10.38-42; Jn. chapter 11). What is fascinating about this passage from St. Luke’s Gospel is that these women were travelling with Jesus and the 12 apostles. The women appear to also have been “disciples” (apprentices) of Jesus. In the famous story of Mary and Martha, Mary “sits at Jesus’ feet”, that is to say, she adopts the stance of a disciple learning from a master (cf. Lk. 10.39).
4. Mary Magdalene stayed with Jesus until the bitter end.
St. John
tells us:
“Meanwhile,
standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary
the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene …when Jesus knew that all was now
finished, he said (in order to fulfill the scripture), “I am thirsty.” …So they
put a sponge full of the wine on a branch of hyssop and held it to his mouth.
When Jesus had received the wine, he said, “It is finished.” Then he bowed his
head and gave up his spirit” (Jn. 19.25, 28-30).
As has now become clear, there are many “Marys”
mentioned in the New Testament – there were 3 at the foot of the cross, not to
mention Mary, the sister of Martha & Lazarus.
This was
the most traumatic episode of Jesus’ life, and Mary Magdalene – along with the
other women – was there. While the male
apostles are nowhere to be seen (with the exception of St. John, a.k.a. “the
beloved disciple”), the women are there, faithful to the end, refusing to
abandon Jesus at his most desperate and horrific moment. This was a terrifying situation – we can
imagine the angry shouts of the crowd, the bullying and cursing of the soldiers
tasked with carrying out the execution of these men, the screams of agony of the
three crucified ones, the horror and shame of seeing Jesus naked, bloody and
suffering unimaginable pain, all the while being completely helpless. Mary Magdalene not only loved Jesus, but she
also courageously refused to leave Jesus in spite of her fear, grief and horror.
5. Mary Magdalene was the first person to see the risen Jesus.
St. Mark
tells us:
“…after [Jesus] rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. She went out and told those who had been with him, while they were…weeping. But …they would not believe it” (Mk. 16.9-11).
This is the
most fascinating fact about Mary Magdalene – she was chosen by the risen
Jesus to be the first person to see him after his resurrection from the dead. After emerging from the tomb, Jesus didn’t go
looking for Peter or John or even his own mother. Jesus chose to reveal himself to Mary, as he
told her, before “ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your
God” (Jn. 20.17). This fact does indeed
suggest that Jesus & Mary Magdalene were close.
We have
already seen that St. John often alludes to the book of Genesis. St. John is telling the story of Jesus as the
story of new creation – remember the first words of his Gospel: “In the
beginning…” (compare Gn. 1.1). In
Genesis, God walks into the garden and asks Adam and Eve some questions: “Where
are you?” “Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”
(Gn. 3.9-11). Here, the risen Jesus
walks into a garden and asks, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking
for?” (20.15). Mary’s grief – and the
shock of having seen two angels – has made her disoriented. She hears the question, turns around and sees
someone standing there – she assumes that the voice belongs to the
gardener. Well, in a way, she’s not
wrong. St. John has already told us that
all things “came into being through the Word who became flesh” (1.3, 14). Mary doesn’t recognize Jesus until he speaks
her name, “Mary!” We’ve probably all had
the experience of someone calling our name in a crowded room buzzing with
conversation. Somehow, the sound of our
name cuts through all the noise. When
Mary hears her name, she knows who is speaking to her and she turns around
again and cries out “Teacher!” Was this
how it happened when Jesus had set her free from the 7 demons who had tormented
her mind and heart? Was it the sound of
her name cutting through the inner demonic shrieks that reminded her who she
was and re-integrated her psyche?
Perhaps…
6.
Mary
Magdalene was a woman (and was the first person to see the risen Jesus).
At first blush, this might strike us as a ridiculous repetition of the previous point; but remember that this story happened in a culture quite different from our own. The reaction of the apostles in St. Luke’s Gospel to what the women had to say about the resurrection is typical of the time: “these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them” (Lk. 24.11). In first-century Jewish culture, women were not allowed to serve as witnesses during a trial, because they were believed to be hopelessly unreliable. And yet, all of the Evangelists agree that it was the women were the first to visit the empty tomb and to see the risen Jesus – while the male apostles were hiding! This is fascinating because if the Evangelists had made up the story of Jesus’ resurrection, they wouldn’t have told it this way – with women as the primary witnesses! This is an embarrassing story for the apostles, and yet the Evangelists honestly report things the way they happened. Strange and awkward though it was, the women were the first to see the risen Jesus.
7. Mary Magdalene was the first apostle.
We all grew
up hearing about the 12 apostles – Peter, James & John, and all the
rest. But Mary was never on the
list. Strictly speaking, an “apostle” is
someone who saw the risen Jesus (cf. 1 Cor. 9.1, 15.3-9). An apostle is a “witness” to the resurrection. The risen Jesus showed himself first to Mary
Magdalene and tasked her with telling the other apostles that he was alive (Jn.
20.17-18). Mary has been called “the
apostle to the apostles”.
This is Mary
Magdalene – a woman whom Jesus had set free, to whom Jesus had given new
life. Mary was generous, courageous,
loyal and completely committed to Jesus.
She is a model of discipleship and Jesus trusted her – before anyone
else – to proclaim the news of his resurrection to those who were closest to him.
[1] In
1969, the identification of Mary Magdalene with Mary of Bethany and the
"sinful woman" was removed from the General Roman Calendar by Pope
Paul VI, but the view of her as a former prostitute has persisted in popular
culture: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Magdalene
(accessed on 27 April 2021).
[2] E.g.
the films Jesus of Nazareth (1977) and Son of God (2014). Also, The Passion of the Christ (2004)
portrays Mary as being the woman caught in adultery (cf. Jn. 8.1-11). The current show The Chosen continues
the tradition of portraying Mary Magdalene as a prostitute who plies her trade
in the “red quarter” of Capernaum.
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