By Jill Roberts and Michael Canalé
Today, we turn to the powerful and fascinating subject of Mary Magdalene – the woman she really was and the myth as well. Michael and I will write about each facet of this amazing player in the play Jesus was writing. We will begin with who she was NOT.
In speaking of and preparing for this blog, Michael said something which is so apt in a blog about this important Biblical figure. He said,
“God is the only one you can turn to to clean your slate.”
Certainly, in the case of Mary Magdalene, it is to God that she turned. We know that Jesus “cleaned her slate,” but the issue becomes, “Of what did he clean it and why does this matter so much?” As a threshold statement, we will rely on the Biblical record to answer this Biblical question. In doing so, let us go to the Gospel of Luke and our initial encounter with Mary Magdalene:
“After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been CURED of evil spirits and diseases: (Emphasis added as this word becomes critical a little later). Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out…these women were helping to support them out of their own means.”
(Luke 8:1-2) NIV
What a rich and relevant passage of Scripture this is! We recall that the play Jesus was writing was all about “proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom of God,” as set forth here. Further, the Twelve who were traveling with Jesus were all players. What is new is the burgeoning of who the central players were. Mary Magdalene (and other women we will study later) were, along with the Twelve, also “with him,” with Jesus. Like the Twelve, they were “with him,” spiritually and physically. However, with regard to Mary Magdalene and the other women, they were also with Jesus financially. As these verses state, they were women “of means.” It is, therefore, clear that Mary Magdalene was a woman of wealth and that Jesus’ mission to bring the Kingdom of God into the world, was a beneficiary of her largesse.
Having said this, let’s return to the issue of just what it was of which he healed her. The above-cited Scripture says that she had been possessed of seven demons and that Jesus had CURED her of this. This is all.
Wait a minute! What about forgiving her sin! Isn’t it common knowledge that Mary Magdalene was a notorious prostitute and sexually promiscuous before Jesus forgave her? Knowledge and evidence of this? No. Rumor and innuendo of it? Yes. As we earlier stated, she has been a subject of myth, a victim of widely held but false beliefs about her character. Let’s clear the record. NOWHERE in Scripture is there one iota of evidence that she was ever a prostitute or sexually immoral in any way. How did such slander emerge and convince so many of its veracity? There were certain theologians and even Church leaders who had an agenda and, because of this, created out of whole cloth a lie that got traction. Their apparent plan goes something like this:
1) Mary Magdalene was an influential disciple of Jesus.
2) Women should not wield influence in the history of Christianity.
3) We must blunt this impact.
4) Let’s say that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute.
5) This will minimize her influence.
6) This will validate a male-only policy for Church leadership.
7) This is in keeping with our view that prominent Church roles are reserved for men only.
From the third century, until very recent times, this was a widely-held opinion among Christian influencers. One might ask, what Scripture was relied on to establish such a view? During its vogue, how was the myth of Mary Magdalene having been a prostitute perpetuated? The lion share of our research has revealed that reliance was put on Luke 7:36-50, which describes the story of Jesus FORGIVING a “woman in that town who lived a sinful life.” The leap was made that Mary Magdalene was that woman and the rest is history. The story of the woman with the alabaster jar full of perfume and who poured it on Jesus’ feet, which she had wet with her tears and dried with her hair, was promoted as Mary Magdalene’s story.
The above misrepresentation was without merit. The woman with the alabaster jar had her sins “FORGIVEN.” Mary Magdalene was. “CURED,” of demon possession. Sexual impropriety is simply not part of her Biblical résumé. Regarding the woman who was forgiven, there was no mention of a name. With Mary Magdalene, there is always a direct reference to her by name – twelve times in Scripture. ( Much more than most of the Twelve) The evidence is entirely lacking that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute.
Michael always says, and wisely so, that, in life, after the pendulum has swung far to one side as to any given issue, you can be sure that, in time, it will swing just as far to the opposite side. Such is the case as to Mary Magdalene. While modern Biblical scholars have debunked the fallacy that Mary Magdalene had a history of prostitution, there have arisen equally fallacious myths about her. From having been characterized as a prostitute and without true influence with Jesus, ( a remarkable miscalculation as Jesus commissioned Saul while he was at the apex of his persecution of Christians), some have regrettably advanced the lie that Jesus was so influenced by Mary Magdalene that he married her and had a biological family with her.
Providentially, the pendulum has found a true north quite recently. Some mainstream Church denominations have declared her a saint. Pope Francis has declared a major feast day, June 22nd, in her honor. She has come into her own and at an auspicious time when Christian women are finding their places in Church leadership.
Having established who Mary Magdalene was not, the question becomes, “Who was she?” We will end this week’s blog with a preliminary profile. Mary Magdalene, a Jew, was from Magdala, a fishing town on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. So, like many of the Twelve, she was a Galilean. The name of her town means “tower” or “castle.” To come full circle in this blog, she traveled with Jesus, along with the other men and women who were his disciples. As we will see in two weeks, she was among the last at the cross and among the first at the tomb. She was singled out for special recognition by Jesus after his resurrection. Mary Magdalene is deserving of Pope Francis’ proclaiming a feast day in her honor. This week, we have defended her; in two weeks, we will tell her story.
Early next week, Michael and I will send out Thanksgiving Day prayers for the celebration of this beautiful holiday.
Postscript:
We are grateful to “Bible Study Tools,” and to Alan Bernstein and Issac Scharf’s article, “Mary Magdalene’s Image Gets a New Look from Church for a Modern Age.” Their extra-Biblical historical information has been very helpful in our putting together this blog.