Saturday, July 21, 2007
St. Mary Magdalene Festival at Christ Cathedral
Tomorrow is the feast day for Saint Mary Magdalene. The folks at Bridget's Place and Christ's Cathedral in downtown Houston have put together a Taize worship service based on Mary's story to celebrate her feast day. Rev. Mary Green has painted a gorgeous icon of Mary Magdalene that will be blessed at the ceremony. After the service, I'm giving a lecture on the Gospel of Mary and women in the early church. I am looking forward to the event, and hope that some of you who live in or around Houston might join us. Here is a link to all the information about it.
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3 comments:
In the story, Mary was created as the virgin mother of Jesus. But has Mary, as Mary Magdalene, also been demonised, like Judas? A backhander?
Regarding the above, there's something elusive about the way Mary is presented towards the end of the Gospels. Matthew's writer felt that Mary should be shunned at times, if not demonized. I.e., the "other" Mary who's mentioned at Mt 27:61 and again at 28:1 almost certainly was the mother Mary. If so, the name was purposely avoided. Why?
Three different Islamic historians have researched legends indicating that Jesus, Mary and Thomas (or Judas-Thomas) had traveled to Nisibis; another reported of his travel through the Iran region; a more recent explorer (O. M. Burke) learned the traditions in Herat, Afghanistan, that he had traveled through there and on to the Kashmir area. And so on.
The fact that Mary was along on much of this post-crucifixion travel could well have been such a strong rumor in early 2nd century as to cause her name to be avoided in the Passion text. She had been in on a most unacceptable heresy.
I believe there was only one woman present at the burial in what would have been a simple earth grave. Thus the prophet was placed 'in' the earth. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and 'Joses' and the other Mary were one and the same person, the prophet's wife. 'Magdalene' was a knickname meaning 'tower' recalling a time when Mary was imprisoned. Mary was the mother of the prophet's sons James and Simon (garbled to Joses here and earlier to John). The prophet was Judas (garbled to Zebedee). The person who buried him was his twin brother Matthias (garbled to Joseph of Arimathea) who then went to Rome with James and Simon. There Matthias raised a family including a son Josephus. And a little bird is telling me that Mark was first written in Latin. The prophets were pro Roman.
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