Easter: Mary of Magdala.
John 20: 1 -18
Not feminism to the fore but humankind!
Mary Magdalene is one of the stand-out persons in the Gospel story. She was a follower of Jesus, present at the Crucifixion, one of two witnesses who saw where Jesus was buried [Mk 15: 47 & Mt 27:61], and one of the first witnesses of the empty tomb.
Pope Gregory the Great in 1591 proclaimed that Mary Magdalene was a reformed prostitute, although there is no NT evidence for that, except imaginative conjecture. We know so little about her and yet she has featured in films and literature as a repentant prostitute, wife of St John the Evangelist and features in the Holy Grail fiction. The evidence for these depictions of Mary relies largely on imagination. The current film, Mary Magdala, portrays her more sensitively, but still questionably.
What do we know about Mary Magdalene? We must rely on our four Gospel accounts, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, because they have been rigorously critiqued and proven trustworthy. They form the ground for all our discussions. But the Gospel accounts are not straightforward history books, so we must read carefully and sensitively.
Firstly, we know is that she is mentioned 14 times, which is more than any other woman in the NT. This doesn’t mean she is the most important only that she is significant. Mary, the mother of Jesus, is the important one.
Secondly, Mary is a disciple of Jesus. Luke tells us; 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. [Luke 8: 1-3] Both Luke and Mark tell us that Mary had seven demons driven out of her. We can say no more than that she was one of those disciples who had been healed through Jesus’ ministry. Her link to Jesus is deeply personal.
Thirdly, she is present at the Crucifixion. It is at this point in Jesus’ ministry Mary Magdalene emerges more strongly. Matthew, Mark and John mention that the women disciples of Jesus were present at the crucifixion and Mary Magdalene is specifically named along with some other Marys and Salome.
Fourthly, Mary Magdalene is a witness to where Jesus was buried along with another Mary [Mt 27:61; Mark 15:47; Lk 23:55]
Fifthly, Mary is one of the first people to see the empty tomb. All the Gospels mention her. She is the first person to see Jesus according to John and Mark [Jn 20: 1, 16; Mk 8: 9]. However Luke suggests Cleopas and another disciple were first [Lk 24: 13-35] and Paul says Peter was the first [1 Cor 15:4]
Sixth, she close to Jesus. John’s account of the Gospel provides us with an intimate picture. After Peter had looked and seen the empty tomb then he rushed back to tell the others [Jn 20: 10]. Mary remained behind and she mistakes Jesus for the gardener before he says her name. Then she recognizes Jesus [Jn 20: 11ff]. Here we see the intimacy of friendship, a common mind and spirit that arises in teacher–disciple relationships.
Now having listened to the simple statements in the Scriptures let us look at the role of love and what love uncovers.
Mary Magdalene must have loved Jesus much. I don’t know if it was the fact that she had been rescued from the demons that possessed her. There is a spiritual truth here. Those who have been forgiven or healed greatly by Jesus will love Jesus deeply. Mary’ closeness to Jesus also may have as much to do with a natural connection of spirits and minds. I don’t want to muddy the interpretation of her love with our crass and cynical imaginations that are often more akin to the projections of our own poverty of mind. Mary loved Jesus.
We saw the film, “Mary Magdala” last Saturday. It is an interesting film because it shows Mary of Magdala to be a strong individual who did not conform to her community’s conventions that expected women to marry, bear children and be a homemaker. She is portrayed as a spiritual person who thought deeply. Of course her unconventional approach alienates her and she brings shame on her family, but her father loves her. She meets Jesus who heals her of what appears to be depression in the film. She then follows him. The film portrays her as the disciple who understands what Jesus is teaching, unlike the men who are looking for a military messiah to conquer the Romans. The film makes much of her sympathy with what Jesus is on about, may be too much. But I do think the women may have understood Jesus better than the men, because the men were more likely to be caught up in the military solution to their problem. But I don’t think it is simply a black and white situation. However we should not underestimate the role of women amongst Jesus’ disciples.
When I reflect on Mary Magdalene I think of Mary of Bethany, who also was close to Jesus. Some women like Mary Magdalene and Mary of Bethany, sister to Martha and Lazarus, were special friends of Jesus. In Mary of Bethany we see that there is an intellectual and spiritual connection. I suspect this might be the case with Mary Magdalene as well. All his disciples loved him in various ways: some with more connectedness than others. There is John, the beloved disciples, and there is Peter too. Jesus loved: he loved people. No wonder people loved him. The woman who anointed his feet with expensive ointment and wiped them with her hair loved Jesus. Some think that unnamed woman was Mary Magdalene, but the connection is not conclusive. Jesus loved and people loved Jesus.
Now when Mary went to the tomb and found it empty she ran to tell Peter and John. They got up and ran to look. John outran Peter. Mary must have followed at a fair pace. John gets there first but waits for Peter who goes into the tomb first. Then John followed and when he saw the grave clothes he believed. [Jn 20:8] John didn’t need to see Jesus. He loved Jesus and he understood when he saw the grave clothes.
The NT scholar, William Barclay comments on this account from John 18.
“The part that love plays in this story is extraordinary. It was Mary, who loved Jesus so much, who was first at the tomb. It was John, the disciple whom Jesus loved and who loved Jesus, who was first to believe in the Resurrection. That must always be John’ great glory. He was the first person to understand and to believe. Love gave him eyes to read the signs, and a mind to understand.”
Here we have the great law of life. We cannot really interpret the thought of another person, unless there is a bond of sympathy. This applies to all fields. No one can lecture or write effectively on the life and work of a person with whom they have no sympathy. It is clear when the conductor of an orchestra is in sympathy with the music of the composer whose work they are conducting.
Love is the great interpreter. Love can grasp the truth when intellect is left groping and uncertain. Love can realize the meaning of a thing when research is blind. It is told that once a young artist brought a picture of Jesus, which he had painted, to Gustave Doré, the 19th Century French artist, for his verdict upon it. Doré was slow to give his opinion; but at last he gave it in one sentence: “You don’t love Him, or you would paint Him better.” We can neither understand Jesus or help others to understand Him, unless we take our hearts to Him as well as our minds.” (unquote)
Following Jesus is more than faith in him
and much more than knowing about him:
following Jesus is loving him.
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Peter C Whitaker, Leighmoor UC: 01/04/2018
/ www.leighmoorunitingchurch.org
