Today is the Feast Day of St. Mary Magdalene. This holy woman was maligned by Pope Gregory the (not so) Great when he declared with absolutely no scriptural basis that she was the "sinful woman" of Luke 7:36-50, which of course everyone in 951 assumed meant "whore." Thus began 1,400+ years of Mary Magdalene known as the reformed prostitute, a penitent sinner.
The Church in 1969 declared this identity was a misnomer, but her unfortunate and maligned reputation lives on. Mary Magdalene was one of Yeshua's close disciples, was connected with the Crucifixion, his burial and anointing, and the first to witness the Resurrection (depending on which Gospel you refer to). So... props to MM on her special day.
In trying to find a suitable image to put up here, I became aware that most of the paintings of her throughout the ages depicted her nude or semi-nude, sometimes with a Crucifix and a very seductive pose. I have a strong feeling those are more about the men who painted them than about the figure, herself.
However, that said, it's also interesting that many of the images of her greeting the Risen Messiah depict a longing and anticipation one feels in the presence of God (however you want to call Him/Her). This is the only aspect of these imaginings of Mary Magdalene that speaks to me, as a woman of newly rediscovered faith. The longing that every human feels for wholeness, for regeneration, for life itself is a longing for union with the Divine. It is fundamental to who we are, I believe. And in the images of Mary Magdalene reaching out to her Beloved Rabbi, her Messiah (anointed one), we can get a glimpse of this longing.
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| Appearance of Christ to Mary Magdalen after the Resurrection - Alexander Ivanov |
