Chapter 1 - Mary Magdalene
Apostle to the Apostles
… ‘I know a lot more than just your name.’ he said, ‘I know the hurt you have suffered, the torment you are living through, and so much more.’ I’m sure I heard a catch in his voice as he said this. ‘You are safe here,’ he repeated, ‘Come, I can help you.’ …
Bible Passage - John 20:1-18
1 Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. 2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, ‘They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!’
3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7 as well as the cloth that had been wrapped round Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. 8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) 10 Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.
11 Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb 12 and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
13 They asked her, ‘Woman, why are you crying?’
‘They have taken my Lord away,’ she said, ‘and I don’t know where they have put him.’ 14 At this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realise that it was Jesus.
15 He asked her, ‘Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?’
Thinking he was the gardener, she said, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.’
16 Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’
She turned towards him and cried out in Aramaic, ‘Rabboni!’ (which means ‘Teacher’).
17 Jesus said, ‘Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.”’
18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: ‘I have seen the Lord!’ And she told them that he had said these things to her.
All scripture quotations taken from
The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV®
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Background
We don’t know much about Mary Magdalene. Her surname may imply that she was from the town of Magdala on the shores of Galilee. Luke and Mark record that she had seven demons cast out from her (Luke 8:2 and Mark 16:9), and Luke lists her among the women that helped support the ministry of Jesus out of their own means (Luke 8.3). But Mary Magdalene is named in all four Gospels as discovering the empty tomb. Matthew, Mark and John record her as being the first witness of the risen Jesus and the first to be commissioned by him to share the news of the resurrection (Matt 27:9, Mark 16:9, John 20:14).
The little information we have on Mary Magdalene raises many questions… Where did Jesus meet her and cast out the seven demons? How did she come to have seven demons in the first place? When in his ministry did Mary start following Jesus and helping to support the disciples?
There is a lot that we don’t know, but there are some things that are clear:
Mary was not alone in her first trip to the tomb. John does not record who was with her, but verse 2 implies that there was more than just Mary, ‘…we do not know where they have laid him’. Matthew, Mark and Luke record some of the other women that were with her.
Of all of Jesus’ followers, it is the women who are brave enough to leave the relative safety of the place they are staying and venture to the tomb
Whilst all his disciples are full of grief, fear, guilt, and regret, it was the women who thought about doing something and serving Jesus one more time
It was the women that Jesus chose to be the first witnesses that he had risen from the dead. Jesus subverted the norms of his day, both when he was born and when he was raised from the dead:
When he was born, it was the shepherds that first received the news… a poor, marginalised group
When he was raised, it was the women who first received the news. Women in his day were second-class citizens, but it was women who were entrusted with the most important message in the history of the world.
In some cultures in the 21st century, women’s rights have not moved on from biblical times. And although women in the developed world enjoy many more freedoms today, there are still vast inequalities between the genders.
In the first-century Roman world, girl children weren’t wanted and were often ‘exposed’[1] at birth. Judaism was unusual in teaching that women, as well as men, bear the image of God (Genesis 1:27). However, women were regarded as the property of their men (fathers or husbands), their testimony was treated as being the same as from a minor, and a husband could divorce his wife for something as simple as burning the supper.
Jesus’ choice to welcome women to follow him and travel with him would have been scandalous. But he did. The longest conversation we have between Jesus and another person is recorded in chapter 4 of John’s gospel… and it is a conversation with a Samaritan woman (not just a woman, but a woman of a race that the Jews detested). Jesus welcomed Mary (sister of Martha) to sit at his feet and learn from him (Luke 10:39).
Jesus treated women as people that had their own identities. He trusted them during his ministry and entrusted them with the message of his resurrection. He planted seeds of change that are still slowly bearing fruit today.
In his letter to the churches in Galatia, St Paul writes:
There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28)
The new communities following Jesus were made up of people that would never normally mix, people who would traditionally see themselves as being very different in the pecking order. The Jews regarded themselves as distinctly different and superior to the Gentiles, and a free person was considered worth infinitely more than a slave. The contrast between men and women was seen in the same light as Jews/Gentiles and slave/free. However, Paul makes it clear that they are all equal… it is sad that many parts of the Church have still not taken on board this message.
I believe that Jesus’ choice to appear first to the women was deliberate and massively subversive for his day. The fact that Mary Magdalene is named in the gospels would mean that she was a well-known figure among those who followed Jesus. It is highly likely that she was a prominent leader in the early church.
This chapter includes an imagined backstory for Mary that includes an abusive father. Sadly, for many people, this is a reality they have lived through or are living with. If you find this story brings up some difficult issues for you and you want to talk with someone, there are many different helplines and charities that can help.
All forms of domestic abuse are not acceptable in any situation.
If you’re experiencing domestic abuse and feel frightened of, or controlled by, a partner, an ex-partner or a family member, it’s important to remember that it’s not your fault, and there is no shame in seeking help.
It may seem like a difficult step to take, but support is available and #YouAreNot Alone.
Free, confidential support and advice are available to victims and their concerned family members or friends, 24 hours a day.
If you need to speak with someone, you can contact:
The Coventry diocese safeguarding team on 024 7652 1345 or safeguarding@coventry.anglican.org
Refuge’s National Domestic Abuse Helpline 24 hours a day on 0808 2000 247
Before reading on, read the passage from John’s Gospel again and then imagine that you have Mary herself before you, sharing her story, witnessing directly to what she saw and felt on that day.
As you read through the Bible passage and the story:
Take time to notice how you feel about what you are reading.
Are there things in the story that jar (or resonate) with you? Why is that?
If you put yourself in Mary’s shoes, how would you react?
And the end of the story, before moving on to the thoughts and questions for reflection, pause and ask God what he might be wanting you to take from this story.
If you find it helpful, make notes in a journal as you read and pray.
If you’d prefer to listen to Mary’s story being read, there is an option to play a recording at the top of the next page. If you do that, please scroll down to the end to see the questions for reflection.
[1] Put out in the wilderness and left to die.
Click the link below to read Mary’s story and scroll down to the end of the story for some questions for reflection.