A kneeling Magdalene by Giotto in the Scrovegni Chapel (c. 1305) was especially influential. His sister,[e] his mother and his companion were each a Mary. The last passage is an optional bonus for youth that like digging deeper. PROUDLY CREATED WITH WIX.COM. The first part of the gospel deals with Jesus' parting words to his followers after a post-resurrection appearance. Until Jesus shows up, some youth may find the show a little slow. You can find episode one free on YouTube here, although there are lots of ads. In her first few scenes, people refer to her as Lilith. Mary Magdalene is considered to be a saint by the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran denominations. Over time, the label stuck and now many adaptations depict her this way. That is why he loved her more than us. [9] Unlike Paul the Apostle, Mary Magdalene left behind no known writings of her own. [260][261][262], According to Darrell Bock, the title of apostola apostolorum first appears in the 10th century,[152] but Katherine Ludwig Jansen says she found no reference to it earlier than the 12th, by which time it was already commonplace. sfn error: no target: CITEREFStrongStrong2008 (, Johnston, 64; the accounts are the Life in the, Hufstader, 3240, and throughout the rest of the article, See Johnston, 111115 on the rise and fall of Vzelay as a cult centre. [234][235][236] Instead, the film portrays her as Jesus' closest disciple[234][235][236] and the only one who truly understands his teachings. [133] None of these texts have survived to the present,[133][135] but they are mentioned by the early Christian heretic-hunter Epiphanius of Salamis in his Panarion. [176] Under the influence of stories about other female saints, such as Mary of Egypt and Pelagia,[176] painters in Italy during the ninth and tenth centuries gradually began to develop the image of Mary Magdalene living alone in the desert as a penitent ascetic. She turned the mass of her crimes to virtues, in order to serve God entirely in penance. [67][68][69] The original text of the gospel ends here, without the resurrected Jesus ever actually making an appearance to anyone. [6][7][8] Nonetheless, very little is known about her life. [110] Ehrman explains that, in the context of the Gospel of Philip, the kiss of peace is used as a symbol for the passage of truth from one person to another[116] and that it is not in any way an act of "divine foreplay". "[104] Simon Peter, annoyed at Mary's dominance of the conversation, tells Jesus, "My master, we cannot endure this woman who gets in our way and does not let any of us speak, though she talks all the time. Making it the largest crowd-funded media venture in entertainment history. [94] He does conclude later, however, that Mary Magdalene must have been one of the people who had an experience in which she thought she saw the risen Jesus,[95] citing her prominence in the gospel resurrection narratives and her absence everywhere else in the gospels as evidence.[95]. Acocella, Joan. The identification of Mary Magdalene with Mary of Bethany and the unnamed "sinful woman" was still a major controversy in the years leading up to the Reformation, and some Protestant leaders rejected it. [295][296] A tibia also kept at Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume is the object of an annual procession. [248] Apart from the Crucifixion, Mary was often shown in scenes of the Passion of Jesus, when mentioned in the Gospels, such as the Crucifixion, Christ Carrying the Cross and Noli me Tangere, but usually omitted in other scenes showing the Twelve Apostles, such as the Last Supper. [227] Mary is likewise portrayed as a reformed prostitute in Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's 1971 rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar. [70] This passage made no mention of Mary Magdalene, the other women, or the story of the empty tomb at all,[71][72] but rather credits Simon Peter with having been the first to see the risen Jesus. [231][226] Ki Longfellow's novel The Secret Magdalene (2005) draws on the Gnostic gospels and other sources to portray Mary as a brilliant and dynamic woman who studies at the fabled library of Alexandria, and shares her knowledge with Jesus. [169], In an eastern tradition supported by the western bishop and historian Gregory of Tours (c. 538 594), Mary Magdalene is said to have retired to Ephesus in Asia Minor with Mary the mother of Jesus, where they both lived out the rests of their lives. [170][171] Gregory states that Mary Magdalene was buried in the city of Ephesus. [45][41], All four canonical gospels agree that several other women watched Jesus' crucifixion from a distance, with three explicitly naming Mary Magdalene as present. [47] Ehrman, who previously accepted the story of Jesus' burial as historical, now rejects it as a later invention on the basis that Roman governors almost never allowed for executed criminals to be given any kind of burial[58] and Pontius Pilate in particular was not "the sort of ruler who would break with tradition and policy when kindly asked by a member of the Jewish council to provide a decent burial for a crucified victim. It hints at where the show is going: This passage takes place after Jesus' death and resurrection at the end of the Gospels. "[59], Post-modernist John Dominic Crossan has argued that Jesus' body was probably eaten by wild dogs. [16][19][20] Mary was, by far, the most common Jewish given name for girls and women during the first century,[16][c][21] so it was necessary for the authors of the gospels to call her Magdalene in order to distinguish her from the other women named Mary who followed Jesus. [75][82] His next words may be translated as "Don't touch me, for I have not yet ascended to my Father" or "Stop clinging to me, [etc.]" Did he prefer her to us? To clarify why the creators would want to add new characters and stories and leave some stories out, you could ask the following questions: What are some other popular adaptations of books into film or television? Why do you think The Chosen is trying to connect episode 1 to what will happen when Jesus is resurrected? The Benedictine Order always celebrated Mary of Bethany together with Martha and Lazarus of Bethany on July 29, while Mary Magdalene was celebrated on July 22. [118][119] The text was probably written over a century after the historical Mary Magdalene's death. [86] In the "shorter ending", which is found in very few manuscripts, the women go to "those around Peter" and tell them what they had seen at the tomb, followed by a brief declaration of the gospel being preached from east to west. In the Golden Legend, De Voragine dismisses talk of John and Mary being betrothed and John leaving his bride at the altar to follow Jesus as nonsense. She whom Luke calls the sinful woman, whom John calls Mary, we believe to be the Mary from whom seven devils were ejected according to Mark. Due to COVID restrictions, my youth group watched The Chosen online using Zoom. [256], During the Counter-Reformation and Baroque periods (late 16th and 17th centuries), the description "penitent" was added to the indication of her name on her feast day, July 22. The Gospel of Mary is a non-canonical text discovered in 1896 in a 5th-century papyrus codex written in Sahidic Coptic.This Berlin Codex was purchased in Cairo by German diplomat Carl Reinhardt.. The Gospel of Thomas, usually dated to the late first or early second century, was among the ancient texts discovered in the Nag Hammadi library in 1945. The Bible never suggests Mary . [65] Sanders affirms Jesus' burial by Joseph of Arimathea in the presence of Mary Magdalene and the other female followers as completely historical. [257] The Gospel reading in the Tridentine Mass was Luke 7:3650[258] (the sinful woman anointing the feet of Jesus), while in the present version of the Roman Rite of Mass it is John 20:12, 1118[259] (meeting of Mary Magdalene with Jesus after his resurrection). According to Gospel of Luke,[26] Jesus exorcised "seven demons" from Mary Magdalene. [282] Presbyterians honor her as the "apostle to the apostles"[283] and, in the book Methodist Theology, Kenneth Wilson describes her as, "in effect", one of the "first missionaries". Thayer and Smith. What do you think Mary's life was like before Jesus showed up? [211][212][213] Her medieval role as a patron and advocate became minimized[211] and her penitence became regarded as her most important aspect, especially in France and in the Catholic portions of southern Germany. In The Chosen, Nicodemus meets Mary Magdalene in Season 1, Episode 1. (which is Aramaic for "teacher"). Mary Magdalene is never called Lili or Lilith in the Bible. Not she with trait'rous kiss her Saviour stung,Not she denied Him with unholy tongue;She, while apostles shrank, could danger brave,Last at His cross, and earliest at His grave. Hopefully these questions will prove helpful as you watch episode 1 of The Chosen with your youth group. Mary Magdalene is never called Lili or Lilith in the Bible. Although the work is popularly known as the Gospel of Mary, it is not classed as a gospel by some scholars, who restrict the term 'gospel' to texts "primarily focused on recounting the teachings and . [274] The Mass and Liturgy of the Hours (Divine Office) remain the same as they were, except that a specific preface was added to the Mass to refer to her explicitly as the "Apostle to the Apostles". The second passage is the Scripture that Mary has written down: This passage that Mary's father taught her is from the Book of Isaiah. Here are seven things we DO know about Mary. [185][187] Fourteen years after Jesus' crucifixion, some pagans throw Mary, Martha, Lazarus (who, in this account, is their brother due to a conflation with Mary of Bethany), and two other Christians named Maximin and Cedonius onto a rudderless boat in the Mediterranean Sea to die. [322] Ehrman says that, if Jesus had been married to Mary Magdalene, the authors of the gospels would definitely have mentioned it, since they mention all his other family members, including his mother Mary, his father Joseph, his four brothers, and his at least two sisters. [171] Modestus, the Patriarch of Jerusalem from 630 until 634, describes a slightly different tradition that Mary Magdalene had come to Ephesus to live with the apostle John following the death of Mary the mother of Jesus. The 1552 edition omitted the feast of Saint Mary Magdalene, which was restored to the Book of Common Prayer only after some 400 years. The movie, which came out in the U.K. on March 16, tells the story of Mary Magdalene (Rooney Mara), detailing her fraught existence in Magdala as a single woman determined not to marry, before she . It includes sections for you to take notes on each episode's plot, your favorite quotes, personal connections, questions, and, of course, Scripture references. It is not about the sister of Saint Martha, nor about the sinful woman whose sins the Lord forgave. If you try it out, please let me know how it goes and if you have any feedback! [210] Zwingli demanded for the cult of Mary Magdalene to be abolished and all images of her to be destroyed. "[145] This may indicate that Mary Magdalene was already being conflated with the "sinful woman" in Luke 7:3650, though Tertullian never clearly identifies the woman of whom he speaks as Mary Magdalene. [28] In either case, Mary must have suffered from severe emotional or psychological trauma for an exorcism of this kind to have been perceived as necessary. It is not clear, if the text refers to Jesus' or his mother's sister, or whether the intention is to say something else. every time a new character showed up. For the most part, I just clarified who characters were (see my comment above) and occasionally I briefly explained a reference or allusion that was confusing to my youth. The eggs represent new life, and Christ bursting forth from the tomb. [176] Honorius mentions that, out of love for Jesus, Mary repented and withdrew into a life of quiet isolation. She was the woman taken into adultery, whom Christ set free lest the Jews stone her, and she was with Him in three places, in the temple, at the well, and in the garden. [185][186] Mary persuades the governor of the city not to offer sacrifices to a pagan god[185] and later persuades him to convert to Christianity after she proves the Christian God's power by successfully praying to Him to make the governor's wife pregnant. [210] John Calvin (1509 1564) not only rejected the composite Magdalene,[210][207] but criticized Catholics as ignorant for having ever believed in it. [172][173] Stories about noble saints were popular during this time period;[172] accordingly, tales of Mary Magdalene's wealth and social status became heavily exaggerated. [112] The Gospel of Philip also contains another passage relating to Jesus' relationship with Mary Magdalene. She is a central figure in later Gnostic Christian writings, including the Dialogue of the Savior, the Pistis Sophia, the Gospel of Thomas, the Gospel of Philip, and the Gospel of Mary. In particular, Mary is often shown naked in the legendary scene of her "Elevation", where she is sustained in the desert by angels who raise her up and feed her heavenly manna, as recounted in the Golden Legend. Enough said.). Mary then proceeds to describe the Gnostic cosmology in depth, revealing that she is the only one who has understood Jesus' true teachings. The story of . New Testament apocrypha writings mention Mary Magdalene. Dan Ben-Amos explains that although this is the first extant text that records the legend of Lilith, her story probably existed earlier: [Lilith's] story seems to hover at the edges of literacy with sporadic references. Almond, Philip C., 'Mary Magdalene: A Cultural History.' The specific demon is not named in Scripture. This comes out powerfully in the first Episode like to show you why is mary magdalene called lilith in the chosen here. [226][227][228] She is portrayed as one in Nikos Kazantzakis's 1955 novel The Last Temptation of Christ and Martin Scorsese's 1988 film adaptation of it,[227] in which Jesus, as he is dying on the cross, has a vision from Satan of what it would be like if he married Mary Magdalene and raised a family with her instead of dying for humanity's sins. One folk tradition concerning Mary Magdalene says that following the death and resurrection of Jesus, she used her position to gain an invitation to a banquet given by the Roman emperor Tiberius in Rome. Some have point to a heretical document the size of a business card known as " The Gospel of Jesus' Wife" as evidence for this. [287] `Abdu'l-Bah, the son of the founder of the religion, said that she was "the channel of confirmation" to Jesus' disciples, a "heroine" who "re-established the faith of the apostles" and was "a light of nearness in his kingdom". 14", "39 Articles of Religion XXII. Did anyone notice what it was that made her recognize him? ", Evangelical Lutheran Worship, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, 2006, p. 57, Juliet Thompson, I, Mary Magdalene, Foreword, `Abdu'l-Bah, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 420, `Abdu'l-Bah, Bah' World Faith `Abdu'l-Bah Section, p. 385, `Abdu'l-Bah, Tablets of `Abdu'l-Bah Vol.2, p. 467, Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, "Koinonos Meaning in Bible - New Testament Greek Lexicon - King James Version", "Panarion of Epiphanius of Salamis, Book 1", "Picturing the Magdalene: How Artists Imagine the Apostle to the Apostles", "Lady Gaga says she 'always wanted to play' Mary Magdalene from the Bible", "FKA twigs' new fragrance fuses the virgin and the whore", "Deborah Rose, "So, Really Who was She? Why do you think The Chosen depicted Mary as a prostitute? [1] She is mentioned by name twelve times in the canonical gospels, more than most of the apostles and more than any other woman in the gospels, other than Jesus' family. With that, Mary's image was, according to Susan Haskins, author of Mary Magdalene: Myth and Metaphor, "finally settledfor nearly fourteen hundred years,"[164] although in fact the most important late medieval popular accounts of her life describe her as a rich woman whose life of sexual freedom is purely for pleasure. Jesus heals her evil spirit(s) at the end of Episode 1. [236] The film, which described as having a "strongly feminist bent",[235] was praised for its music score and cinematography,[237] its surprising faithfulness to the Biblical narrative,[235] and its acting,[235][234] but was criticized as slow-moving,[234][235][237] overwritten,[237] and too solemn to be believable. [47] Luke 23:49 mentioned a group of women watching the crucifixion, but did not give any of their names. The story of Jesus is told in four gospels. Mary Magdalene was the first eyewitness of the Risen Christ, and for this reason she was also the first to bear witness to him before the Apostles. [127][128] Andrew the Apostle challenges Mary, insisting, "Say what you think about what she said, but I do not believe the savior said this. Narrative Ambiguity & Charitable Reading, The Chosen: 6 Good Friday & Easter Episodes, The Rings of Power, LOTR, and Bible Adaptation, Amazon Prime's The Rings of Power & The Challenges of Biblical Adaptation, In Defense of The Chosen and Other Christian Movies, Books, & Media (Part 1), In Defense of The Chosen and Other Christian Movies, Books, & Media (Part 2), Imagining Mary Magdalene (5 More Bible Adaptations While You Wait for The Chosen Season 2), Yussif, Jairus, & Shmuel in The Chosen (Adapting Biblical Characters), Reflecting on The Chosen Season 3 & Anticipating Season 4: What Worked & What to Fix, Ears to Hear (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 7 with Youth or Small Group), The Chosen Season 3 Episode 7 & Episode 8: Recap, Review, & Analysis, The Feeding of the 5,000 (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 8 with Youth or Small Group), Pontius Pilate & His Wife in The Chosen (Adapting Biblical Characters), Intensity in Tent City (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 6 with Youth or Small Group), Clean Part 2 (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 5 with Youth or Small Group), Clean Part 1 (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 4 with Youth or Small Group), Physician, Heal Thyself (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 3 with Youth or Small Group), Two by Two (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 2 with Youth or Small Group), Little James in The Chosen & Scripture (Adapting Biblical Characters), Homecoming (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 1 with Youth or Small Group), 2022 BY THE BIBLE ARTIST. They are the first to find it empty. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2023). "[129][130] Peter responds, saying, "Did he really speak with a woman in private, without our knowledge? The Gospel of Luke chapter 8 lists Mary Magdalene as one of the women who traveled with Jesus and helped support his ministry "out of their resources", indicating that she was probably wealthy. Jesus said: Behold, I shall lead her, that I may make her male, in order that she also may become a living spirit like you males. What did these seven devils signify, if not all the vices? [168][206] Luther and Huldrych Zwingli (1484 1531) both supported the composite Magdalene. However, some scholars believe the word would be better translated as demoness and see it is a reference to a Mesopotamian spiritual being. However, they were never admitted to the canon of the New Testament. In these myths, Lilith was banished by . Jane Schaberg adds Geoffrey of Vendme (c. When Nicodemus encounters her, we discover that the evil spirit that is possessing her is named Lilith. In chapter 8, when the Pevensie children are speaking to Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, they learn that a human must rule Narnia, and while she claims to be human, the White Witch is not at all human. [68][69][67] Then the risen Jesus himself appeared to the women as they were leaving the tomb and told them to tell the other disciples that he would meet them in Galilee. [47] Mark 15:47 lists Mary Magdalene and Mary, mother of Jesus as witnesses to the burial of Jesus. They were fully engaged by the show on the level of entertainment but also seemed solidify their understanding of important gospel events and figures, as well as the cultural context. 1. (ex. The Eastern Orthodox churches also commemorate her on the Sunday of the Myrrhbearers, the Orthodox equivalent of one of the Western Three Marys traditions. "[109] Jesus responds, "They are like children who have settled in a field which is not theirs. [318], Ehrman states that the historical sources reveal absolutely nothing about Jesus' sexuality[319] and that there is no evidence whatsoever to support the idea that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were married or that they had any kind of sexual or romantic relationship. Jesus is said to have cast seven evil spirits out of her (, As I noted above, in the Bible there is no indication that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute. [86] This "very forced" ending contradicts the last verse of the original gospel, stating that the women "told no one". [275], The 1549 Book of Common Prayer had on July 22 a feast of Saint Mary Magdalene, with the same Scripture readings as in the Tridentine Mass and with a newly composed collect: "Merciful father geue us grace, that we neuer presume to synne through the example of anye creature, but if it shall chaunce vs at any tyme to offende thy dyuine maiestie: that then we maye truly repent, and lament the same, after the example of Mary Magdalene, and by lyuelye faythe obtayne remission of all oure sinnes: throughe the onely merites of thy sonne oure sauiour Christ." [59][60] Ehrman notes that this was the most common fate for victims of crucifixion[61] but states that it is impossible to know for certain what happened to Jesus' body once it was removed from the cross. [203], In the middle of the fourteenth century, a Dominican friar wrote a biography of Mary Magdalene in which he described her brutally mutilating herself after giving up prostitution,[197] clawing at her legs until they bled, tearing out clumps of her hair, and beating her face with her fists and her breasts with stones. [289] `Abdu'l-Bah considered her to be the supreme example of how women are completely equal with men in the sight of God and can at times even exceed men in holiness and greatness. It is widely accepted among secular historians that, like Jesus, Mary Magdalene was a real historical figure. [186] On the last day of her life, Maximin, now the bishop of Aix, comes to her and gives her the Eucharist. [27][28][29] That seven demons had possessed Mary is repeated in Mark 16:9,[30][31] part of the "longer ending" of that gospel this is not found in the earliest manuscripts and is actually a second-century addition to the original text, possibly based on the Gospel of Luke. [107] Many of these sayings are similar to ones in the canonical gospels,[108] but others are completely unlike anything found in the New Testament. It is clear, that the woman previously used the unguent to perfume her flesh in forbidden acts. I offer my work for free and rely on the generous support of readers like you. "[136][134][137] This story was supposedly the basis for the Borborite Eucharist ritual in which they allegedly engaged in orgies and drank semen and menstrual blood as the "body and blood of Christ" respectively. There were three who always walked with the Lord: Mary, his mother, and her sister, and Magdalene, who was called his companion. Why was Mary Magdalene called Lilith in The Chosen? For every woman who makes herself male shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. Episode 8 Guide: The Woman at the Well, Eden, & Zohara, Christmas with The Chosen: The Messengers, The Chosen Season 2 Controversy (Jesus, the Bible, & the Process of Inspiration), Should Nicodemus Kneel? [296], Her left hand relic is kept in the Simonopetra Monastery on Mount Athos. Jusino based his argument largely on the Nag Hammadi Gnostic books, rejecting the view of Raymond E. Brown that these books were later developments, and maintaining instead that the extant Gospel of John is the result of modification of an earlier text that presented Mary Magdalene as the Beloved Disciple. [75][81][83] She did not see anyone, but immediately ran to tell Peter and the "beloved disciple",[75][83] who came with her to the tomb and confirmed that it was empty,[75][82] but returned home without seeing the risen Jesus. Two brothers struggle with a Jewish tax collector over their debts to Rome; a Pharisee confronts a demon-possessed woman in the "Red Quarter" of Capernaum. She is demon possessed and it is implied that she has adopted the name of the demon that possesses her. [166], The "composite Magdalene" was never accepted by the Eastern Orthodox churches, who saw only Mary the disciple, and believed that after the Resurrection she lived as a companion to Mary the mother of Jesus, and not even in the West was it universally accepted. Of Purgatory", "Selected Topics of Comparison in Christianity and the Bah Faith", The Incorrupt Left Hand of St. Mary Magdalene, "Mary Magdalene: Author of the Fourth Gospel? [91] He concludes that the idea that early Christians would have had "no motive" to make up the story simply "suffers from a poverty of imagination"[92] and that they would have had all kinds of possible motives,[93] especially since women were overrepresented in early Christian communities and women themselves would have had strong motivation to make up a story about other women being the first to find the tomb. You can find episode one, The Bible includes Mary Magdalene in a list of women who had evil spirits healed by Jesus. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Jesus were the most important women in Jesus's life. [67][68][69] An earthquake occurred and an angel dressed in white descended from Heaven and rolled aside the stone as the women were watching. Home; About; Schedules; News & Events; Contact Us The Chosen (TV Series 2017- ) Elizabeth Tabish as Mary Magdalene, Lilith. [4][1] Elaborate medieval legends from Western Europe then emerged, which told exaggerated tales of Mary Magdalene's wealth and beauty, as well as of her alleged journey to southern Gaul (modern-day France). [234][237] It was also criticized by many Christians, who were offended by the film's use of extracanonical source material. If you're like me, watching The Chosen is about more than entertainment. [88] In fact, if they had made the story up, they would have had strong motivation to make Peter, Jesus' closest disciple while he was alive, the discoverer of the tomb instead. [82][75] According to John 20:1118, Mary, now alone in the garden outside the tomb, saw two angels sitting where Jesus' body had been. Many characters and stories are based on events in the Gospels, but there are also characters and events that the creators made up to tie things together. As Mary of Bethany, she is shown as present at the Resurrection of Lazarus, her brother, and in the scene with Jesus and her sister Martha, which began to be depicted often in the seventeenth century, as in Christ in the House of Martha and Mary by Velzquez. [294], Many of the alleged relics of the saint are held in Catholic churches in France, especially at Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume, where her skull (see above) and the noli me tangere are on display; the latter being a piece of forehead flesh and skin said to be from the spot touched by Jesus at the post-resurrection encounter in the garden. [174][173] In the tenth century, Odo of Cluny (c. 880 942) wrote a sermon in which he described Mary as an extraordinarily wealthy noblewoman of royal descent. If you liked this post, you might want to check out some of my other posts on The Chosen and Bible adaptation.