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THE MISUNDERSTOOD MARY MAGDALENE!

As of this week, Dan Brown’s book The Da Vinci Code has been on the New York Times best seller list for 94 weeks, almost two years. It’s a page-turning suspense novel that gives the impression that here is an author that has done his homework. The cover sheet, in part, reads:
While in Paris on business, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon receives an urgent late-night phone call: the elderly curator of the Louvre has been murdered inside the museum. Near the body, police have found a baffling cipher. While working to solve the enigmatic riddle, Langdon is stunned to discover it leads to a trail of clues hidden in the works of Da Vinci -- clues visible for all to see ...
While it is suspenseful, it is also blasphemous of everything that you and I hold near and dear. An entire chapter, chapter 55, is devoted to discounting the Bible as simply the “product of man.” What is worse, if it could get worse, is that Jesus Christ is presented as a mere man, a man who evidently had eyes for Mary Magdalene.
A few chapter later, in chapter 58, Leigh Teabing, a wealthy man in search of the Holy Grail, shares his research into the matter with Sophie Neveu who’s trying to avoid being murdered and at the same time is seeking the Holy Grail. Dan Brown writes:
“ Hold on,“ Sophie said, “You told me the Holy Grail is a woman. The Last Supper is a painting of thirteen men.
“ Is it?” Teabing arched his eyebrows. “Take a closer look.”
Uncertain, Sophie made her way closer to the painting, scanning the thirteen figures – Jesus Christ in the middle, six disciples on His left, and six on His right. “They’re all men,” she confirmed.
“ Oh?” Teabing said. “How about the one seated in the place of honor, at the right hand of the Lord?”
Sophie examined the figure to Jesus’ immediate right, focusing in. As she studied the person’s face and body, a wave of astonishment rose within her. The individual had flowing red hair, delicate folded hands, and the hint of a bosom. It was, without a doubt . . . female.
“ That’s a woman!” Sophie exclaimed.
(A few paragraphs down, on the same page)
“ That, my dear,” Teabing replied, “is Mary Magdalene.”
Sophie turned. “The prostitute?”
Teabing drew a short breath, as if the word had injured him personally, “Magdalene was no such thing. That unfortunate misconception is the legacy of a smear campaign launched by the early Church. The Church needed to defame Mary Magdalene in order to cover up her dangerous secret – her role as the Holy Grail.”
“ Her role?”
“ As I mentioned,” Teabing clarified, “the early Church needed to convince the world that the mortal prophet Jesus was a divine being. Therefore, any gospels that described earthly aspects of Jesus’ life had to be omitted from the Bible. Unfortunately for the early editors, one particularly troubling earthly theme kept recurring in the gospels. Mary Magdalene.” He paused. “More specifically, her marriage to Jesus Christ.”
Then in chapter 82, Sophie and her friend, Robert Langdon are trying to understand the meaning of a poem. The poem reads:
In London lies a knight a Pope interred.
His labor’s fruit a Holy wrath incurred.
You seek the orb that ought be on his tomb.
It speaks of Rosy flesh and seed womb.
The next paragraph reads as follows:
The language seemed simple enough. There was a knight buried in London. A knight who labored at something that angered the Church. A knight whose tomb was missing an orb that should be present. The poem’s final reference – Rosy flesh and seeded womb – was a clear allusion to Mary Magdalene, the Rose who bore the seed of Jesus.
Whew! Anyone who is not acquainted with the Bible, or only casually acquainted with it, would walk away from this book with a very low view of the Church, of Christ Jesus, and of the Bible. In fact, I have spoke to two people in the last few weeks who tried reading the book and were so offended by it that they never finished it.
If they had finished it, and if they were naive, they would have also walked away with a very misunderstood view of Mary Magdalene. Who was she according to The Da Vinci Code? The bride of Christ who bore his seed, his child.
But Dan Brown isn’t the only culprit in our misunderstanding of Mary Magdalene. He is simply the latest one on a long list of individuals who have peddled misleading information about this Biblical figure.
In fact, if you wanted to pinpoint the date in which the world’s misunderstanding of Mary Magdalene became firmly entrenched you would have to go back of 591 A. D. when Gregory the Great, or as I’d put it Gregory the Misinformed, preached a homily (a sermon). In his sermon he lumped together three different women. He morphed the sinful woman of Luke 7, Mary of Bethany in John 11 -12, and Mary Magdalene into one woman.
This composite became part of the landscape, especially the artistic landscape, until 1969. Indeed, it was so much a part of our culture that even Webster defined Magdalene as a sinful woman; i. e. a prostitute.
Mag da lene 1. the Mary Magdalene. (As in) Mark 15:40, 16:9; and John 20:1 - 18. 2. A reformed prostitute. Also, Mag da len.
Mag da len 1. A reformed prostitute. 2. A house of refuge or reformatory for prostitutes.
However, in 1969 the Second Vatican Council, evidently after rereading the Bible, described Saint Mary Magdalene as “the one to whom Christ appeared after the resurrection.” and not Mary of Bethany nor the sinful woman. To correct the error of the past fourteen (14) centuries, they sent out a memo.
This “official” memo, as you can guess, has done little to change deep-seated perceptions. Mary Magdalene is still seen, by most, as a reformed prostitute. After all, she has been drawn that way for so long that we figure it must be true.
The Bible, however, gives us a different picture of this woman. In Luke 8:1 - 3 we read:
After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who have been cured of evil spirits and diseases; Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joanna the wife of Cuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.
At the tail end of Luke 7 we have the story of the sinful woman who washed Jesus’ feet with her tears (heart water), dried them with her hair, kissed them, and then, for good measure, poured perfume on them. Now if you have ever been close enough to someone’s feet to kiss them, you may think you have an understanding of why this woman poured perfume on Jesus’ feet. More seriously, all that she did was out of love and gratitude for what Jesus had done for her. She did it because Jesus was the living embodiment of the “good news.”
Now note the first two words of chapter 8. They read, “After this.” In other words, Luke is moving on to the next story. Chapter 8, even though it wouldn’t have been marked as such in the original manuscripts is just that – a new chapter. Granted, this new chapter falls on the heals of the sinful woman and for that reason some identify the two as one and the same person. “After this” means after he had chosen the twelve disciples, after he had spent time instructing them, after he had lifted the spirits of John the Baptist, after he had healed many, after he had raised the widow’s son in a town called Nain, and after he had been anointed by a sinful woman he went on a speaking tour. He traveled from one town to another proclaiming the good news.
Is the good news that you and I are bad to the bone? No! That’s old news. The good news is that Jesus has come into the world to redeem sinners. He came to give his life on behalf of those who deserved nothing but capital punishment. He came to provide forgiveness, peace, and everlasting life to all who trust in his name.
On this speaking tour, he was accompanied by the Twelve and by “some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases.” We need to pause and make a distinction between these two groups. The Twelve were called one-by-one, but they weren’t cured. None of them were delivered from demons or cured of some debilitating disease. They left their day jobs behind them, which admittedly was a courageous step for each of them, but they didn’t leave behind them defeated demons and/or discarded diseases.
The women on the other hand were cured but they weren’t called. They decided on their own to follow Jesus. They followed along out of sheer love and gratitude. He healed them, delivered them, and saved them because, as with the Twelve, he valued them. He gave their lives meaning in a culture that counted women simply as property. In following Jesus, these women made it clear to anyone who was watching the parade that the gospel was for both men and women!
The second thing we need to note about these women is that Mary Magdalene is listed first among them. In fact, when Mary the mother of Jesus and the others are mentioned Mary Magdalene is always first on the list with one exception. Don’t believe me? You can look at the following verses for yourself, but to save you some time I’ve listed them for you. They are:
Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons. Matthew 27:56

Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting opposite the tomb. Matthew 27:61

After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. Matthew 28:1

Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. Mark 15:40

Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid. Mark 15:57

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Mark 16:1

It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles. Luke 24:10

Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. John 19:25
The only time Mary was not listed first within a group of women was when Jesus addressed his mother from the cross. This tells us that Mary Magdalene was the leader among these women. It tells us that she is the one that would have been leading a Bible Study Fellowship program or scheduling and obtaining a speaker for an upcoming women’s conference.
It also tells us that she probably wasn’t a young woman. Do the math! Jesus was about thirty years old which meant that his mother must have been close to her mid-forties. Then, knowing that in order to lead this group Mary Magdalene had to be the same age or a little older than Mary the Mother, not to be confused with Mary the Other, Mary Magdalene must have been at least in her mid-forties. For you see, in her era, older was better!
Could she have been a prostitute? Perhaps, but there is a pretty powerful argument against her ever being one. Prior to Jesus coming along, she was infested with seven demons! Seven! This gives new meaning to being spirit filled. And while it may not be a record number, it is enough to create a very hellish existence within the unwilling host; i. e. the victim.
Since demons are evil spirits and therefore invisible, how did people know they were inside her? Here is a checklist that gives evidence of being inhabited by demons:
A compulsive desire to curse.
A revulsion against the Bible.
Thoughts of suicide or murder.
Bitterness and hatred.
Deep depression and despondency.
Horrific nightmares.
Violent, uncontrollable rage.
Superhuman strength.
Self-inflicted injuries.
Restlessness and insomnia.
Anguish and torment.
Antisocial behavior.
Now men think for a moment. If you were at the corner of Shouldn’t and Don’t in downtown Wherever looking for a prostitute, would you pick somebody up who appeared to be possessed by seven demons? I don’t think so, not unless you were possessed by demons yourself and were consequently prone toward self-destructive behavior.
On the plus side, her deliverance from seven demons explains her behavior. When Jesus came along, he cast out the demons, washed her clean, and sealed her up tight for himself. You can be sure that she was incredibly grateful to be set free from the unending torture of the devilish seven.
So it is not surprising that she committed herself to providing for Jesus and his disciples in any way that was within her means. She and the other women spent their own money for food, lodging, or whatever was needed to support the ministry. No, they probably weren’t wealthy enough to provide pizza for five-thousand (5,000) but they were evidently well-enough off to meet their own needs as well as providing for Christ and the disciples.
Do you remember that we are talking about minor major-characters in the Bible? Well, Mary Magdalene is definitely a minor character. But did she have a major impact in terms of advancing the kingdom? I think so!
First, this wasn’t a two-week commitment on her part. This was a commitment over the long haul. She gave of herself and her means until resurrection day. Day-in and day-out, she spent herself and her resources on Jesus’ ministry. This set Jesus free to proclaim the gospel.
Second, in David Baldacci’s book The Simple Truth, a small town lawyer said to a Supreme Court Justice, “You think the big issues are hard? Try dealing with the little ones.” Just so with Mary Magdalene, she dealt with all the little issues and did it so well that Jesus was able to focus on the big issues!

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