Mary Magdalene, Holy Hooker

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about the symbolism surrounding Mary Magdalene's hair color. But I knew I had more to write; I want to share my thoughts on Mary herself. It's not surprising, given that Mary Magdalene is  a fascinating biblical figure that has stayed in public consciousness for about two thousand years.

I was raised in a Jewish home, and it was only around the age of twelve or thirteen that I began to learn more about Christianity. At some point, I learned about Mary Magdalene. First, I learned that she had been a prostitute saved by Jesus. Soon, I started to hear snippets about Mary Magdalene as an ancient Goddess figure and High Priestess defamed by "The Patriarchy" (which is to feminists what "The Man" is to African-Americans).  And finally, as Jesus' wife and possible divine consort.



A lot of women feel empowered by the view that Mary Magdalene was Jesus' wife rather than a repentant prostitute. On the one hand, this makes perfect sense. Mary Magdalene would have made a fine wife for Jesus. If she was, indeed a reformed prostitute or even simply a hairdresser (hairdressers, known by the word medgaddlela, similar to magdalene, were regarded as people of 'questionable' morals), Mary would have been an acceptable wife for an itinerant mamzer (bastard) preacher. And it is inspiring to view Jesus as a man who loved and accepted women in all aspects of female life, not just as virgins or repentant hookers.

On the other hand, I feel ambivalent about this viewpoint. One of the things that drew me to Jesus was reading about someone who would try to defend anyone, even a prostitute. I was not used to seeing that in my religious education. I had grown up with stories of sexual women who were killed in the Old Testament. Learning about Christianity's Virgin Mary wasn't much better. No real woman could compete with her, and it was clear to me that she was a tool of "The Patriarchy" to keep women down.

No, the "fallen woman" in John 8:1 -11 was something new for me. It touched me so deeply. I think part of my love affair with Christianity lies in understanding God as a being whom I don't have to hide from. A God who understands and accepts all aspects of humanity. I had grown up learning that God was mighty, strong, vindictive and jealous. I learned that there were two choices with God - behave or be killed. To imagine God as a homeless human bum who'd had the crap beaten out of them and hung crying, bloody and exposed touched me very deeply. Similarly, I found the story of a holy woman who had been in a very degrading lifestyle an important inclusion in the Christian narrative. Rather than trying to be mighty, powerful, perfect, and pure, the stories of Jesus and Mary Magdalene represent the highest ideals of compassion, courage, unconditional love, acceptance, and finding the holy in every beingd, King, Queen, homeless bum, or a desperate hooker trying to survive another day on the streets.

At this point you may be thinking - hold on, Mamzer. Wait just a doggone minute. Mary wasn't a prostitute. Haven't you been keeping up with official Catholic doctrine, or at least the latest Hollywood movies? Yes, I have. The Catholic Church now officially recognizes Mary Magdalene as a woman who was not the "fallen woman" named in the Gospels.

The thing is, there are several ways to study a Biblical text. There are interpretations that focus on the literal, mythological, historical, and so on. I'm fond of reading Biblical subtext. You know, the stuff that  screams, "Read between the lines! Look at what I'm really saying!" So let's look at what the word whore implies.

Most people will say that it refers to a woman, or in some cases a man, who trades sexual favors for money. Some might also include the trading of material goods or non-sexual services as part of the exchange.

I have a different interpretation. To me, the term whore, i.e. prostitute, does, indeed, mean one who enxchanges sexual favors for goods, services or currency. But that is only one definition. The word whore means anyone who acts in conflict with what their higher self (or "deep self", as Starhawk might call it) knows to be true. Since it is probably impossible for anyone to live up to their highest ideals and act fearlessly at every moment in time, we are all, by my definition, whores. Harsh, I know.

But there is yet another definition for the word whore which I've learned from experience and intuition. In my opinion, a whore is a female who is not under the control of a man. Think about it. In the ancient world, daughters of powerful men were regarded as property to be traded. Men wanted the best property, still in it's original packaging (i.e., not previously penetrated). What happened when daughters refused to act as the tradable objects their fathers wanted? They became fallen women.

Joan of Arc, another famous virgin, was called a whore on the battlefield. The Jewish female scholar, Beruriah, was also "tainted" by the scandal of prostitution. In my view, the charge of whoredom brings us back, surprisingly, to the very root of the word Virgin. One original interpretation meant a woman who was not owned by any man. In other words, being a virgin didn't have anything to do with sexual acts. It had to do with self-determination. In refusing to be pimped by their fathers, women became unowned, uncontrolled, and unaccountable, i.e. whores, i.e. virgins.

This leads to another perspective: archetypally, Mary Magdalene and the Virgin Mary are one and the same. To me, this has always been obvious. Now, I know that the story reads the Virgin as Jesus' mother, and that a Gnostic interpretation of this would also include Mary Magdalene as Jesus' wife. I know what you're thinking, and no, I'm not implying Jesus was in an incestuous marriage. I am asserting that there are different ways to read a text. Some of them are valid despite being illogical.

Alright, let's go back to the debate over Mary Magdalene as a prostitute versus disciple, versus wife of Jesus, versus Goddess in disguise, versus all four combined. Where's the conflict? If Jesus can be human, divine, and a homeless bum all at the same time, why can't Mary Magdalene be an ex-hooker and a wife? Is an ex-prostitute "pure" enough to be a follower of Jesus, but not enough to be his wife? More than that, why can't Mary Magdalene be the Goddess herself?

Of course, I would prefer Jesus didn't have a significant other. If Jesus is supposed to be divine, then I would want him all to myself. Selfish, I know. Barring that, I would at least want to be as close to him as anyone else might be. I will confess I would be jealous of Mary Magdalene as Jesus' wife. I guess I have more in common with the apostle Peter than I thought.

Another upsetting aspect of the "holy bloodline" legends concerns the would-be offspring of Jesus and Mary. Some legends say they had children which carried on a holy bloodline from which European royalty is descended. I find this idea off-putting. In my opinion no one person or group can lay a "special" claim to God. Although this contracts both Jewish and Christian doctrine, I believe God loves all and is the Mother/Father/Beloved/Child of all beings. So when I read about legends of a "royal" family, I'm left cold. I think we are all equal children of God. One is no more or less "holy" than another.

I think, ultimately, that my own journey in Christianity will change as I grow. One of the things people are trying to rectify through Mary Magdalene is the denial of female holiness. I don't feel comfortable expressing all of my opinions on gender in Christianity because I'm still learning about myself. I studied Neo-Paganism in my teens and sought to love myself and grow through The Great Mother Goddess. Over the years, I have begun acknowledging and exploring my relationship to the divine masculine.  All of my life experiences, whether good or bad, color how I view Jesus, Mary Magdalene, the Mother Goddess, and all other aspects of spirituality and doctrine. For now, I'll content myself with having shared a few of my insights. I would also like to know more about others' relationship with Mary Magdalene. What's your opinion?

Further Reading

The Thunder, Perfect Mind
An amazing text from the Nag Hammadi library. I connected to it on a personal level immediately.

The Gospel of Mary Magdalene
Self-explanatory.

Santuario San Rafael Rosary, Margaret Starbird's Rosary, Northernway Rosary Page
A sample of sites with prayers and rosaries about Mary Magdalene.

Catholic Litany of St. Mary Magdalene
Self-explanatory.




Prayer to Mary Magdalene
(This material is my own. Please do not reproduce it without permission.)


Hail Mary, full of grace
the Lord-Love is with you
Blessed are you among women
and Blessed is the fruit of thy womb
Blessed art thou
Forgiven art thou
Cherished art thou
Show me the way to sweet Jesus
Tender Child, tender Woman
Girl who whored to survive
Girl who was called and told you were the lowest of the low
Sweet pearl
Sweet jewel
Sweet mother
Teach me how to know you
Lover of God
Sacred righteous woman