Long neglected Mary Magdalene finally gets due recognition

Jun 17, 2016

By Anil Netto
Something interesting happened the other day. Pope Francis has turned an annual commemoration in honour of Mary Magdalene, into a major feastday, in effect placing the celebrations on par with those of key male apostles.

This is a huge move as it elevates the status of not only Mary Magdalene, but also the other women leaders in the early Church, including those closest to Jesus.

After all, Mary Magdalene was the first witness of the resurrection and was tasked with announcing the Good News of the Resurrection to the other apostles and disciples of Jesus. This led to one of the major doctors of the Church, Thomas Aquinas, referring to her as the “Apostle of the Apostles.”

Mary Magdalene was certainly one of the inner circle of Jesus’ disciples. Displaying extraordinary courage, she is believed to have accompanied Jesus to the foot of the cross and later visited the garden where his tomb was located.

Some researchers have raised the possibility that there was discomfort in the early Church about the prominent role of women during an era when a women’s place was seen to be decidedly at home. They have also suggested there could even have been tension and jealousy among the male apostles over the status of Mary Magdalene in the early Church.

Perhaps it is not surprising that in the early centuries after Jesus, the role of Mary Magdalene and the other women who accompanied Jesus has been downplayed, even neglected and ignored, as the Church leadership grew increasingly male-dominated.

Centuries after Mary Magdalene had been sidelined in church circles, among Christians and in popular imagination, God has worked in mysterious ways.

Although there had always been peripheral Christian literature about the role of Mary Magdalene, popular interest in her exploded after Dan Brown’s best-selling mystery thriller The Da Vinci Code hit the headlines and then the big screen in 2003.

The novel, however, was denounced in many Christian circles because it raised the possibility that Jesus was secretly married to Mary Magdalene.

The controversies aside, the book unwittingly rekindled interest in Mary Magdalene, who bounced back from the margins into the spotlight, as debate and discussion ensued about her real role, and the role of other women in leadership positions, in the early Church.

The decision to elevate the celebration of Mary Magdalene comes on the heels of Francis’ announcement that he would appoint an official commission to study the possibility of opening the door to women deacons in the Church.

These two decision are not unrelated.

The Vatican said the elevation of the celebration of Mary Magadalene “shines a light on the special mission of this woman, who is an example, and model, for every woman in the Church.”

This elevation has been long overdue and should be cause for great celebration, especially if it leads to deeper discernment and development of the role of women in leadership positions in the Church.