Mary Magdalene: Wife of Jesus, Mother of his Children

Tomorrow, July 22nd, is Magdalene Day. The Church long believed this was her birthday and celebrated the 22nd of July every year as the Feast Day of Mary Magdalene. The beautiful painting below shows Magdalene as the wife of Jesus and mother of his children. An ancient manuscript suggests Jesus married Mary Magdalene as explained in one of my favorite articles on the subject of Jesus’ marriage to “the Magdalene”.  Magdalene is a title meaning “great” because Mary Magdalene was ordained the First Lady of Christianity.

Jesus and Mary Magdalene married with children
Was there a sacred marriage between Jesus and Mary Magdalene?

 

Magdalene Feast Day Online Retreat

 

 

Magdalene Feast Day: Virtual Temple Retreat!

 

{Quick side note: For several months I’ve been intending a virtual retreat on Magdalene Feast day this weekend. But it’s only just today that I’m clear and aligned with the essence and message of this invitation to you. That’s a tale for another time, hard but true. So while this invite is later than I hoped, (unless you saved the date ;)  I do hope you can still join me. Read on…}

 

 

Shhh…..Listen, sister….can you hear it?

 

The sounds of bare feet padding down the temple halls.

 

The allure of lush color, pungent fragrance, a warm embrace…

Come, you’re being called.

 

Magdalene Mysteries ~ Virtual Temple Retreat is this Saturday.

 

Gather in a circle on-line (you don’t have to live nearby!) for retreat and reflection on the magic and mystery of Mary Magdalene, on her holy feast day. Discover who she really is and what her message is for you. (Whether you’re Christian or not, she’s relevant.)

 

Explore a lost icon of the Christian tradition—the Goddess in the Gospels—whose presence (and banishment) has everything to do with your divinity, power and magic as a woman.

 

Come, sister…

 

I’m gifting you this virtual gathering (It’s free!)  to enter sacred space and reconnect with your Feminine Soul

 

Join a circle of sisters from around the globe.

 

Retreat for 2 hours, using your phone or computer to share stories: missing mythology, ancient esoteric knowledge, re-visioned history.

 

Saturday 10am PT. Details to join, below.

 

Journey in meditation to gather wisdom that your soul wants you to hear.
Tap your creative spirit as we create shamanic art together that expresses your soul messages.

 

Breathe, move, embody the holy temple your body is.

 

Recover the lost wisdom of Magdalene and The Magdalene Path!

 

All in a safe and sacred space broadcast via Zoom* from the Balch Hotel library. No cost to you.

 

If you’re drawn to the mystery of the Magdalene or the magic of the Divine Feminine, come, you’re being called.

 

Since you’re already part of the circle here, I’m not doing an separate sign up for you…

 

Here are the details….

(Copy it into your calendar now, so you don’t forget. ;)

 

When: Saturday, July 22, at 10 am Pacific/ 1 pm Eastern (plan for 2 hours) 

Where: Via Phone or Webcast on Zoom*

 

Join me here: from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://zoom.us/j/603329638

Or iPhone one-tap (US Toll):  +14086380968,,603329638# or +16465588656,,603329638#

 

Or Telephone: Dial: +1 408 638 0968 (US Toll) or +1 646 558 8656 (US Toll) Meeting ID: 603 329 638

 

International numbers available: https://zoom.us/zoomconference?m=x3q21XKStlJ-OLl7ViKQys6QJZABgcPF

 

*Never used Zoom? It’s great and easy—it allows us to see and talk with each other in a group. Log in early so any tech issues can get sorted out before we start.

 

While it’s best to attend live to experience the energy and sisterhood of the gathering, sometimes life doesn’t allow that. So don’t worry, the call will be recorded. You’ll get the replay and can still be part of it.

 

I’ll see you Saturday?


PS Share this with a friend you think would love this. Guys, I’m thinking of you.

 

 

Upcoming Events in the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon

Experience Community, Connection and Creativity

  • Creative Spirits at Jacob Williams Winery 7/26/17 6:30pm $40 REGISTER
  • Creative Spirits at Balch Hotel 9/21/17 6:30 pm $40 REGISTER
  • Sisterhood Supper at the Balch Hotel, 8/24/17 6:00 pm (FREE)

FOR DETAILS AND TO REGISTER, GO HERE

 

Live elsewhere? Virtual event dates are being developed. Stay tuned for details

 

_____________________________________________________

 

 

Ready To Dive Deeper…?

Treat yourself to a copy of this encouraging, inspirational book that awakens your innate beauty and ignites the power of your Divine Feminine. 

 

The Magdalene Path:

Awaken the Power of Your Feminine Soul

 

The Magdalene Path is a deep dive into the process of awakening your hidden power as a woman. Rooted in the wisdom of Mary Magdalene, this guidebook of Feminine Soul  offers compelling ideas and practical skills.

 

Bring the Sacred Feminine within you into your daily life. So there’s no longer a split between your spiritual and “regular” self!

 

In addition to inspiring Divine downloads from Mary Magdalene–received by Claire in meditation and prayer–you’ll discover how to create a life that nurtures your soul and fulfills your deepest longings.

 

There are 24 tools woven in to deepen the teachings from concept to practice. So this isn’t esoteric teaching–you can take this wisdom and apply in your life in a meaningful way!

 

Published by Balboa Press, Hay House. Trade paperback 243 pages $17.99 Personally inscribed for you by the author (moi!)

 

 

You’ll Receive:

  • Magdalene Path book with 24 practices $17.99 value
  • Personal Inscription to you from Author- priceless! And included (you can’t get that on Amazon!)
  • Hand decorated mailing package $5.00 value–included!
  • Shipping and Handling $5.00–included! (**US ORDERS ONLY< SORRY. International orders, please inquire)

 

Total Value: $27.99

 

YOUR Direct Indie Author PRICE: $21.99*

 **US ONLY…International orders, please inquire via email)

 

 

 

Praise for  The Magdalene Path:

 

“Brava to Claire Sierra for her brave and honest work on The Magdalene Path. I am proud to call her my sister on the journey!”

~New York Times Bestselling Author, Kathleen McGowan, author of The Expected One, The Book of Love and others

 

“I have waited lifetimes for the writings in your book. The whole of me is so congruent with each line of text, from the deep knowing of my soul to the questioning of my ego. It’s hard to put down and gives me much to look forward to. Good work! Namaste, sister!”  ~Karri G., Applegate, OR

 

I am totally blown away! I literally could not put it down. The Magdalene Path holds crucial pieces to a much bigger picture…” ~Bobbye M., Chicago, IL

 

“Claire Sierra has composed a marvelous tapestry of insights, discoveries, tools, and resources for all of us to use in designing a new global culture. The wisdom of the Magdalene gives us all hope for Heaven on Planet Earth.” ~ Rev. Ruth L. Miller, PhD,author of The New Game of Life, Mary’s Power and many others

 

Order your author signed copies here today

 

For more info about the book, visit: MagdalenePath.com

 

   *PS–When you purchase directly from Indie authors you support small business. You get personal connection and care that you won’t from Amazon!

 

 

 

The Goddess Coloring Book Kit

 

Sometimes we need a little help to get our creative juices flowing. (I know I do!) So to aid you (or a loved one), I created a coloring book for grown-ups: 22 Feminine Soul images fresh from the pages of my sketchbooks.

 

These images are designed with ample space for you to play and express yourself. Color outside the lines, add your own symbols, shapes and lines. Make it your own, over and over again.

 

This full-length print version of the Goddess Coloring Book is 22 pages, 9″ x 11″,single-sided with blank pages for your own doodles and sketches. You can easily copy and reuse–over and over!

 

Included in the kit, is a package of 16 Oil Pastels (shown above), to get started right away. No need to dig out your kids’ old crayons or dried up markers.You’ll love the creamy softness and bright color. Easy to blend and create texture.  They come in a self-contained sleeve box, so they travel nicely.

 

Makes a great (and unusual) gift!

Comes in a hand painted envelope, ready for gifting!

 

The Goddess Coloring Book Kit

  • Goddess Coloring Book - $9.95 value
  • Oil Pastel kit  – $5.95 value

 

$14.95 coloring book and oil pastel set

+ $5 shipping and handling

Total: $19.95

(US Orders ONLY)

 

 

Would you rather have this as a Download?

 

My European friends requested this.

A Downloadable PDF of the Goddess Coloring Book AND the Practices Workbook from The Magdalene Path.

Includes a gorgeous Sacred Dreamer gift card (The Magdalene Path book cover).

Shipping is included in the price. You’ll get the card via airmail.

(Unfortunately no oil pastels included. You can purchase those separately & add it to your gift.)

 

Goddess Coloring Book Download

Price: $9.95

Includes: postage (including international) and customized gift card mailed to you or to your gift recipient. NOTE: NO oil pastels included.

 

Here’s the link to purchase the Goddess Coloring Book as PDF Download Gift Card:

(Just in case it’s broken, here’s the link: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=PQTUFVNKTY69W

 

**Please include the address you wish the download card to be mailed to in the “Note to Seller” box in Paypal. Otherwise, we’ll mail it to you.

 

If you just want it emailed to you, we can do that also. Indicate that in the “Note to Seller” box in your PayPal order.

 

 

Meet Claire

 

Claire Sierra, MA, is the author of The Magdalene Path – Awaken the Power of Your Feminine Soul, published by a division of Hay House. The Magdalene Path, has been called “a guidebook of ancient wisdom for contemporary women.”  Claire divined ways to bring Feminine Soul into your daily life using Mary Magdalene as a wisdom guide and archetype..

 

As an Expressive Arts Therapist, True Purpose™ Master Coach, and Licensed Esthetician, Claire has helped thousands of women who felt lost and confused about purpose, use the arts to gain clarity and new direction for their lives. For over 2 decades she has guided access to divine connection, creativity and soul purpose in sessions across the globe.

 

As Spa Wellness & Retreat Director of the Balch Hotel and Bliss at the Balch Spa, Claire also offers in-person private and virtual retreats, as well as wellness sessions that merge spa services with creative, reflective soul coaching sessions.

 

As a visionary mixed media artist, Claire has art in collections throughout the U.S, including the Balch Hotel Gallery. Her artwork graces The Magdalene Path and The Goddess Coloring Book.

She is a featured writer for Bella Mia magazine, and has contributed to wellness magazines for decades.

 

She lives with her husband in the Columbia River Gorge in Oregon where they are the proprietors of the Historic Balch Hotel, a boutique inn and retreat center. The Balch was recently named #13 of 100 Top Fan Favorite Destinations in Oregon, according to Trip Advisor, Google and Yelp.

 

FREE RESOURCES: Download your FREE Chapter (and other goodies) from The Magdalene Path by going to: MagdalenePath.com.  For a FREE MP3 download of “LightBreath Guided Meditation: Instant Relief for Burnout, Exhaustion and Overwhelm” visit: BlissBreakthrough.com.  You will also receive this monthly newsletter.

 

Bliss Breakthrough Programs

PO Box 44

Dufur OR 97021

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This message was sent from claire@blissbreakthrough.com

Claire Sierra
Bliss Breakthrough Coaching and Counseling
1024 NW Lawnridge Ave
Grants Pass, OR 97526

Descartes Said It’s Necessary to Doubt All Things at Least Once

Rene Descartes on spiritual seekers
Rene Descartes, Philosopher

Don’t feel bad if you get agnostic from time to time! Doubting is a necessary thing according to the great philosopher and mathematician, Rene Descartes.

In the course of our homeschooling today (annoying Cartesian math for 8th graders!) we looked up Rene Descartes for the fun of it. Up came a bunch of his famous quotes — for once not the “I think, therefore I am” quote.

Agnostics, skeptics and spiritual seekers will appreciate his words.

If you would be a real seeker after truth, it is necessary that at least once in your life you doubt, as far as possible, all things.

I tried to think of when this doubting of all things might have happened to me. Then I remembered as a young college student my jaw dropping over the Mithras-to-Jesus similarities. Birthdate, Roman-style worship, 12 disciples, etc.  I was already upset by the absence of a God-the-Mother and God-the Daughter, and suspicious of all the (wonderful!) pagan elements in Judeo-Christianity. The Mithras stuff and Acharya S’s exaggerated correspondences pushed me into full doubt-mode for a short while. I had to rise up from either / or belief and mature into both / and.  As in, yeah, Mithras, Jesus, Dionysius, Adonis, were probably the same — and Horus the Light of the World. Then there is Helios, El, Allah with the “EL” name of God hiding in there. Adonis is similar to Adonai, also. Paganism, Monotheism, Gnosticism, ALL of it. It is the same. They are BOTH true, this AND that and that and this, too. There is no black and white, no either / or in spiritual truth.

Then again, I will probably never grasp the Truth with a capital T.  I really like the title Gnostics gave to Mary Magdalene. She was the Woman who knew the ALL. Gnostic knowing is spelled with a g. She gnew it in her marrow, it was the ultimate gnowing.

Just rambling here…

Heavenly Mother Increasingly Mentioned by Mormon Church Leaders

Veiled Mother of the World by Russian esoteric Christian Nicholas Roerich
Veiled Mother of the World, 1930, by Russian esoteric Christian Nicholas Roerich

Yay. God-the-Mother is coming out more and more in various religions. The Mormons have always believed She existed, and a Heavenly Mother has been in their doctrine all along. But they have told their leaders not to preach sermons about Her (due to persecution, being called a “sex cult” back in the 1800s). Now that is changing. Pretty cool.

Mormons also believe Mary Magdalene was Jesus’ wife. My daughters love hanging out with Mormon friends, one whose parents have prominent paintings of Jesus and Magdalene on the wall. (Painted by Mormon artists).
Here’s a news article about the Heavenly Mother being increasingly mentioned by LDS (Mormon) leaders. It has an interesting Madonna-like picture of Her with a hidden face.
 

http://www.sltrib.com/home/4549096-155/meet-the-heavenly-parents-mormon-leaders

God Has a Wife! (and Goddess has a husband) — as we’ve been saying here on this website since 1999. Here’s our 2006 God Has a Wife! slideshow for more images of Her…

 

Martha – Sister of Mary Magdalene and Lazarus – added to the Gospel later

Margaret Starbird writes this morning:

Master's Degree Thesis Martha Mary Magdalene
Jesus, Mary and Martha (Lazarus in background) at their home in Bethany

Elizabeth Schrader, [aka singer-songwriter Libbie Schrader] whose “Magdalene Song” is dear to my heart, has just had a paper published in the Harvard Review at this link: Was Martha of Bethany Added to the Fourth Gospel in the Second Century?  (abstract below)

The article is technical with regard to ancient Greek and Latin texts, but the gist is that the presence of “Martha” in John 11 and 12 is “unstable” in many of the earliest copies of the Gospel, suggesting that she was added in to the story of the Mary whose tears moved Jesus to raise her brother Lazarus and at the supper in Bethany where Jesus was anointed by the same Mary, the sister of Lazarus [and Martha].
I hope many of you will find time to read this article for the light it throws on the New Testament Gospel of John and the woman who was later identified with the title  “the Magdalene.”
Peace and light,
Margaret
The Woman with the Alabaster Jar
Here is a video where Libbie Schrader talks about raising money to make a music video of her Magdalene Song. She shows a few clips of her trip to France to secret Magdalene gardens, destroyed churches, etc.
Here is the Abstract of Elizabeth’s Master’s Degree Thesis:
Abstract

This study examines the text transmission of the figure of Martha of Bethany throughout the Fourth Gospel in over one hundred of our oldest extant Greek and Vetus Latina witnesses. The starting point for this study is instability around Martha in our most ancient witness of John 11–12, Papyrus 66. By looking at P66’s idiosyncrasies and then comparing them to the Fourth Gospel’s greater manuscript transmission, I hope to demonstrate that Martha’s presence shows significant textual instability throughout the Lazarus episode, and thus that this Lukan figure may not have been present in a predecessor text form of the Fourth Gospel that circulated in the second century. In order to gain the greatest amount of data on the Fourth Gospel’s text transmission, I rely on several sources. Occasionally these sources conflict in their rendering of a variant; I have tried to make note of these discrepancies and look at photographs of witnesses whenever possible. Although this study is primarily focused on Greek and Vetus Latina witnesses, an occasional noteworthy variant (e.g., from a Syriac or Vulgate witness) may be mentioned when relevant to the subject at hand. The work of many established redaction critics, who have already hypothesized that Martha was not present in an earlier form of this Gospel story, will also be addressed.

Read the whole Master’s Degree Thesis here: Was Martha of Bethany Added to the Fourth Gospel in the Second Century?

Sacred Partnership of Jesus & Magdalene

Magdalene anointing Jesus
Magdalene Anoints Jesus making him “the anointed one” aka the Messiah

Margaret Starbird wrote on the GoddessChristians forum:

When Pope Francis announced that Mary Magdalene’s “Memorial” on 22 July would henceforth be an official Feast Day of the Catholic Church, he commented that “She loved Jesus and Jesus loved her.”

I’ll be doing an interview with Kris Steinnes for “Women of Wisdom” on Friday afternoon October 14th (1-2 PM Pacific; 4-5 Eastern)–centered on the Sacred Partnership of Jesus and Mary Magdalene at the heart of the earliest Christian community. Please tune in here for the live broadcast or later archived segment: http://www.transformationradio.fm/host/kris-steinnes,16.html

 
In memory of Her—
Margaret
“The Woman with the Alabaster Jar”

Saint Francis of Assisi Mother Cathar Heretic Praying Hands Letter X

The current pope, Pope Francis, was so inspired by St. Francis of Assisi to choose his name for himself when he became pope. I wonder if he knows about Saint Francis’ possible heretical background.

Margaret Starbird wrote:

October 4 is the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi—13th century founder of the Franciscan order.  I was baptized on his feast day many years ago—and have always had a special love for him. The “Song of Saint Francis” and his “Canticle to the Sun” are beloved around the world. [Hear it in the video below] His message of joy in God’s creation resonates with all generations.

Cathar Heretic praying hands
Clasp your hands like this but then point your fingers down toward the floor. You will see the heretical little X’s appear made by your fingers

One of my favorite movies—from the 1970’s(!)  —is “Brother Sun, Sister Moon,” [movie trailer below] based on the life of Saint Francis, whose mother is alleged to have been from a prominent Cathar family from Provençe.  At one point in the movie, Francis notices that his mother is praying with her hands folded, fingers crossed in little X’s and pointed downward. Saint Francis comes over to her and straightens out her fingers pointing them all upward in the traditional Roman Catholic prayer position, but after he turned away to go back to his friends, his mother put her hands back in the “alternative” Christian position of “prayer form the heart.”  My mother, who was an Episcopalian, used to pray in that Protestant hand position, and I’ve found numerous paintings of Mary Magdalene with her hands folded together that way as well. It’s interesting that the fingers form little X’s because the letter X was one of the prominent symbols of the “Grail Church” that recognized Jesus and Mary Magdalene as partners. Details are available on my website: www.margaretstarbird.net

Here is the url for the trailer for “Brother Sun, Sister Moon” in case you’ve never seen the movie.  It’s a classic…

Peace and light,
Margaret
“The Woman with the Alabaster Jar”

August 15 Assumption of Mary God-the-Mother, Our Christian Goddess

Mary, Our Christian Goddes or Heavenly Mother, Divine Mother at her Assumption
Mary crowned & enthroned as Queen of Heaven

Today is the day Mary Mother-of-Jesus was said to have ascended into heaven and to begin her reign as Queen of Heaven, crowned by the Father & Son, becoming a member of the Trinity. It makes sense to me that she was our Heavenly Mother and like her Son decided to incarnate here on earth to bring about the Work, to deliver the Message (aka the “Good News” literally gospel).

Margaret Starbird writes:

August 15 is the official Catholic Church Feast Day celebrating the assumption of the Virgin Mary—body and soul—into heaven (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assumption_of_Mary ) validating a folk commemoration of this event over hundreds of years.

In medieval lore, two other female saint were alleged to have been assumed bodily into heaven:  Mary Magdalene and Mary the Egyptian (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_of_Egypt), another “Fallen Sophia” revered by medieval Christians. Carl Jung was apparently thrilled when this feast day was declared because it elevated the “Feminine”  status, completing (in his view) the “quaternity” (the classic Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit completed by the addition of the Feminine “Mother of God”).

What will it take for the Church to recognize the archetypal Sacred Complement of Christ in the person of Mary Magdalene—his Bride in Exile? She represents the entire human family (flesh and blood) as “Bride”/Partner and co-Creator with the Divine.
In memory of Her,
Margaret
“Mary Magdalene, Bride in Exile”

Mary Magdalene Rosary

Mary Magdalene Rosary

Mary Magdalene First Lady of Christianity
Mary Magdalene by Lily Moses

Margaret Starbird writes: On my website under the Magdalene Rosary tab in the menu you will find prayers and “Magdalene Mysteries” for a rosary I developed in her honor—based on seven “heptads” of seven prayers each.

Here is the “Magdalene Prayer” for anyone interested in honoring her in this way:

Dear Mary Magdalene, love incarnate,

Sacred Vessel, Holy Grail,

Chosen were you from all women,

And blessed is your union with Jesus.

Dearest Bride and Beloved of Christ,

Show us the Way of the heart.

In memory of her—
Margaret

Mary Magdalene Feast Day July 22nd

July means Mary Magdalene Day is coming!

July 22nd in centuries-old church tradition is considered Magdalene’s birthday and Feast Day. She is the only woman in history about whom Jesus said, “people will tell this story in memory of her”. The story Jesus meant is the story of Magdalene anointing his head and feet as if for burial, but symbolizing the anointing him as messiah. Messiah is a word meaning “anointed one” and she is the only person in the Bible who anoints him. You recall the rest of the story when she weeps and dries his feet with her hair.

In June 2016 the Pope finally declared July 22nd to be Magdalene’s special Feastday again (in the 1960s they had demoted her holiday but people still celebrated it)

Margaret Starbird writes:

The Pope’s recent pronouncement declares Mary Magdalene about equivalent with the Apostles, but we should not be satisfied until she is acknowledged as the Sacred Partner—Bride and Beloved—of Christ. If you have read my “Mary Magdalene, Bride in Exile,” the epilogue expresses my position: “Who do we say she is?” Until Mary Magdalene is proclaimed as the true partner and co-Redemptrix with Christ, my work is not done. It thrills me to know that other, younger women understand this need to balance the masculine energy, stripped of its feminine partner—and are willing to carry on the effort to enlighten others.

Pregnant Mary Magdalene Married Jesus
Jesus & Magdalene portrayed as married and pregnant. 19th Century Scottish Church

The Book of Revelation ends with the Nuptials of the Lamb and his Bride—a union of the Masculine and Feminine—Lord and Lady of our hearts, as in the “marriage window” from the Dervaig Kilmore chapel [pictured right] —a union of archetypes that causes streams of living water to flow from the throne of God– “for the healing of the nations.”

So, in light of the honor that should have been hers for two millennia, proclaiming her feast day “official” is not nearly enough for me! But I love the Pope for taking this small step in the right direction.

I hope you are aware of my two best arguments for Mary as “Bride”: Micah 4:8-11 -The Magdal-eder prophecy which sums up her post-Crucifixion fate in four lines, and the sacred number of the “153 fishes,” a metaphor for the Church as “Bride” in John 21. The gematria of “H Magdalhnh”–153—is also associated with the vesica piscis and goddesses of love and fertility. I consider these two discoveries that prove the the authors of the Gospels acknowledged Mary Magdalene as the consort of Christ as my most important contributions to the Magdalene “unveiling.”

In memory of her—

Margaret
“The Woman with the Alabaster Jar”
www.margaretstarbird.net

Pope Francis Restores Magdalene’s Feast Day

Gabriele shared the following Catholic News Service article with our GoddessChristians forum

Things definitely seem to be moving in the right direction!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
http://www.catholicnews.com/services/englishnews/2016/pope-elevates-memorial-of-st-mary-magdalene-to-feast-day.cfm

Pope elevates memorial of St. Mary Magdalene to feast day
By Junno Arocho Esteves Catholic News Service

June 10, 2016

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Recognizing St. Mary Magdalene’s role as the first to witness Christ’s resurrection and as a “true and authentic evangelizer,” Pope Francis raised the July 22 memorial of St. Mary Magdalene to a feast on the church’s liturgical calendar, the Vatican announced.

A decree formalizing the decision was published by the Congregation for Divine Worship June 10 along with an article explaining its significance.

Both the decree and the article we re titled “Apostolorum Apostola” (“Apostle of the Apostles”).

In the article for the Vatican newspaper, Archbishop Arthur Roche, secretary of the congregation, wrote that in celebrating “an evangelist who proclaims the central joyous message of Easter,” St. Mary Magdalene’s feast day is a call for all Christians to “reflect more deeply on the dignity of women, the new evangelization and the greatness of the mystery of divine mercy.”

“Pope Francis has taken this decision precisely in the context of the Jubilee of Mercy to highlight the relevance of this woman who showed great love for Christ and was much loved by Christ,” Archbishop Roche wrote.

While most liturgical celebrations of individual saints during the year are known formally as memorials, those classified as feasts are reserved for important events in Christian history and for saints of particular significance, such as the Twelve Apostles.

In his apostolic letter “Dies Domini” (“The Lord’s Day”), St. John Paul II explained that the “commemoration of the saints does not obscure the centrality of Christ, but on the contrary extols it, demonstrating as it does the power of the redemption wrought by him.”

Preaching about St. Mary Magdalene, Pope Francis highlighted Christ’s mercy toward a woman who was “exploited and despised by th ose who believed they were righteous,” but she was loved and forgiven by him.

Her tears at Christ’s empty tomb are a reminder that “sometimes in our lives, tears are the lenses we need to see Jesus,” the pope said April 2, 2013, during Mass in his residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae.

Pope Francis also mentions her specifically in the prayer he composed for the Year of Mercy: “Your loving gaze freed Zacchaeus and Matthew from being enslaved by money; the adulteress and Magdalene from seeking happiness only in created things; made Peter weep after his betrayal, and assured paradise to the repentant thief.”

Archbishop Roche explained that in giving St. Mary Magdalene the honor of being the first person to see the empty tomb and the first to listen to the truth of the resurrection, “Jesus has a special consideration and mercy for this woman, who manifests her love for him, looking for him in the garden with anguish and suffering.”

Drawing a comparison between Eve, who “spread death where there was life,” and St. Mary Magdalene, who “proclaimed life from the tomb, a place of death,” the archbishop said her feast day is a lesson for all Christians to trust in Christ who is “alive and risen.”

“It is right that the liturgical celebration of this woman has the same level of feast given to the celebration of the apostles in the general Roman calendar and highlights the special mission of this woman who is an example and model for every woman in the church.”

Time to allow women to be Ordained Priests?

One of our other members, Klaus M. in Germany posted after hearing the news:

After Franziskus’ “Magdalenian decision”:
The next step now should to be allow women becoming priestesses in the RCC!
For those who are interested to read the Magdalene elevation in German: