Jesus and Mary Magdalene

LEGENDS, MYSTERIES, BELIEFS, CONSPIRACIES, COVERUP

Publisher's note: The articles herewith published do not necessarily reflect or represent the opinions of the International News Agency, its employees and editorial staff.

Jesus and Mary Magdalene, the Harlot of the Horde

By Iakov Levy

Painting: Jesus said to her, "Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father (John, 20:17)

The verse from the Gospel of John is quite obscure. What doest it mean? Why Mary Magdalene is not allowed to hold Jesus until he has ascended to the Father? We know from the Gospels that after his Resurrection the women were the first to see him:

There were also many women there, looking on from afar, who had followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering him; among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee (Matt,27:55).

And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, And Salome, bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week they went to the tomb when the sun has risen (Mark,16:1-2)

Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told this to the apostles; (Luke, 24:10)
While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them (Luke, 24:15)

Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb (John,20:1)
Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned and said to him in Hebrew, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, "Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father..." (John,20:17)

Photo: Mary Magdalene with Jesus, by Rubens.

There were many Maries, but none of them was Mary the Virgin, mother of Jesus. She was standing by the cross while Jesus was still alive (John 19:25) but, after his death and Resurrection, she is not mentioned any more. What is the latent meaning of the story? I have interpreted the Crucifixion as a puberty rite. Like the young novices in the bush, Jesus underwent tortures. Like them, He dies and resurrects. As a consequence of the rite, the novices identify with the generation of the fathers, and only at its conclusion they are granted the sexual license. Under torture and the threat of death, they have learned the Law of the clan, and they have repressed their lust for the mother. After the Resurrection, the Virgin Mary does not appear anymore. She has been successfully repressed. As a reward, the young novice is now allowed to have sexual intercourse with other women. Henceforth, there are many women, all Maries, meaning, all replacement of the mother, the original Mary, but none of them the mother. Like the mother, but not THE mother. Many Maries, but the most important is Mary Magdalene, the harlot. In the Gospel of John, after the Resurrection she stands alone with Jesus, as if she had been able to get rid of her rivals.
In the Gnostic Gospel of Philip we can catch a glimpse of the relationship between the two:

And the companion of the [Savior is] Mary Magdalene. [But Christ loved] her more than [all the disciples [and used to] kiss her [often] on her mouth. The rest of [the disciples were offended by it [and expressed disapproval]. They said to him, "Why do you love her more than all of us?" The Savior answered and said to them, "Why do I not love you like her? When a blind man and one who sees are both together in darkness, they are no different from one another. When the light comes, then he who sees will see the light, and he who is blind will remain in darkness" (NHC II.3.63.32ff) (Robinson 1977: 138). in Ramon K. Jusino, Mary Magdalene: Author of the Fourth Gospel?

The Assumption of Mary Magdalene into Heaven, 1620, The Hermitage, St.Petersburg

As we also know from the Synoptic Gospels and John, Mary Magdalene was very fond of Jesus, listening to his words (Luke, 10:39-42), following him, and even washing his feet and wiping them with her hair (John 12:3). Now, why the Christian tradition made of her a harlot? In order to better understand the psychological context that engendered the image of Mary Magdalene, the harlot, I quote from Atkinson speaking of the primal horde, as it has been quoted by Freud:

The patriarch had only one enemy whom he should dread[...]a youthful band of brothers living together in forced celibacy, or at most in polyandrous relation with some single female captive. A horde as yet weak in their impubescence they are, but they would, when strength was gained with time, inevitably wrench by combined attacks, renewed again and again, both wife and life from the paternal tyrant (Totem and Taboo IV:5, note 1).

Titian's Painting Noli Me Tangere of Jesus and Mary- 59346 Bytes Photo: Titian (Tiziano Vecellio, Italian, 1495-1576), Noli Me Tangere, 1511-12, National Gallery, London. From Carol Gerten-Jackson's.

As I have shown in Pinocchio, the puberty rites of savages enacted again the existential condition of the primal horde, in order to stage an undoing of the primal murder through a reconciliation of the "youthful band" with the generation of the fathers, instead of the original aggression and murder. The youngsters were again driven from their village and from their mothers and sisters to live among themselves and in "forced celibacy", as the conditions had been in the primal horde. The Gospels too, created the same psychological habitat. The twelve disciples are a repetition of the youthful band, wandering outside the main camp. Jesus is the youngest son who is the delegate of the horde to act out the patricide. In Christian myth he is considered the only son of God (Unigenitum), but since the same Christian tradition compares him to Isaac, the beloved and chosen son who was meant to be sacrificed, we may infer that he is unconsciously perceived as the youngest son of the horde. As is written of Isaac: "Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering upon one of the mountain of which I shall tell you" (Gn. 22:2). Isaac was not the only son of Abraham. He was the youngest and the beloved. Therefore "only son" means youngest and beloved (preferred), as Jesus in Christian tradition.
Back to Mary Magdalene.
What was the role of the single females living in the midst of the brothers' horde? They lived in polyandrous relation with the band of males. Henceforth, the "harlot" connotation that sticks to the image of Mary Magdalene. As we have quoted from the Gospel of Philip: "And the companion of the [Savior is] Mary Magdalene. [But Christ loved] her more than [all the disciples [and used to] kiss her [often] on her mouth. The rest of [the disciples were offended by it [and expressed disapproval]." She was the only female or one of the only females of the band of the brothers, and the others protested Jesus' love for her, because in this way he prevented her from them. Jesus, the youngest and the strongest male of the horde in exile, took for himself the only female. She was supposed to be a "harlot" (polyandrous relation) and as such she has been narrated by tradition. The supposition of Ramon K. Jusino in Mary Magdalene: Author of the Fourth Gospel? that she was John, the preferred disciple of Jesus, fits well into our frame. Jusino deals with the historical background while I am dealing with the psychological; the truth speaking from the unconscious layers of our psyche. From our point of view, it is not relevant whether Jesus and Mary Magdalene were real historical figures. What is relevant is the unconscious image harbored by the collective perception. Freud called the historical facts material truth, and the psychological interpretation of those events historical truth:

We too believe that the pious solution contains the truth - but the historical truth and not the material truth. And we assume the right to correct a certain distortion to which this truth has been subjected on its return ( Moses and Monotheism (Third Essay, II:G).

Freud articulated in a psychoanalytic language what the ancients had already said in their own way:

When I began to write my history I was inclined to count these legends as foolishness, but on getting as far as Arcadia I grew to hold a more thoughtful view of them, which is this. In the days of old those Greeks who were considered wise spoke their sayings not straight out but in riddles, and so the legends about Cronus I conjectured to be one sort of Greek wisdom. In matters of divinity, therefore, I shall adopt the received tradition (Pausanias, Description of Greece 8.8.3).

All the paintings representing the Last Supper that I have seen, from Giotto, Leonardo and Jacopo Bassano to Andrea del Castagno, and even a modern painter, Armando Morales and in statues (Le "Vare" di Caltanisetta), John seems more a female than a man. That evidence strenghens Jusino's stance that Mary Magdalene and John the Evangelist were the same person.

Leonardo Andrea del Castagno

Now, we can decode the odd verse from the Gospel: "Jesus said to her, "Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father (John, 20:17). The narrative of the Gospels conceals the latent psychological contents of the primal horde and of the archaic puberty rites. In those rites the youngsters were demanded to renounce the incestuous and parricidal drives, and to identify with the generation of the fathers. The Crucifixion (death) and Resurrection (birth from the Father instead than from the mother) are the final stage of the puberty rite. The last stage, for the rite to be successfully completed, is the full identification of the youngster with the father. Only afterwards, full sexual license is granted. In Christian tradition, this last stage is represented by Jesus' ascending to the Father, and sitting at his right (Dextera Patris). Therefore, Mary Magdalene, after Jesus' Resurrection, was not yet allowed to touch him, until he had ascended to the Father and, in this way, he had successfully completed his puberty rite.

Benedetto Baglioni: Noli me tangere
(Do not hold me)
(Firenze - Museo del Bargello)

Noli me tangere in paintings

Through art, the psychological truth emerges, as it is shared by the collective unconscious. The psychic background of the primal horde is there, in paintings and statues. Donatello has carved out of wood the image of John the Baptist, transfiguration of Dionysus, Goat and Primal Father of Western civilization, usually represented in works of art with his beastly skin and totemic symbol of goat - ram. Donatello has also carved out of wood a similarly beastly image of Mary Magdalene. She is shown dressed with her long hair, which embraces her whole person. Even if the first is dressed with an animal skin, and the second with her own hair, the result is the same: a beastly image of primal apes. We are suddenly presented with our own unconscious image of the Saints, as members of the archaic horde, and protagonists of the primal tragedy.

Photos from L to R; #1. John the Baptist by Donatello. #2. Mary Magdalene by Donatello.

Furthermore, every Saint holds his own symbol, hinting that they are protagonists of a drama represented on the stage. The symbol is the name of the role. John the Evangelist's symbol is the goblet (Chalice), as he has been painted by Cavallini in The Last Judgment in Santa Cecilia in Rome. The goblet, as every container, is one of the symbols of the woman. Mary Magdalene holds the ointment goblet, as well.
Courageous, unconcerned, scornful, coercive - so wisdom wisheth us; she is a woman, and ever loveth only a warrior.
(F.Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Part I, 7).

At this point, we are able to decode also another thread of Christian tradition. Why is she often represented as penitent, and pouring bitter tears? She is often even called The Repentant Magdalene, as a household name. The rationalization infers that she is penitent for having been a harlot, even if, as pointed by Jusino, there is nothing in the Gospels' narrative stating explicitly this point. The latent, unconscious, reason is another. Christianity is a compromise between the murderous band of the Brothers, of which Christ is the delegate, and the Father. Mary Magdalene, the female who had been living in their midst, loving Jesus and sharing His life in exile, is unconsciously perceived also as taking part in the plot for murdering the Father. She is the cheerleader of the Brotherhood horde, instigating them and taking part in their fight. Henceforth, after the reconciliation has taken place, she must be “penitent” for having been the lover of the leader of the band. As Jesus had atoned by Death and Resurrection, she must take her share in the atonement by being “penitent”. It seems that every horde needs its harlot. The Israelites, whose wandering in the wilderness and conquest of the Promised Land (the Mother) is equivalent to the wandering in exile of the primal brotherhood horde, met their harlot too: They went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab, and lay there. It was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in here tonight of the children of Israel to search out the land. The king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men who are come to you, who have entered into your house; for they have come to search out all the land. The woman took the two men, and hid them; and she said, Yes, the men came to me, but I didn't know whence they were: and it happened about the time of the shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out; where the men went I don't know: pursue after them quickly; for you will overtake them. But she had brought them up to the roof, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order on the roof. (Jos. 2:1-5). See Killing God. From the Assassination of Moses to the Murder of Rabin

Did Leonardo da Vinci Believe that Mary Magdalene was the Beloved Disciple?

By Ramon Jusino

Photo: Here is a close-up of the Beloved Disciple in Leonardo's mural.

In the book Holy Blood, Holy Grail (1982) by Michael Baigent, et al., Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) is said to have belonged to a secret organization called the Priory of Sion. According to Baigent, Leonardo and the other members of this group were in possession of privileged information about an alleged marriage between Jesus and Mary Magdalene. This information was apparently passed down through history in conspiratorial fashion. And, it seems, Leonardo da Vinci was one of the keepers through whom this secret knowledge passed. The methodology in Baigent’s book has been seriously questioned by many scholars. And I do not believe that the legends discussed by Baigent are to be relied upon for accurate historical research. However, there are a few things in Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘The Last Supper’ that are worth noting here. The famous Last Supper mural was completed by Leonardo da Vinci in 1498. It captures the very moment described in John 13:24 when Peter asks the Beloved Disciple to ask Jesus for the identity of his betrayer. This incident is described only in the Gospel of John. None of the other New Testament Gospels contain this account. My interest in this mural focuses on the Beloved Disciple, who is traditionally believed to be St. John the Apostle. In Leonardo's ‘The Last Supper’ the Beloved Disciple is sitting next to Jesus, to his right. Peter is seen whispering in this disciple’s ear as the disciple leans over to Peter in order to hear what Peter has to say. In my article, I discuss my hypothesis that Mary Magdalene was probably the Beloved Disciple and, therefore, the true author of the Fourth Gospel (the Gospel of John). Leonardo da Vinci may have been in possession of some information to that effect. Many people have observed that if you look closely at this disciple sitting next to Jesus, you’ll notice that this disciple seems to be a woman.

This is an image of the newly restored mural which was opened for public viewing on May 27, 1999. The “feminine features” of the Beloved Disciple can be seen here. They were also apparent in the mural prior to this restoration.

Here is an image of the mural in which you can see a circle that I drew around the Beloved Disciple and Peter.

Photo: Some have observed that Leonardo has Jesus and the Beloved Disciple positioned in such a way that, together, they seem to form the letter “M”. (Perhaps for Mary or Magdalene?) I drew an M in this image so that you can check this yourself.

These may be examples of what scholars refer to as “Renaissance clues.” It was a common practice of Renaissance artists to leave hidden messages or clues in their work. This was apparently done to safely express ideas that were considered dangerous or subversive in those days. This may be difficult for us to understand today when “freedom of speech” is taken for granted by most. But, in Leonardo’s day, one could find oneself in much trouble for expressing thoughts that challenged the generally accepted worldview -- especially in matters of religious doctrine. If Leonardo did believe that Mary Magdalene was the Beloved Disciple, for his own safety he needed to be very careful about sharing that only with people he could trust. Otherwise, he might have wound up in serious trouble with Church authorities. I am not the first to observe this. I pass this along to you because I find it to be very interesting. Whether the disciple appears to be female is, of course, a very subjective call. It is up to each individual to decide whether they see a man or a woman or whether they see an M formed by Jesus and the disciple. This late 15th century mural proves nothing about the 1st century events described in the New Testament. But, if Leonardo intentionally made the Beloved Disciple seem ambiguously female, and formed the letter M as described, then this may show that Leonardo believed that Mary Magdalene was, indeed, the Beloved Disciple of the Fourth Gospel. And, if he did believe that, he probably did so based on his reliance upon information that he believed to be credible.

OTHER OPINIONS

The Last Supper
Mary Magdalene on Jesus' Right.

By Lisa Shea

This issue of course is a subject of great debate, and the subject of The Da Vinci Code, a novel by Dan Brown. The person to the right of Jesus is usually said to be John. However, take a look at the person. The individual is dressed to complement Jesus. The person has very feminine features and has hands clasped right besides those of Jesus. Together, their bodies form the letter "M". There are many accounts that state Jesus and Mary Magdalene were very close, and she of course figures prominently in his resurrection story. Whether you personally believe this to be true or not, consider whether *Leonardo* believed it might be true ... It's sort of fascinating from a cultural standpoint that a lot of this argument has come down to "does that person have breasts?" So now scholars are studying the chest of this figure to see if it pushes out. Heck, maybe Mary was small breasted.

Photo: Holy Trinity with Mary Magdalene St. John the Baptist by Sandro Botticelli.

The History of Mary Magdalene: Mary Magdalene was NOT A PROSTITUTE. She was a wealthy, honorable, respected and loyal woman. The ONLY reason anybody thinks she was a prostitute was because of a speech by Pope Gregory the Great. In 591 AD he made a mistake in a sermon and confused Mary M with another Biblical character. That one mistake lasted for centuries. Finally, in 1969 the Vatican officially spread the word that Pope Gregory was simply wrong. In the Bible, Mary M is described as a woman of means that travels around with Jesus and the disciples. This would be pretty unusual for an unmarried woman in those days, to roam around with a band of unrelated men. In the gospels, it's said that Jesus kissed her and told her things he didn't tell the other apostles. Mary is the first person to talk to Jesus after his resurrection. Because of this and similar reasons, many feel that Mary was married to someone in the group - perhaps Jesus. After Jesus' death, nobody knows for sure where Mary M went. Some say she went to Turkey, others say to Provence, France. There is no record of her after the death. Any statements made by any groups (including the Merovingian Kings who at one point claimed to be descended from her) are pure conjecture. No proof exists anywhere. There IS no documentation linking Mary to ANYONE. There is no known documentation anywhere to say she had any child. The Merovingians claimed that they came from Mary's bloodline - but they also claimed they came from Atlantis and from sea creatures at other times. The earliest known Merovingian king was back in the 400s - nothing at all is known or documented about his parentage. The Merovingians tried for decades to prove this link, but never came up with anything to show for it. Note that Mary M *did* write a gospel! Fragments exist of it today that can be read. The Gospel of Mary Magdalene

COMMENTS ON MS. SHEA's ARTICLE BY READERS AND VISITORS:

1-"Let us assume the figure to Jesus' right hand is in fact Mary Magdalene (and NOT Peter, as I doubt very much now), where is then the 12th apostle (and who is missing from the 12?????)? My Answer - Well first off it wasn't Peter :) It was John that was the 'young feminine apostle' who was on Jesus' right. If we actually believe for a moment in the Mary Theory, then Leonardo was trying to be subtle about this and not in-your-face. If he had actually included 12 apostles AND Mary AND Jesus it would have been outrageous to most religious people of the time, and the painting might have been painted over again. So he had to have "12 people" with Jesus and keep it a quiet message. Peter is the one he replaced with Mary because those who glanced at the painting would assume that Mary *was* John (who was always the effeminate one) and not put any more thought into it. Maybe John bent down for a moment when the painting was done ;) Or maybe it's like in Star Trek II : Wrath of Khan. In that classic movie, Khan says "I remember you!" to Chekov. But in reality Chekov was NOT part of the cast yet in the original episode that had Khan meeting up with the Enterprise :) So there's no way Khan could have met Chekov never mind remembered him so vividly. The fan explanation is that Chekov might have been a lowly ensign in the bathroom during that episode and left Khan in a stall without toilet paper. Khan saw Chekov leaving and said angrily, "I will always remember you ...!" In any case, if we say that the person on Jesus's side is Mary, and Da Vinci was hiding this fact, then he had to leave out John to make it work. .."

Photo: Christ and St Mary Magdalene at the Tomb, 1638, by Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-69). Purchased by George IV when Prince Regent.

2-"Wonderful handling of this sensitive topic! Seems trying to explain the missing disciple is a moot point. From the scripture, Judas left the meal. He is not present in the painting and Leonardo painted the group responding to his abrupt departure and his actions. The consternation and sorrow is palpable. My Answer - Actually just to be clear here, Judas is MOST definitely in the painting. He is holding his 30 pieces of silver in his hand. So there's really no doubt that Judas is there, being "shocked" as Jesus has just announced he will be betrayed. The sorrow present is with all the apostles thinking, "someone HERE would betray you???"

3-A vistor suggests under the "Mary Magdalene" link that Judas has already left the room, therefore Mary Magdalene can be the thirteenth person. You say "Judas is MOST definitely in the painting. He is holding his 30 pieces of silver in his hand." BUT, under the "The mysterious hand and the knife" link you say that "The guy next to Mary (Judas) has his hands both on the table." And, Leonardo's artistic licence notwithstanding, you admit that "though in the 'actual timeline' he wouldn't have been paid that yet." I think a circle needs to be squared there, unless one can prove that the missing apostle had been partaking too much in the Last Supper wine and has fallen sideways, hence the missing pair of feet under the table. My Answer - I'm not sure what you are contesting here. The guy next to Mary is most certainly Judas. He has both hands on the table - and one is holding a bag with 30 pieces of silver in it :) The point here is that Mary is "taking the place" of John, because Leonardo would have been yelled at if he *added* her into the painting.

4-"Regarding the question of which disciple is missing, would it not be possible that "John" of the New Testament was in fact Mary Magdalene? I have not researched any of the apocryphal writings, but it seems to certainly fit the idea of covering up Mary's relationship with Jesus. John was the most beloved disciple. "My Answer - I really don't think there's any question that John and Mary M were two completely different people. There are enough writings about the two of them to know that they are separate from each other. However, Mary M is often talked about as being the most loyal of Jesus' followings and being very true to him. The whole nonsense of Mary being a harlot was a case of a pope making a HUGE mistake in one sermon and everybody continuing the bad information since then. Mary M was most definitely an honorable, caring, dedicated woman, also a wealthy one. So while the question is just HOW close she was to Jesus, I don't think anybody thinks she "was John".

5-"I also have read the DaVinci Code. I'm not scholarly enough to believe nor disbelieve the theories put forth in the book. However, looking at Leonardo's "The Last Supper", it appears that all figures in the painting have beards except the figure to the right of Jesus. If I am correct, weren't Hebrew men required to wear beards unless in mourning? That would seem to say that the figure without the beard is a woman, ergo Mary, perhaps? Just a thought. "My Answer - John was always said to be a young guy, so the reason he doesn't have a beard is that he hasn't grown one yet. His descriptions in the Bible border on effeminate. There is also a fair amount of evidence that Leonardo was a homosexual and fond of his young, male models. He was publicly accused of being the lover of one of them, and often drew male nudes. His male "companions" were very devoted. One student joined him at age 17 and stayed with him until his death. So if we take the "this figure is a guy and not a girl" approach, Leonardo was drawing his dream guy there, the young, beautiful youth.

6-"In regards to the Pope Gregory 'mistake'...this wasn't a mistake at all. People often still confuse Mary Magdalene with Martha's sister Mary who was into witchcraft like things. It is often believed that extending back to Peter's outrage with Mary M. a conspiracy was set in place to defame any recognition and importance of her. A Catholic Pope wasn't about to recognize a female as a major part in the role of the Bible. Using sketchy evidence that actually leads to Martha's sister, not Magdalene, the church created the myth that Mary M. was the worst possible sinner of the time, a whore, before meeting Christ...In order to revitalize ailing cities with little faith, they offered Mary M's created character of a whore in repentance as a way out of a poor lifestyle. This is just as political as the church creating Jesus's birthday on December 25th, a previous Pagan holiday in order to falsely create a seemingly larger following/celebration. Mary M's saint day in the Catholic Church until the year you posted, 1969, was known as a day to celebrate a life of repentance. The Vatican officially recognized the incorrectness of this in 1969, but I have personally witnessed this still being preached in a catholic church and commonly thought of as truth. It is in 1969 that they removed the 'repentance' word from her Saint Day....That was the 'recognition'...there was no statement to seize any teachings of this belief. "My Answer - Interesting, I thought their "apology" was a little more blatant than that. You're sure nothing else was said by anyone when that change took place in 1969? I suppose I'll have to do some research and find out. I do agree there were great political reasons for the church to bash down females, and also for the church to hold up "sinners that were saved" as a beacon of hope for the downtrodden masses. But I still do think that Pope Gregory made a mistake during his sermon ... but that others lept on it as a great way to keep up what their political aims were. In fact, I just heard from someone that in Mel Gibson's the Passion of Christ, he does the EXACT same thing. So I have no doubt that some people still preach that nonsense on purpose for their own reasons. It makes them far happier to think of women as whores that maybe can be saved, vs as strong, powerful partners in the church that can stand right beside Jesus Christ.

7-"Just a quick thought, I don't see any reason why the Disciple next to Jesus has so quickly become accepted as Mary M. I do notice some feminine characteristics to the painting, but, I believe that could be just to show the difference in ages. If you notice, James Minor also appear to have female qualities and I haven't heard any big stink about how that is a woman. don't you believe some of this could just be people seeing what someone has told them to see? " My Answer - Well, of course many art historians do not agree with the Mary M theory. Leonardo is thought by many to have been gay, and many of his male models were 'feminine'. So it could easily just be that the character in question was a young, feminine male that was attractive in a feminine sort of way. Heck, you can watch many anime series from Japan and see that same sort of 'teenage guy who looks like a girl' star. So yes it could be a male. But that wouldn't make for an interesting book, apparently :)

Publisher's note: The articles herewith published do not necessarily reflect or represent the opinions of the International News Agency, its employees and editorial staff.

The Lord's Last Supper with Mary Magdalene

By David Jay Jordan

Mary Magdalene by Perugino.

Wait a minute you must be saying to yourself, Jesus didn't eat His Last Supper with Mary Magdalene. did he ? He ate His Last Supper with only his male apostles and there weren't any women
among them or was there ? For although the patriarchial, male oriented church system has degraded women to a minor staus, the Lord himself never did and always treated them equal with the men. Why ? because He created both genders, male and female. (SEE Jesus is the Creator). And so most people don't realize the importance of Mary Magdalene. For although surely she was a prostitute, she seemed to be the closest to Jesus, because she had the most to be forgiven. (SEE Mary was a Prostitute). MARY MAGDALENE LOVED JESUS ! So would Jesus leave out His Bride from His final Last Supper and Communion, before He had to depart. The answer is obviously NO ! But what proof do we have, for the other male apostles did great and fantastic things for the Lord and witnessed his WORDS to all the Roman Empire and beyond. Yes, but who took them to the land whichb was to spread the gospel all over the world ? You guessed it .. Mary Magdalene. For story records that Maryry Magdalene although snubbed by the male leadership of the Early church did do great andmighty things for the Lord with the help of Joseph of Arimathea.. For together with the other Mary's, it seems they pioneered and set up a missionary church in Glastonbury in England. (SEE Church History and the Holy Grail ) And it was from here that the great Christian King Arthur arose, with His descendant King James helping put together the best translation ever, that swept the world with the story of the Messiah that had come. So why was Mary Magdalene written out of the Bible by the Church Fathers in the centuries after Jesus' death. The answer could be jealousy, or a fear that they might lose power over their women, who had for so long been deemed their possessions upon marriage. (SEE Male Patriarchy) For they seemed to want to keep in bondage what the Lord had set free. Don't believe this ? Then why would they want her picture blotted out from the Last Supper painting ? Well take a look at Leonardo Da Vinci's famous LAST SUPPER picture before it was doctored up and Mary Magdlene changed into a male figure. I realize this picture might not have the resolution for you to see it too well But Mary is sitting at Jesus's right hand with complimentary colors to His, because she was His other half, as she was known to be His bride, just as we are suppose to be His Bride. And if you look closely, (First Pic BELOW) you'll see a knife that is being held by a mysterious hand. For strangely or appropriately enough it is right behind Mary Magdalene, so maybethey didn't like Mary Magdalene, this being suggested over and over again in numerous esoteric and historical writings. But after removing Mary from the original painting, the Last Supper turned into the all male Feast, that most of us recognize. SEE Leonardo's Final Last Supper ). And so the question arises how did Leonardo DaVinci know these things, well he was trained in the Mysteries, and knew what happenned with Jesus. And yet he became a pawn of his sponsors as he even forged the face of Jesus on the Shroud of Turin. (See Shroud of Turin.) DaVinci put his own face on the shroud rather than having the real shroud. Why, because the church wanted its non thinking followers to have more faith in them as the sucessors of the Lord's truths, when obviously they didn't have them and don't have them. The false church even blotted out women's equality with men in the spiritual plane, just as it apppears that they have even blottted out Mary Magdalene from the original painting of Leonardo. So decide for yourself and ask yourself.. are women equal to men ? (SEE End-Time Equality ). But while pondering this. notice below how a more modern and accurate painter, Piasecki, depicts the Lord's Last Supper,. For many of the women that loved Jesus are at the Last Supper. God bless them !! (SEE Women Prophetesses in the End Time) For 'There is neither male nor female in Christ Jesus' but both, and they are both equal with Him as He looks at their hearts and not their gender......

Mary Magdalene at the Crucifixion.

Bride of Christ in the Old Testament

The Bride of Christ is not a new concept but something that has always been talked about since the beginning of scriptures and the beginning of time. For even Adam, the first man, knew the only way back to the Garden was only through faith in the 'Son of Man'. And so he taught his good seed, about the coming of the 'Son of Man' (SEE Adam's EasterProphecy) And if you didn't know it, the believers or faithful ones in the Son, those married to Him in Spirit were part of His all-powerful Name. As Yahweh's last letter (YHWH) or final H or 'He' in Hebrew is feminine, and is referred as the Bride of the 'Son of Man', the Bride of the Bridegroom. This made His Name, complete from Father, to Mother the Feminine Holy Spirit, to Son (Jesus) and then to His Virgin Bride. They all being One in the End, into Eternity. For the Old Testament believers received the exact same Grace and Mercy from the Lord who was from the very Beginning, as we have.. For it has always been by 'Choice' rather than by heritage or bloodlines, (as illustrated by evil Cain, disobedient Esau, etc etc.) The good 'Old Testament'seed always having to choose and believe in the Messiah to come, whereas we have believed in the Messiah that has come ... and His Name is Jesus (in English). So whether, His Bride was in the Old or New testament times, we all have had to choose to be 'chosen'. For no one is a chosen people, no one is His Bride unless they individually choose His Righteousness rather than their own. (SEE She shall be called, 'The Lord our Righteousness'). The 'believers' in the Old Testament' are our brethren in the Lord as said so eloquently in Hebrews Chapter 11, because it has always taken 'Faith' to please the Bridegroom. And they without us, are incomplete. We are not a separate vine from them, for there has always only been ONE VINE, and that is the Messiah that was to come and has come and who will reign forever... JESUS. For it is our job to continue spreading His Words just as was their job before us. We have to 'Gather' the lost sheep of the House of spiritual Israel as the Lord himself said. We areto join as ONE Fold, into 'His Encampment' for the End-Time. Where we await the coming of our Bridegroom in the air, for our Wedding Feast in the Heavenlies. The Lord's Bride is the woman in the wilderness who is protected and feed for 1260 days in preparing to meet her husband. She is the 144,000 virgin brides that are wed to the King of Kings as his Bride. (SEE Rev 12, and New Nation) For the obedient Bride isn't composed of the disobedient or the nationalistic but those Christians from whatever background, culture, tribe, or nation that love Him with all their heart. It is a matter not of having the right bloodlines, but being washed in the 'Blood of the lamb' (SEE Salvation). But let's go over almost a whole Chapter to show you this principle straight from an Old Testament Prophet...Hosea, who was told to marry a harlot, to show the Lord's love. My comments will be in .....(...)

Hosea 2:1-23.

5 For their mother hath played the harlot: she thatconceived them hath done shamefully: for she said, I will go after my lovers, that give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, mine oil and my drink. (Yes, the greatest whoredom is giving credit for our lives to things and materialism and a different God than our Creator)

6 Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths. 7 And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find them: then shall she say, I will go and return to my first husband; for then was it better with me than now. (Compare this exact same parallel with the lovers of the Whore, the materialistic nuclear power of Revelation 13,17,18) 8 For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal. 9 Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recover my wool and my flax given to cover her nakedness. 10 And now will I discover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and none shall deliver her out of mine hand. (And none shall deliver the End-Time Whore out of the hand of the Lord as He punishes her with a fire in one hour. For she was drunk with power from her spiritual fornication with her many merchants)

11 I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her feast days, her new moons, and her sabbaths, and all her solemn feasts. 12 And I will destroy her vines and her fig trees, whereof she hath said, These are my rewards that my lovers have given me: and I will make them a forest, and the beasts of the field shall eat them. 13 And I will visit upon her the days of Baalim, wherein she burned incense to them, and she decked herself with her earrings and her jewels, and she went after her lovers, and forgat me, saith the LORD. (Yes America, and the rest of the nations will totally forget the Lord and His giving them their abundance, and will totally succumb to the false religion of materialism and this present life. And they shall accept the false Christ, the Anti-Christ.- David Jay Jordan

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Veneration of Mary Magdalene

The Eastern Orthodox Church maintains that the saint retired to Ephesus with the Blessed Virgin and there died, that her relics were transferred to Constantinople in 886 and are there preserved. Gregory of Tours (De miraculis, I, xxx) supports the tradition that she retired to Ephesus with no mention of any connection to Gaul. How a cult of Mary Magdalene first arose in Provence is not clear. As a Roman Catholic saint, Mary Magdalene's relics were first venerated at the abbey of Vézelay in Burgundy. Jacobus de Voragine gives the official story of the translation of the relics of Mary Magdalene from her sepulchre in the oratory of Saint Maximin at Aix-en-Provence to the newly-founded abbey of Vézelay ("the Abbey of Vesoul" in William Caxton's translation), that was reputed to have been undertaken in 771 by the founder of the abbey, identified as Gerard, duke of Burgundy (Medieval Sourcebook). The Saint Maximin of this legend is a figure who conflates the historical bishop Maximin with the "Maximin" accompanying Mary Magdalen, Martha and Lazarus to Provence. A cult later than the Legenda Aurea drew pilgrims to the body of Mary Magdalene, officially discovered September 9 1279, at Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume, Provence, where they attracted such throngs of pilgrims that the earlier shrine was rebuilt as the great Basilica from the mid thirteenth century, one of the finest Gothic churches in the south of France. The competition between the Cluniac Benedictines of Vézelay and the Dominicans of Saint-Maxime occasioned a rash of miraculous literature supporting the one or the other site. Jacopo de Voragine, compiling his Legenda Aurea before the competition arose, characterized Mary Magdalen as the emblem of penitence, washing the feet of Jesus with her copious tears, protectress of pilgrims to Jerusalem, daily lifting by angels at the meal hour in her fasting retreat and many other miraculous happenings in the genre of Romance, ending with her death in the oratory of Saint Maximin, all disingenuously claimed to have been drawn from the histories of Hegesippus and of Josephus. The French tradition of Saint Lazare of Bethany is that Mary, her brother Lazarus, and Maximinus, one of the Seventy-Two Apostles and some companions, expelled by persecutions from the Holy Land, traversed the Mediterranean in a frail boat with neither rudder nor mast and landed at the place called Sainte Marie-de-Mer near Arles. Mary Magdalene came to Marseille and converted the whole of Provence. Magdalene is said to have retired to a cave on a hill by Marseille, La Sainte-Baume ("holy cave", baumo in Provencal), where she gave herself up to a life of penance for thirty years. When the time of her death arrived she was carried by angels to Aix and into the oratory of Saint Maximinus, where she received the viaticum; her body was then laid in an oratory constructed by St. Maximinus at Villa Lata, afterwards called St. Maximin. There is no earlier mention of these episodes than the notice in 745, when the chronicler Sigebert, the relics were removed to Vézelay through fear of the Saracens. There is no record of their return and a casket of relics associated with Magdalene remains at Vezelay..

In 1279, when Charles II, King of Naples, erected a Dominican convent at La Sainte-Baume, the shrine was marvelously found intact, with an explanatory inscription stating why the relics had been hidden. In 1600 the relics were placed in a sarcophagus commissioned by Pope Clement VIII, the head being placed in a separate reliquary. The relics and free-standing images were scattered and destroyed at the Revolution. In 1814 the church of La Sainte-Baume, also wrecked during the Revolution, was restored, and in 1822 the grotto was consecrated afresh. The head of the saint now lies there, where it has lain so long, and where it has been the centre of so many pilgrimages. The Magdalene became a symbol of repentance for the vanities of the world, and Mary Magdalene was the patron of Magdalen College, Oxford and Magdalene College, Cambridge (both pronounced "maudlin", as in weepy penitents). Unfortunately her name was also used for the infamous Magdalen Asylums in Ireland where "fallen women" were mistreated and exploited. Souce: Encyclopedia Wikipedia.

THE GOSPEL OF MARY REVISITED

Further attestation of Mary of Magdala and her role among some early Christians is provided by the gnostic, apocryphal Gospel of Mary Magdalene. which survives in two 3rd century Greek fragments and a longer 5th century translation into Coptic. In the Gospel the testimony of a woman first needed to be defended. All of these manuscripts were first discovered and published between 1938 and 1983, but as early as the 3rd century there are Patristic references to the Gospel of Mary. These writings reveal the degree to which the gospel was despised and dismissed by the early church fathers. In the fragmentary text, the disciples ask questions of the risen Savior (a designation that dates the original no earlier than the 2nd century) and are answered. Then they grieve, saying, "How shall we go to the Gentiles and preach the Gospel of the Kingdom of the Son of Man? If even he was not spared, how shall we be spared?" And Mary Magdalene bids them take heart: "Let us rather praise his greatness, for he prepared us and made us into men." She then delivers – at Peter's request – a vision of the Savior she has had, and reports her discourse with him, which shows Gnostic influences. Her vision does not meet with universal approval:

"But Andrew answered and said to the brethren, 'Say what you think concerning what she said. For I do not believe that the Savior said this. For certainly these teachings are of other ideas."

"Peter also opposed her in regard to these matters and asked them about the Savior. "Did he then speak secretly with a woman, in preference to us, and not openly? Are we to turn back and all listen to her? Did he prefer her to us?"

Dr. Karen King, a professor of church history at Harvard Divinity School, has observed, "The confrontation of Mary with Peter, a scenario also found in The Gospel of Thomas, Pistis Sophia, and The Gospel of the Egyptians, reflects some of the tensions in second-century Christianity. Peter and Andrew represent orthodox positions that deny the validity of esoteric revelation and reject the authority of women to teach." (introduction, The Nag Hammadi Library)

Assertions about Mary Magdalene

Some modern writers have come up with unfounded claims that Mary Magdalene was the wife of Jesus. These writers cite non-canonical and Gnostic writings to support their argument. Sources like the Gospel of Philip do depict Mary Magdalene as being closer to Jesus than any other disciple. However, there is no ancient document which claims she was his wife and Gnosticism was generally non-supportive of sexuality. The closeness described in these writings depicts Mary Magdalene, representing the Gnostics, as understanding Jesus and his teaching while the other disciples, representing the Church, did not. Mary Magdalene appears with more frequency than other women in the canonical Gospels and is shown as being a close follower of Jesus. Mary's presence at the Crucifixion and Jesus's tomb, while hardly conclusive, is at least consonant with the role of grieving wife and widow, although if that were the case Jesus might have been expected to make provision for her care as well as for his mother Mary. Given the lack of contemporary documentation, this scenario cannot be proven, and although some consider the idea desirable to believe, most scholars do not take it seriously. On the other hand, there is neither any direct evidence that Jesus was unmarried. An argument for support of the married status of Jesus is that bachelorhood was very rare for Jewish males of Jesus' time, being generally regarded as a transgression of the first mitzvah (divine commandment)— "Be fruitful and multiply". According to this reasoning, it would have been unthinkable for an adult, unmarried Jew to travel about teaching as a rabbi. A counter-argument to this is that the Judaism of Jesus' time was very diverse and the role of the rabbi was not yet well defined. It was really not until after the Roman destruction of the Second Temple in A.D. 70 that Rabbinic Judaism became dominant and the role of the rabbi made uniform in Jewish communities. Before Jesus celibate teachers were known in the communities of the Essenes and John the Baptist also was celibate. Later, Paul of Tarsus was an example of an unmarried itinerant teacher among Christians. Jesus himself approved of voluntary celibacy for religious reasons and explicitly rejected a duty to marry: "There are eunuchs, who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven. He that can take, let him take it." (Matt. 19,12)

WAS MARY MAGDALENE THE WIFE OF JESUS?

The idea that Mary Magdalene was the wife of Jesus was popularized by books like the pseudo-historical Holy Blood, Holy Grail (1982) and The Da Vinci Code (2003), a novel based on the former book. These have found no acceptance from scholarly circles. Multiple books have been written debunking parts of The Da Vinci Code such as The Truth Behind the Da Vinci Code (2004) written by Richard Abanes. The Australian scholar Barbara Thiering claims that a full account of the marriage and children of Jesus and Mary Magdalene can be derived from the New Testament by use of the pesher technique. However, both her method and her findings have found little support from mainstream scholars.

Metaphysical marriage

Writers employing metaphysical analogy and allegory assert that Christ was already married— to the Church. This image goes back to Old Testament depictions of the covenant between God and his people as a marriage, especially in the books Hosea, Ezekiel and the Song of Songs. Imagery of marriage also appears in the Gospels and is applied to Jesus in the Apocalypse of John in the New Testament. This was later expanded by the Church fathers. Some writers, following an early tradition that Jesus is in a mystical sense the second Adam that began with Paul and continued with Irenaeus and others, embody this sense with literal parallels: like the first Adam, his bride was taken from his side when he had fallen asleep (died on the cross). In medieval Christian anagogic exegesis, the blood and water which came from his side when he was pierced, was held to represent the bringing forth of the Church with its analogy in the water of baptism and the wine of the new covenant. Thus Christ can be said in an allegorical sense to already have a wife in the Church. By shifting from the metaphysical analogy to a literal marriage, it can then be considered impossible or intolerable to believe that he was literally married.