Something That Needs To Be Said
It’s about Jesus. And its not the Birth story, even though Christmas is nigh upon us.
I need to get this out today. It’s about the most important part of Christianity. It’s about the resurrection. The two reigning narratives for the witnessing of the resurrection have to do with women. One: Mary Magdalene was the only witness and was alone in her knowledge about this for a number of hours before letting/telling the men about it. For that reason, she is often called the apostles’ apostle.
Two: A group of three (maybe more) women were the only witnesses to the resurrection and were alone with this information for a number of hours before letting/telling the men (the apostles)
The reason: The men were afraid to stay with Jesus through his death. They feared for their lives, but even though women also risked their lives, they did it anyway. The women who prepared his body for burial are often recognized as his mother, his sister, and of course, Mary Magdalene. This telling of the tale could lead to an important conclusion. Mary M may well have been considered a family member since usually family took on the job of burial preparation. She may have been his partner, his wife, or his significant other. He may have been gay. This notion was not something that the male apostles were too fond of. Out of fear, they tried to erase her, although the apostles mention her, and historically men of the church even turned her into a deviant — or prostitute- thereby diminishing her role, and her position in this movement. If Mary was the sole witness to the resurrection, she was the church!
What would Christianity look like had the books of Mary, or earlier documentation of the story before countless edits, have become the new testament? Would this religion be one of conquering, often finding its justification of its cruel behavior in its practice? Or would the message of Jesus told by this woman, or these women be one of compassion and peace, condemning greed and selfishness, accepting differences in beliefs?