The Magdalene Mystique » 2007 » April

The Author

Betty Conrad Adam, an Episcopal priest, is resident Canon Theologian at Christ Church Cathedral, Houston, and spiritual director of the Magdalene Community. She holds a PhD in philosphy from Rice University and was a recipient of a Merrill Fellowship at the Harvard Divinity School.

The Book

The Magdalene Mystique retells the story of Mary Magdalene for our time. As the consummate “other” who is mislabelled and demonized, the Magdalene becomes an ancestor who can help us bridge our cultural and religious divisions. Her lost Gospel tells us how a more deeply connected consciousness can happen to all of us and how we can be lead into a “shared peace.”

The CD

The Magdalene Mystique: Songs From Within by Anita Kruse is a companion to the book, The Magdalene Mystique. The music that accompanies our services can be found on this CD along with voices from other religious traditions. You will find this music helpful for private devotion or for use in your community.

Two groups reading about Mary Magdalene

posted April 20th, 2007 at 10:04 am by Betty

Today our Magdalene Community study-group begins a study of the new book The Secrets of Mary Magdalene: The Untold Story of History’s Most Misunderstood Woman, edited by Dan Burstein, Arne J. DeKeijzen, Deidre Good, and Jennifer Doll, with an Introduction by Elaine Pagels. We will meet at Christ Church Cathedral at noon if you would like to join us on the first and third Friday of every month. Next Monday, The Monday Group at Christ Church Cathedral at noon will begin its study of The Magdalene Mystique. All are welcome.

With these two study groups going on, it seems like a good time for me to write about these two books. Perhaps you will want to purchase one or both of these books and read along with us. Some of my future posts will be an experiment in extending those thoughts that arise in our study groups out into the world. My hope is that you, too, will become engaged in this material.

I began my morning with the chapter by Dan Burstein in Secrets of Mary Magdalene. His chapter is entitled “Our Fascination with Mary Magdalene: Confessions of a DaVinci Code Fan.” Right away I resonated with the chapter title on “our fascination,” though I usually use the word “mystique.” By mystique, I mean our culture’s fascination but, deeper still, our veneration, that is calling us to notice her and model our lives after her - a spiritual spark that is telling us as much about ourselves, our past and future, as it does about Mary Magdalene.

Burstein’s chapter is fun to read and I recommend it. It gives an honest appraisal of The Da Vinci Code, finding its ideas about the Holy Grail and bloodline and deliberate conspiracy more “fanciful” than fact. Burstein’s interest is in the complex and deeper questions that The Da Vinci Code brings up, such as who was Mary Magdalene historically and what was her role in the life of Jesus and in early Christian history.

Burstein is interested in the newly discovered documents in which Mary Magdalene is shown to be a spiritual guide and leader. With an Introduction to the book by Elaine Pagels, we know that the editors will be discussing those manuscripts where Mary Magdalene is listed among the disciples and in some cases is a major voice.

In a closing section Burstein speaks of the relevance for today of the spirituality associated with Mary Magdalene in the extraBiblical documents. This spirituality, he says, emphasizes “the proceses of self-discovery and self-actualization as lying at the heart of morality and religion.” This spirituality contains “more Zen-like, more profound, more spiritual widsom” than we find in traditional Christian theology.

I am eager to recieve your thoughts about what you have found spiritually meaningful in the re-discovery of Mary Magdalene and will continue to report back to you as our study progresses on The Secrets and The Magdalene Mystique. Have a blessed weekend. elaine pagels mary magdalene da vinci code secrets of mary magdalene Dan Burstein