Mary Magdalene is one of the most influential symbols in the history of Christianity—yet, if you look in the Bible, you’ll find only a handful of verses that speak of her. How did she become such a compelling saint in the face of such paltry evidence? In her effort to answer that question, Cynthia Bourgeault examines the Bible, church tradition, art, legend, and newly discovered texts to see what’s there. She then applies her own reasoning and intuition, informed by the wisdom of the ages-old Christian contemplative tradition. What emerges is a radical view of Mary Magdalene as Jesus’s most important disciple, the one he considered to understand his teaching best. That teaching was characterized by a nondualistic approach to the world and by a deep understanding of the value of the feminine. Cynthia shows how an understanding of Mary Magdalene can revitalize contemporary Christianity, how Christians and others can, through her, find their way to Jesus’s original teachings and apply them to their modern lives.
The Meaning of Mary Magdalene
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“A spiritual masterpiece, and by far the wisest and most profound book ever written on Mary Magdalene.”—Andrew Harvey, author of Son of Man and Hope: A Guide to Sacred Action
“A remarkable invitation into the origins and wisdom of Christianity, through the apostolic witness of Mary Magdalene. Expect a challenge, perhaps more than you ’re ready for. This book should change something, as it invites you to deepen your capacity for love, through the witness of Jesus ’s beloved disciple.”—The Most Rev. Dr. Katharine Jefferts Schiori, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church
“It takes courage, intelligence, maturity, but mostly Christian intuitive wisdom to write a book such as this. Cynthia Bourgeault succeeds grandly!”—Richard Rohr, OFM, author of The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See
“Pastor, scholar, mystic . . . Cynthia Bourgeault is all of these, but never before has she combined them so compellingly and persuasively, and—dare one say it?—so efficaciously as here in this work that lives so close to the center of her own being.”—Phillis Tickle, author of The Great Emergence: How Christianity Is Changing and Why
“Bourgeault masterfully takes the best of tradition, history, and recent scholarship, sums it up with clarity, and then respectfully and artfully flings open new doors of insight, wisdom, and possibility. She offers completely unique and stirring insights about Mary Magdalene.”—Presence: An International Journal of Spiritual Direction
“This is not simply another book on Mary Magdalene along the lines of Dan Brown or the Holy Blood/Holy Grail authors. Yes, Cynthia Bourgeault, an Episcopal priest, is making an argument about the relationship between Magdalene and Jesus, an argument that is certainly controversial, and in lesser hands has been badly distorted. However, Bourgeault does it in a way that is grounded both spiritually and academically.”—Parabola
“A remarkable invitation into the origins and wisdom of Christianity, through the apostolic witness of Mary Magdalene. Expect a challenge, perhaps more than you ’re ready for. This book should change something, as it invites you to deepen your capacity for love, through the witness of Jesus ’s beloved disciple.”—The Most Rev. Dr. Katharine Jefferts Schiori, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church
“It takes courage, intelligence, maturity, but mostly Christian intuitive wisdom to write a book such as this. Cynthia Bourgeault succeeds grandly!”—Richard Rohr, OFM, author of The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See
“Pastor, scholar, mystic . . . Cynthia Bourgeault is all of these, but never before has she combined them so compellingly and persuasively, and—dare one say it?—so efficaciously as here in this work that lives so close to the center of her own being.”—Phillis Tickle, author of The Great Emergence: How Christianity Is Changing and Why
“Bourgeault masterfully takes the best of tradition, history, and recent scholarship, sums it up with clarity, and then respectfully and artfully flings open new doors of insight, wisdom, and possibility. She offers completely unique and stirring insights about Mary Magdalene.”—Presence: An International Journal of Spiritual Direction
“This is not simply another book on Mary Magdalene along the lines of Dan Brown or the Holy Blood/Holy Grail authors. Yes, Cynthia Bourgeault, an Episcopal priest, is making an argument about the relationship between Magdalene and Jesus, an argument that is certainly controversial, and in lesser hands has been badly distorted. However, Bourgeault does it in a way that is grounded both spiritually and academically.”—Parabola
About the Author
Cynthia Bourgeault, PhD, is an Episcopal priest, teacher, and retreat and conference leader. She is the author of several books, including Chanting the Psalms and Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
93 of 102 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
"The gospel narratives leave us with a powerful icon of the deep and pure soul love between Mary Magdalene and Jesus..a deep and mystical bond between them, stronger than physical life or death,(which) becomes profoundly engendering to the whole subsequent unfolding of Christianity" ( C. Bourgeault 2008 The Wisdom Jesus). Picking up themes from earlier work which are at the heart of her teaching and Thomas Keating's, and further exploring her own almost life long interest in Mary Magdalene, this book, takes us on a journey through an imaginal ( not the same as imagined) consideration of the relationship between Jesus and Mary. The Rev. Bourgeault takes us on a journey, informed by faith, experience and a sparkling intellect through an ages old consideration of the relationship between eros and agape. Before taking us on this journey with her, she first visits what we know of Mary in history referring to the bible as well as the gnostic gospels (but not the Pistis Sophia or the Jesus Sophia) and very logically in very human terms points to the evidence that the relationship was deeply personal, intimate and loving and that Mary most likely had her own .spiritual gifts. Rev. Bourgeault tells us that the meaning of Mary is not as sophia incarnate, that the recovery of Magdalene is not a recovery of Sophia, the feminine divine. There is only one ordering principle,not a masculine and a feminine,she says with compelling clarity. The real meaning of Mary Magdalene to Christianity is in her human being..in her being the first Christian..the first to understand and model Jesus' transparency ( not as God but as Human (sic)) There is obviously much more experience, thought and revelation to be shared than could be accommodated in these few pages. There is no question that The Rev. Bourgeault's voice is an authentic one on the subject of Mary Magdalene..she tells us she has been drawn to Mary Magdalene for more than 40 years. Readers and students interested in further exploration or deeper understanding of the themes in this book might also want to read, or re read, Wisdom Jesus and Love is Stronger than Death. Her bibilographies are always a treasure trove and a work of hers cited in this book is well worth a read for further background on eros as divine love (Spring 1999 issue of Gnosis..available through Field Books, San Francisco) Sardello also speaks very movingly to the transformative power of the sacred in relationship, to the emanation of a third and sacred presence from such relationships, in Chapter six of his book, Silence. Athough a very different kind of book, oustide the garden wall of wisdom teaching for contemplatives, Jane Norton's "The Mary Magdalene Within" is a plain English version of the imaginal relationship Bourgeault conveys in her book which may make what Bourgeault is saying here more accessible to you. Reread..a few times. ..and do explore other sources, especially those she recommends.
It is possible that some of what the Rev. Bourgeault asks us to consider may be rough going.( mostly things mentioned in passing and not developed)but she is only asking us to consider and not for the sake of persuasion but to provoke a search for clarity within ourselves.
It is possible that some of what the Rev. Bourgeault asks us to consider may be rough going.( mostly things mentioned in passing and not developed)but she is only asking us to consider and not for the sake of persuasion but to provoke a search for clarity within ourselves.
51 of 54 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
I am a middle aged male from the Roman Catholic tradition and Cynthia Bourgeault is my spiritual guide. She does not know this as we have never met. I have read her book on Centering Prayer (8 times), The Wisdom Way of Knowing, Wisdom Jesus (5 times), Mystical Hope, Love is stronger than Death, and now Mary Magdalene. I mention these other works because this might be a reasonable order for approaching her work. She may occasionally be a little off the mark but I always have a deep sense that she is leading me in the right direction. I never get the sense that she has an agenda but that she is following her heart in union with God. I now feel an inner certainty that Mary Magdalene was the first to realize that Jesus continued to live after his death. Then she got Peter on board and the rest is history. I could not stop reading this book and I will soon be reading it again.
34 of 36 people found the following review helpful
By pynn
Format:Paperback
It is light bursting over the waters beneath a heavily clouded sky--It is a woman speaking out into the clear air after the heart's years of secret conversing. To continue David Whyte's imagery, it is `the opening of eyes long closed'---deep seeing into the true image at the core and resolving back to our origin. I sense an energetic symbiosis between Cynthia's mind and Mary's until I am not sure who is speaking. That is the amazing anamnesis Dr. Bourgeault has achieved. The book is magnificent: another writing to live on -to love through.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
A very interesting picture of Gnostic texts
VEry interesting book. Bought it for a Lenten book discussion. Very thought provoking. Enjoyable.Gnostic text explained well. Read more
Published 2 months ago by booboo
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mary
Anyone who would like to know more about Mary Magdalene should get this book. Cynthia brings her into the light and helps you to see what a pivotal role she played and how much we... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Smb
5.0 out of 5 stars
Through the Love of a Good Woman
At a time when we as a collective are coming to terms with the disenfranchised feminine, especially in patriarchal spirituality and Christianity, this stunning and scholarly book... Read more
Published 3 months ago by The Gaella ElanRah
1.0 out of 5 stars
Stop wasting your time
Stop wasting your time and money on this light weight impressionistic fantasy book. There is already a definitive, scholarly, readable, and simply brilliant study of Mary Magdalen... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Careful Reader
5.0 out of 5 stars
Inspiring and educational
The book presents a complex and controversial topic in a straight forward logical and open hearted way. Read more
Published 4 months ago by ZASS
3.0 out of 5 stars
Gnostic or non Gnostic? That is the question.
There is much to commend this book. It promotes a Christianity that is non-dualistic and sex-positive and it accepts that there is much wisdom in the apocryphal gospels. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Mr. D. P. Jay
5.0 out of 5 stars
Illuminating and inspiring
Bourgeault develops her perspective on Mary Magdalene through both careful scholarship and inspired, spiritual insight. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Elena Tabachnick
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very enlightening
Very scholarly reseach on how Mary Magdalene was pushed away from the center of the newly developping faith of Christainity, and how that has effected our culture for 2 thousand... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Grannie Annie
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very Informative!
This book futher aids my research on Mary Magdalene and is packed with many insights on her, Yeshua and the nature of spiritual love.
Published 5 months ago by Gail J. Schwartz
1.0 out of 5 stars
Utter Nonsense!
It is way too obvious that the author had an agenda before she began her research and writing, and clearly fit her "findings" to match the story she wanted to tell. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Solvig
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