The Magdalene Review

From my book:

“Clearly, the legend of Helen is meant to be a Gnostic allegory for the fall of Sophia (which is in turn an allegory of the fall of the soul), but the parallels between Simon Magus and Jesus should also make us look more closely at the parallels between Helen and Mary Magdalene.

Both Helen and Mary Magdalene have represented Sophia’s presence in the physical world; wouldn’t the fact that Helen was incarnated as a prostitute have had some bearing on what was thought of Mary Magdalene’s pre-Jesus life as well? This is a question that hasn’t been fully explored by scholars, but as the studies of Mary Magdalene’s roles in Gnosticism continue, it very well could be the earliest indirect reference to Mary Magdalene as a prostitute.”

Apparently, someone in academia picked up the gauntlet I tossed down in this section in 2004. Here is the first paragraph of the conclusion of a 2007 thesis that very studiously explores the theme I mentioned above as well as the importance of MM’s medieval identity as a fallen woman.

“If Mary was in reality not this paragon of penitence, the contrite whore of the medieval imagination, then who was she? There are numerous possibilities, impossible to verify. If not an actual prostitute, her figure was perhaps viewed as a symbolic whore, the fallen soul and companion to her redeemer figure, an itinerant holy man named Jesus, just as Helen was companion to Simon Magus.”

Mary of Magdala: The Evolution of an Image, by Rachel D. Owen

The thesis is marvelous. Owen’s primary goal is to establish that MM’s medieval identity as a penitent, redeemed prostitute wasn’t necessarily without historical basis. Without scriptural basis, certainly, but neither is there anything to conclude with any hard evidence that she wasn’t a redeemed prostitute. On the contrary, there is circumstantial evidence that MM may have been linked to the harlot identity on several different fronts. Not only was a symbol of the fallen soul, counterpart to Helen, but also as an authority figure appreciated by heretical sects at a time when heretics and independent women were often denigrated as prostitutes. In short, there are plenty of logical ways MM could have landed a bad reputation.

Far be it from me to say that the conversation on MM the harlot is over; I’m sure the controversy is really just beginning now that an eloquent argument with academics who favor a wholesale deletion of 1400 years’ worth of tradition has been presented. The publishing of this thesis does represent significant progress from where I’m sitting though; let’s treat MM’s identities as cumulative layers, one upon the other, instead of random veils tossed at her from various directions.

Big congratulations to Rachel Owen for contributing a brave and articulate voice to modern MM scholarship.