Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, travelled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to his crucifixion and resurrection.
Mary Magdalene is accepted by scholars, secular and religious, as a historical figure. Her epithet is usually taken to mean that she came from Magdala, though Elizabeth Schrader Polczer and Joan Taylor have argued that Magdalene ("tower") may instead have been an honorific nickname. She is seen as a prominent follower of Jesus who was believed to have been healed by him, supported his ministry financially, and was present at his crucifixion and burial. She played a key role among his female disciples. Overall, there is limited information about her life.
During the Patristic era, Mary Magdalene was mentioned only briefly by early Church Fathers, with her image evolving from a minor gospel figure to being conflated with other women in the Bible. Eventually she became viewed in Western Christianity, largely due to Pope Gregory I's influential 591 sermon, as a repentant prostitute, despite there being no biblical basis for this portrayal.
In the Martyrology
- July 22 Saint Mary Magdalene, disciple of the Lord