Mary Magdalene was there—at the cross, the tomb, and the resurrection—but centuries of liturgical practice made us forget. This bold piece, reveals how ritual, not Scripture, erased her from Holy Week—and why remembering her changes everything.
I can’t believe I never realized this. Talk about hidden in plain sight. Ritual erasure. I was raised Catholic and was educated mostly in Catholic schools. We did not read the Bible. We listened to selected readings on Sunday and sermons based on them, readings chosen by a liturgical calendar, not by what had inspired the priest that week.
I went on to join the convent. If there was ever a place that would have been useful to explore Magdalene’s message, that would have been it, but no mention was ever made.
I’m reeling as I imagine the story dramatized through the ages if it had left her in and given her the prime place that was always hers. How history would have changed.
Right? if only we had the knowing of the faithful Mary, rather than being told she was a prostitute? Such wasted time, and I feel sad/angry because of it...
I called myself a Christian for around 30 years, studied Applied Theology, lived in community for a year, led worship, read the Bible cover to cover twice and now I look back and see that I was there with a blindfold and earmuffs on. It was all there so why didn't I see it or hear it? Thanks Alek, I may not be any of the things I once was but I think I see things just a little better because of your writing. If only I had seen all that time ago when I was starting out.
Thank you for continuing to bring this needed reminder forward. It wasn't an accident that Mary was erased, and we need to put her back in her rightful place.
Once, in an Adult Bible study on Easter Sunday, the (male) leader said that we don't know why Mary didn't recognize the risen Christ in the garden. He offered a supernatural hiding of His identity which had no rationale or basis in the text. I raised my hand, and was recognized. I said: "The text tells us she was crying. Maybe she didn't recognize Him because her eyes were full of tears." He was thunderstruck. He exclaimed, "That's the best explanation I've ever heard as to why Mary didn't know Him until He said her name!!!". He thanked me later.
Hey Jodi, I love the tenderness in your take. Grief really does cloud our perception, and your comment clearly opened hearts in that moment. But when we zoom out and look at the full pattern of resurrection appearances, there’s something deeper going on—something that goes beyond Mary’s tears.
No one recognizes Jesus at first after the resurrection. Not Mary in the garden. Not the disciples on the road to Emmaus. Not the ones in the upper room. Not even the crew fishing on the beach. Cynthia Bourgeault would say that’s not a coincidence; it’s the point.
In her work, Cynthia describes the resurrection as a transformation in consciousness, not just a return to physical form. The Risen Christ isn’t just Jesus “back from the dead.” He is showing up in a completely new way, from a higher order of being. What she calls the “resurrection body” is more like a body of light, not limited to time, space, or ego-recognition.
That’s why the disciples can’t recognize him with their ordinary eyes. Recognition only happens through what Cynthia calls heart perception—a deeper, inner seeing that opens when something in us shifts.
Mary recognizes him not by sight, but when he calls her name, a moment of direct resonance.
The Emmaus disciples know him in the breaking of bread, a sacred gesture that pierces the veil.
Thomas recognizes him through the wounds, a moment where divinity and suffering are united.
So yes, maybe Mary didn’t see him because of the tears. But also, maybe her eyes weren’t the right tool. The resurrection invites a whole new way of seeing. Cynthia would say you must be raised in order to recognize the Risen One.
That’s the invitation. Not just to believe that Christ rose, but to let our own perception be resurrected too.
Magdeline is the original death doula. A doula for the transition from this life to the next. A presence of emotional and spiritual support as the certainties of life fade away. An advocate for the voice of the individual through the dying process and further for a voice for the Lord of Life. A voice that holds space for grief, that celebrates the life of the beloved-- that provides space for closure of this life and welcome for the new. One that knows how to sit with the pain and grief--to not let it over-power you, but to feel the weight of loss and not get lost in it or flee from it. She offers a ministry of presence, of honoring the beloved, of mercy, and hope.
Good Teacher, thanks for this amazing article! More missing pieces to fill in the story — churches should embrace the presence & faithfulness of Mary Magdalene, which has always been left out: she stayed with Jesus at the cross, she accompanied his body to the tomb, & she kept vigil at night, all because she loved him. She saw Jesus resurrected & he spoke to her. Churches should have meditation times on that Saturday to honor Mary’s vigil. 🌹
Might have to start our own church to make that materialize. Churches should do a lot of things but I’ll stop there….admitting i havent been to one I’ve resonated with in quite awhile. As far as starting our own - I’m game 🫣. I might need some healing miracles before then but anything can happen! I like the way you think 😉🙏🫶
Speaking of attending church, after I move back to Houston next week I’ll be attending my dad’s little neighborhood church every Sunday with him: Taylor Lake Christian Church. I’m friends with the pastor, who’s a woman! 🌸
Be sure to take her a copy of the Virgin Monk Boy overcoming Christian Nationalism meme card. We are looking for a printer, who will not turn us in, that will print them. Then we can distribute some 5x7's to a few partner Churches.
Oh, Karen, you beautiful agent of holy mischief. Sounds like Pastor Madella might just be the mustard seed in that congregation’s mental compost pile. If she’s game, maybe that’s all we need.
As for the rest of the flock? Let’s be honest. If one little 5x7 meme card is enough to start a fight, then we’re not planting a church. We’re tossing a match into dry brush and calling it Pentecost.
I knew you were going to say that! Now hold on to your match a cotton-pickin’ minute there, Teacher — it took Madella many years to cobble together this worship community from 2 warring factions. She very diplomatically tries to keep the peace, at least one day a week, & genuinely loves each member. And my dad, who just turned 93 on 7-11, loves this silly church (especially the pianist, Andrea). He would hate to see me lynched. So — easy does it! 🛐
Oops. I was thinking I was quoting from an old song, a spiritual, which is about the tears of Mary and sharing the drying of her eyes through love and recognition. Not admonishing her, or us, to weep. Sorry for my blundering use of words. English is my second language, my first is Love.
I know that song; the Kingston Trio did a rendition of it, and at least one kid back in the '60s decided they wanted to change their name to match it (wound up reaallllly long; I doubt it lasted long enough to be on any official I.D.).
Mind, it's also because the singers are looking forward to Judgement Day as well, so I'm not sure how "bouncy" it's actually supposed to be... :-/ The Kingston Trio's version has a recurring line: "Pharaoh's army got drown-ded/O Mary don't you weep." which sounds more Old Testament...it's a bit of confusing mix, but it's an old gospel/folk song, so I guess that's why?
I 100% agree with you. Mary Magdalene has been erased, deliberately and intentionally in my opinion. Most folks don't know who she is, and it's clear that church doctrine does it in a way that masquerades as male authority over actual literature. There's a much deeper story from what I've researched, and its far out of the mainstream than what people think.
Many of us sit with the cross overnight. We kiss the feet and we keep the vigil. The women do. We are there when he is buried and we are decorating the altar before the dawn of Easter. The rich history of suffering women has not been lost on the Church. There are mountains of examples of suffering women at the feet of the cross. Just watch Monsignor Landry’s reflection on the last seven words of Christ at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. This year. 2025. He sent it to me after he had come down from the altar after hours of worship. He speaks about these suffering servants. He knows them. He knows me. He knows human suffering because he is a missionary. He is my Spiritual Advisor. He has helped me keep the faith of my father. He is the Spiritual Compass of the Catholic faith. And I know there are many of him. You just have to ask for them. Find them. He found me.
Your comment is heartfelt, and I honor that. Truly. I believe Monsignor Landry may be a compassionate man. But this isn’t about individual clergy showing kindness. It’s about the systemic erasure baked into the liturgy itself—where Mary Magdalene, the first apostle by every Gospel account, gets no official speaking part. Not even on Resurrection Sunday, when she literally carried the message that Christianity is built on.
We don’t need more sermons about suffering women. We need liturgies that include their voices. Their courage. Their authority. Their resurrection.
You say “he found me.” That’s beautiful. But Mary wasn’t found. She was sent.
Millicent, I think we’re talking past each other a bit.
Queen of Heaven and Earth is a beautiful title, but that belongs to the Virgin Mary, not Mary Magdalene. Two different women. One bore him. The other announced him risen. Both honored in their own ways—but let’s not conflate them.
The point here is that Mary Magdalene is named in all four Gospels as present at the crucifixion and resurrection, and twice explicitly sent by Jesus to proclaim the news. That makes her the apostle to the apostles.
I was talking about Mary, the Virgin Mother. You know, the one who is the Queen of Sorrows? The Queen of Heaven and Earth? She was with Mary Magdalene at the cross and at the tomb. Two different women. Same name. Just to clarify. Victoria wiped the face of Jesus. She was another woman. Shall I go on?
It’s about Mary Magdalene being deliberately erased from the liturgical structure of the Church.
Let’s get the record straight:
Mary Magdalene was at the crucifixion.
She was at the burial.
She was the first to witness the resurrection.
And she was explicitly commissioned by Jesus to go tell the male disciples.
She wasn’t just present—she was entrusted with the core message of Christianity: that Christ is risen.
That’s the message the entire Church is built on.
And the one chosen to deliver it? Ignored in the liturgy. Silenced in the official voice of worship. Not even allowed a damn reading in her name on Resurrection Sunday.
That’s not a devotional oversight. That’s theological erasure.
So no, this isn’t about who helped decorate the altar.
It’s about who actually preached the resurrection—and got written out.
Stay on topic.
Honor the facts.
Because Mary Magdalene sure as hell did more than curtsy.
I can’t believe I never realized this. Talk about hidden in plain sight. Ritual erasure. I was raised Catholic and was educated mostly in Catholic schools. We did not read the Bible. We listened to selected readings on Sunday and sermons based on them, readings chosen by a liturgical calendar, not by what had inspired the priest that week.
I went on to join the convent. If there was ever a place that would have been useful to explore Magdalene’s message, that would have been it, but no mention was ever made.
I’m reeling as I imagine the story dramatized through the ages if it had left her in and given her the prime place that was always hers. How history would have changed.
Right? if only we had the knowing of the faithful Mary, rather than being told she was a prostitute? Such wasted time, and I feel sad/angry because of it...
I know. We could have been so empowered instead of quieted. But I guess that was the whole point.
Woman erased by patriarchy. Same old same old.
I called myself a Christian for around 30 years, studied Applied Theology, lived in community for a year, led worship, read the Bible cover to cover twice and now I look back and see that I was there with a blindfold and earmuffs on. It was all there so why didn't I see it or hear it? Thanks Alek, I may not be any of the things I once was but I think I see things just a little better because of your writing. If only I had seen all that time ago when I was starting out.
Thank you for continuing to bring this needed reminder forward. It wasn't an accident that Mary was erased, and we need to put her back in her rightful place.
Once, in an Adult Bible study on Easter Sunday, the (male) leader said that we don't know why Mary didn't recognize the risen Christ in the garden. He offered a supernatural hiding of His identity which had no rationale or basis in the text. I raised my hand, and was recognized. I said: "The text tells us she was crying. Maybe she didn't recognize Him because her eyes were full of tears." He was thunderstruck. He exclaimed, "That's the best explanation I've ever heard as to why Mary didn't know Him until He said her name!!!". He thanked me later.
Hey Jodi, I love the tenderness in your take. Grief really does cloud our perception, and your comment clearly opened hearts in that moment. But when we zoom out and look at the full pattern of resurrection appearances, there’s something deeper going on—something that goes beyond Mary’s tears.
No one recognizes Jesus at first after the resurrection. Not Mary in the garden. Not the disciples on the road to Emmaus. Not the ones in the upper room. Not even the crew fishing on the beach. Cynthia Bourgeault would say that’s not a coincidence; it’s the point.
In her work, Cynthia describes the resurrection as a transformation in consciousness, not just a return to physical form. The Risen Christ isn’t just Jesus “back from the dead.” He is showing up in a completely new way, from a higher order of being. What she calls the “resurrection body” is more like a body of light, not limited to time, space, or ego-recognition.
That’s why the disciples can’t recognize him with their ordinary eyes. Recognition only happens through what Cynthia calls heart perception—a deeper, inner seeing that opens when something in us shifts.
Mary recognizes him not by sight, but when he calls her name, a moment of direct resonance.
The Emmaus disciples know him in the breaking of bread, a sacred gesture that pierces the veil.
Thomas recognizes him through the wounds, a moment where divinity and suffering are united.
So yes, maybe Mary didn’t see him because of the tears. But also, maybe her eyes weren’t the right tool. The resurrection invites a whole new way of seeing. Cynthia would say you must be raised in order to recognize the Risen One.
That’s the invitation. Not just to believe that Christ rose, but to let our own perception be resurrected too.
It is, indeed, the time to re-member.
Magdeline is the original death doula. A doula for the transition from this life to the next. A presence of emotional and spiritual support as the certainties of life fade away. An advocate for the voice of the individual through the dying process and further for a voice for the Lord of Life. A voice that holds space for grief, that celebrates the life of the beloved-- that provides space for closure of this life and welcome for the new. One that knows how to sit with the pain and grief--to not let it over-power you, but to feel the weight of loss and not get lost in it or flee from it. She offers a ministry of presence, of honoring the beloved, of mercy, and hope.
Absolutely beautifully said!
She is All of Us Women 🌹💫🕊️🇨🇦
Good Teacher, thanks for this amazing article! More missing pieces to fill in the story — churches should embrace the presence & faithfulness of Mary Magdalene, which has always been left out: she stayed with Jesus at the cross, she accompanied his body to the tomb, & she kept vigil at night, all because she loved him. She saw Jesus resurrected & he spoke to her. Churches should have meditation times on that Saturday to honor Mary’s vigil. 🌹
Might have to start our own church to make that materialize. Churches should do a lot of things but I’ll stop there….admitting i havent been to one I’ve resonated with in quite awhile. As far as starting our own - I’m game 🫣. I might need some healing miracles before then but anything can happen! I like the way you think 😉🙏🫶
Speaking of attending church, after I move back to Houston next week I’ll be attending my dad’s little neighborhood church every Sunday with him: Taylor Lake Christian Church. I’m friends with the pastor, who’s a woman! 🌸
Be sure to take her a copy of the Virgin Monk Boy overcoming Christian Nationalism meme card. We are looking for a printer, who will not turn us in, that will print them. Then we can distribute some 5x7's to a few partner Churches.
Pastor Madella would appreciate the Overcoming Christian Nationalism card, but I don’t know about the congregation — it might start a fight!
Oh, Karen, you beautiful agent of holy mischief. Sounds like Pastor Madella might just be the mustard seed in that congregation’s mental compost pile. If she’s game, maybe that’s all we need.
As for the rest of the flock? Let’s be honest. If one little 5x7 meme card is enough to start a fight, then we’re not planting a church. We’re tossing a match into dry brush and calling it Pentecost.
Let it burn if it must.
I knew you were going to say that! Now hold on to your match a cotton-pickin’ minute there, Teacher — it took Madella many years to cobble together this worship community from 2 warring factions. She very diplomatically tries to keep the peace, at least one day a week, & genuinely loves each member. And my dad, who just turned 93 on 7-11, loves this silly church (especially the pianist, Andrea). He would hate to see me lynched. So — easy does it! 🛐
The Church has always wanted to redact women. Their « place » is in the kitchen, as Martha was, serving men. Or on their backs—again serving men.
Or giving birth to (preferably) male babies to redact future girls and women, or female babies who grow up to serve men.
And on it goes.
The Church has everyone, right where they want them, in order to perpetuate the cycle of the patriarchy.
Mary Magdalene was an « uppity woman » who was purposely redacted.
Insightful...
“Mary, don’t you weep. “
the damming of sorrow is the denial of humanity.
Oops. I was thinking I was quoting from an old song, a spiritual, which is about the tears of Mary and sharing the drying of her eyes through love and recognition. Not admonishing her, or us, to weep. Sorry for my blundering use of words. English is my second language, my first is Love.
I know that song; the Kingston Trio did a rendition of it, and at least one kid back in the '60s decided they wanted to change their name to match it (wound up reaallllly long; I doubt it lasted long enough to be on any official I.D.).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4GejalB9lQ&list=RDD4GejalB9lQ&start_radio=1
Mind, it's also because the singers are looking forward to Judgement Day as well, so I'm not sure how "bouncy" it's actually supposed to be... :-/ The Kingston Trio's version has a recurring line: "Pharaoh's army got drown-ded/O Mary don't you weep." which sounds more Old Testament...it's a bit of confusing mix, but it's an old gospel/folk song, so I guess that's why?
If it's the same song we're both thinking of? :-/
I 100% agree with you. Mary Magdalene has been erased, deliberately and intentionally in my opinion. Most folks don't know who she is, and it's clear that church doctrine does it in a way that masquerades as male authority over actual literature. There's a much deeper story from what I've researched, and its far out of the mainstream than what people think.
What a lovely bilingual combo (& order) to have, Daniel 💖
Many of us sit with the cross overnight. We kiss the feet and we keep the vigil. The women do. We are there when he is buried and we are decorating the altar before the dawn of Easter. The rich history of suffering women has not been lost on the Church. There are mountains of examples of suffering women at the feet of the cross. Just watch Monsignor Landry’s reflection on the last seven words of Christ at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. This year. 2025. He sent it to me after he had come down from the altar after hours of worship. He speaks about these suffering servants. He knows them. He knows me. He knows human suffering because he is a missionary. He is my Spiritual Advisor. He has helped me keep the faith of my father. He is the Spiritual Compass of the Catholic faith. And I know there are many of him. You just have to ask for them. Find them. He found me.
Your comment is heartfelt, and I honor that. Truly. I believe Monsignor Landry may be a compassionate man. But this isn’t about individual clergy showing kindness. It’s about the systemic erasure baked into the liturgy itself—where Mary Magdalene, the first apostle by every Gospel account, gets no official speaking part. Not even on Resurrection Sunday, when she literally carried the message that Christianity is built on.
We don’t need more sermons about suffering women. We need liturgies that include their voices. Their courage. Their authority. Their resurrection.
You say “he found me.” That’s beautiful. But Mary wasn’t found. She was sent.
Yes, she was. And, she is rightly called the Queen of Heaven and Earth. Voilà. Curtsy.
Millicent, I think we’re talking past each other a bit.
Queen of Heaven and Earth is a beautiful title, but that belongs to the Virgin Mary, not Mary Magdalene. Two different women. One bore him. The other announced him risen. Both honored in their own ways—but let’s not conflate them.
The point here is that Mary Magdalene is named in all four Gospels as present at the crucifixion and resurrection, and twice explicitly sent by Jesus to proclaim the news. That makes her the apostle to the apostles.
And yet… silence in the liturgy.
This isn’t about devotion. It’s about omission.
I was talking about Mary, the Virgin Mother. You know, the one who is the Queen of Sorrows? The Queen of Heaven and Earth? She was with Mary Magdalene at the cross and at the tomb. Two different women. Same name. Just to clarify. Victoria wiped the face of Jesus. She was another woman. Shall I go on?
Millicent, listen closely:
The article is not about Marian devotion.
It’s not about generalized piety.
It’s about Mary Magdalene being deliberately erased from the liturgical structure of the Church.
Let’s get the record straight:
Mary Magdalene was at the crucifixion.
She was at the burial.
She was the first to witness the resurrection.
And she was explicitly commissioned by Jesus to go tell the male disciples.
She wasn’t just present—she was entrusted with the core message of Christianity: that Christ is risen.
That’s the message the entire Church is built on.
And the one chosen to deliver it? Ignored in the liturgy. Silenced in the official voice of worship. Not even allowed a damn reading in her name on Resurrection Sunday.
That’s not a devotional oversight. That’s theological erasure.
So no, this isn’t about who helped decorate the altar.
It’s about who actually preached the resurrection—and got written out.
Stay on topic.
Honor the facts.
Because Mary Magdalene sure as hell did more than curtsy.