Mary came from the town of Magdala, on the western shore of Lake Galilee, thus her surname. Gospel accounts say she was a demoniac that Jesus cleansed of seven demons. Mary became a disciple of Jesus.

Mary was one of a group of women who joined Jesus group during His ministry, travelling with them. She appears to have been independently wealthy as she and other women financially supported Jesus mission (Luke 8:1-3). Mary was a popular name for girls in the time of Jesus, there are 6 Mary's named in the Bible, which can cause confusion and Mary Magdalene has too often been mistaken for Mary the postitute who washed Jesus feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. There is no proof in the Bible that they were the same Mary or that Mary Magdalene was ever a prostitute! She is also often confused with Mary of Bethany the sister of Martha.

After Jesus arrest when all the disciples except John had fled in fear. It was Mary his mother, Mary Magdalene and John who stayed with him and were there at the foot of the cross, when he died. Mary then took spices to the tomb to anoint his body (Mark 16:1; Luke 23:55-24:1) and became famously, the first witness to the Resurrection. In John’s Gospel, Mary meets Jesus outside the empty tomb and mistakes him for the gardener (John 20:1-18). She and the other women brought the news to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord” (John 20:18),(Luke 24:1-11), but were not believed.

Mary Magdalene’s involvement with the ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus, on the criteria of (Acts 1:21,22), makes her the equal of the apostles. She was definately a disciple, which was unheard of for women at the time. It is claimed in an apocryphal gospel, that Mary was very intelligent and understood Jesus teachings better than the rest of the disciples and was meant to be the Apostle to the Apostles. It is also claimed by some that she may have been the wife of Jesus Christ. It was unusual for a Rabbi not to be married, and she travelled with Jesus and the others, the apocryphal gospel says Jesus spent much time with her, that she understood him and his ministry more than anyone else and that he kissed her. If she was, it CHANGES NOTHING! Most Old Testament Prophets and all the Patriach's were married. When did marriage become a sin? It doesn't change who He is or what He did.

Wife or not - Mary stands equal to the disciples and deserves remembrance and respect. Some legends say that she lived with Jesus mother and the disciple John in Ephesus, and died there. Other legends say that she died in France.

BORN: Magdala, Israel

DIED: Ephesus, Turkey, Or France.

Quotes at the bottom of our prayer pages today come from the 'Gospel of Mary'. This was found in the late-19th Century somewhere near Akhmim in upper Egypt and became part of the Berlin Gnostic Codex (Papyrus Berolinensis 8502). Two more fragments were discovered in the 20th Century. The translation was finally printed and released in 1955. Academics say it is not written by Mary but is about her.