MARY’s heresy:
LIFE & rESURRECTION

sEPTEMBER 2023

“Do not hold on to me,
because I have not yet ascended to the Father.
But go to my brothers and say to them,
‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father,
to my God and your God.”
- Jesus to Mary Magdalene
perJohn 20:17

If the non-canonical Gospel of Thomas is disconcerting with its introduction to mystery and wisdom, the so-called Gospel of Mary takes us yet another step – further into the uncharted waters of modern Christendom.

However, this is the heresy not just of one Mary, but of a lineage of women – all named Mary. All enmeshed in a web of legend, of mystery and – according to some – of suppressed history. Untangling the web of historical documention and legend is complicated by the fact that multiple Marys are referred to in the New Testament.

Events at pivotal junctures in the history of the Christian faith all involve a Mary:

• The birth of the god-man as human child.

• The pampering of Jesus as adult.

• The first sighting of a post-death, resurrected Jesus.

Our focus is on a three-some: Mary the virgin, Mary the sister, and Mary the Magdalene. What draws these Marys together is not just their names but their roles as tough, purposeful women who dared to understand what others could not see and to speak what others could not know. They did so from a position of inner strength and personal, intimate experience with the God-man.

After all, it was to the Magdalene that a newly resurrected Jesus first appeared, as recorded by John’s gospel saying:

“Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.”

The non-canonical Gospel of Mary picks up the rest of the story – not told within the New Testament:

Then Mary stood up. She greeted them all and addressed her brothers: “Do not weep and be distressed nor let your hearts by irresolute. For his grace will be with you all and will shelter you. Rather we should praise his greatness, for he has joined us together and made us true beings.” When Mary said these things, she turned their minds toward the Good, and they began to ask about the words of the Savior.

From the New Testament and non-canonical sources, the evidence is clear: without the Magdalene to carry the message of resurrection, there would be no Christian church.

Experiences so intimate, so exclusive that they have yet to be duplicated – except vicariously. This is why these Marys and the mutual web of life and resurrection heresies they have spun live on – animating the Christian church to faith in the goodness of the present and the confidence of life beyond the human realm.

For more regarding the topic of Mary’s heresy, click here on Life & Resurrection. For a synopsis of all the heresy topics covered by this web site, click on 12 Heresies of Christianity. Or click on any images for other topics of interest below.