The Lives of the Saints through 100 Masterpieces

Mary Magdalene

The Lives of the Saints 162 Mary Magdalene July 22 Mary Magdalene is the saint of extremes: at one point sumptuously decked in all her jewelry, and then hair draped, face-to-face with a skull; laughing at the feet of Christ, then weeping at the foot of the cross; the flamboyant sinner and the model penitent. This diversity of images of Mary Magdalene reflects her varied role in the Gospels. However, her importance may well be due to a confusion of different characters: the Magdalene (native of Magdala) whom Christ healed by expelling seven demons from her; the sinner who, during a dinner at the home of Simon, the Pharisee, poured perfume on the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair; and finally, Mary the sister of Martha and Lazarus who chose “the better part” by sitting at the feet of Christ so as to listen to his words. The imprecise use of names in the Scriptures explains this ambiguity . However, there is no question about Mary Magdalene’s courage : she dared to stand before the gibbet on Golgotha, witnessed the descent from the cross, and—as the first to come to the tomb on Easter morning—was the first to see the resurrected Lord. “Do not touch me!” (Noli me tangere in Latin), he said to her when she moved to embrace his feet—a scene that is often represented in art. Following the Resurrection, tradition has it that Mary Magdalene went to Provence with her brother and sister to evangelize that region of southern France. Later, she retired to a cave, the hermitage of Sainte-Beaume, where she spent 30 years expiating for her sins. This period of complete mortification was tempered by the presence of angels who, each day, would raise her to the heavens to be filled with the music of celestial choirs, which made all other nourishment unnecessary. In certain paintings, the perfumes and jewelry of the sinner can be found side by side with the skull and scourge of the penitent. Johannes Pauwelsz Moreelse (ca. 1634) Mary Magdalen, Penitent Musée des Beaux-Arts, Caen ...