And Jesus loved her spiritually after her repentance.
She was the Jewish woman who travelled and followed Jesus as one of his disciples. She is a witness to his crucifiction and resurrection and is named at least 12 times in the four Gospels above most of the apostles.
The Gospels according to Mathew 28: 2-8. Mark : 16-10 Luke : 24 : 10 John 20: 18 makes us believe the woman to be Mary of Magdala though none commit her name. They also make us identify her, especially, after Jesus forgave her sins as found in the Holy Bible, John 8: 3-10, ‘The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees brought in a woman who had been caught committing adultery and they made her stand before them all.
‘Teacher’ they said to Jesus, ‘this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. In our Law Moses commanded that such a woman must be stoned to death. Now what do you say.” They said this to Jesus to trap him so that they could accuse him. But he bent over and wrote on the ground with his finger.
As they stood there asking him questions, he straightened himself up said to them, ‘Whichever one of you has committed no sin may throw the first stone at her.
Then be bent over again and wrote on the ground. When they heard this, they all left one by one, the older ones first.
Jesus was left alone with the woman still standing there. He straightened himself up and said to her. ‘Where are they? Is there no one left to condemn you’ ‘No’ Sir’ she answered. ‘Well then’ Jesus said, ‘I do not condemn you either. Go but do not sin again’
Mary of Magdala never left him until his Resurrection
So, is she not the woman that Jesus loved spiritually. The scriptures strongly identify her. She played a significant role in the life of Jesus Christ and as his central character that bear testimony for our faith. Mary Magdaline also goes beyond her mark as a powerful witness to all women who followed Jesus.
He was exemplary in how he treated women, respectfully, kind, understanding and compassionate. He forgave their sins and misdoings which sadly most Christian leaders lack today. Jesus crossed the paths of many women who followed and believed in him and many are the ones found in his ministry including the one he cast out seven demons, one raised from death by way of miracles.
He also remembered the women of Jerusalem while suffering on the cross and as a dutiful son when he asked his beloved disciple to look after his mother after his death.
After the inhuman torture, Jesus was crucified and all departed leaving only his mother Mary, Mary Magdaline and another Mary who was the wife of Clopas.
They too left Jesus but not Mary Magdaline. She was heart-broken to leave behind her Master but left as the night deepened but returned when still dark.
She went to the tomb and saw the stone had been taken away from the entrance. She ran and informed Simon Peter and other disciples whom Jesus loved.
They all ran and saw only the linen wrappings there and the cloth which had been round Jesus’ head. It was not lying with the linen wrappings but was rolled up by itself.
Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene
Mary stood outside the tomb. While she was still crying, she bent over and looked in the tomb and saw two angels dressed in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been, one at the head and the other at the feet.
‘Woman, why are you crying?’ they asked her. She answered, ‘They have taken my Lord away and I do not know where they have put him.’ Then she turned around and saw Jesus but she did not know it was Jesus. ‘Woman why are you crying?’ Jesus asked her. Who is it that you are looking for.’ She thought it was the gardener so she said to him ‘If you took him away Sir, tell me where you have put him and I will go and get him’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary’. She turned to him and said in Hebrew, ‘Rabboni’ meaning ‘Teacher’.
‘Do not hold on to me’ Jesus told her, ‘because I have not yet gone back to my Father but go to my brothers and tell them that I am returning to him who is my Father and their Father, my God and their God’.
So Mary Magdalene went and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord and related to them what he had told her. JOHN, 20:11-18. Jesus had appeared to her first and she was filled with joy. She too had risen from a life of sin. Here, we recognize the spiritual love that Jesus had for Mary Magdalene.
There is still confusion as to who Mary Magdalene is. Whether she is the repentant woman or the one that Jesus cast out the demons whom we do not come across later. No Gospel is specific about this but all four canonical Gospels strongly point to the repentant woman as Mary Magdalene and why Jesus opted her from among all women to appear first.
Bible testimony is strong and accurate. Every word written in Hebrew first are what Jesus spoke to his disciples. Thereafter, many translations in different language down two thousand plus years have been published, read and studied by all Christians around the world by all Christian denominations.
The most widely translated book
The Roman Catholics have their own version of the Holy Bible which I do not wish to dispute but as a strong Anglican, go by the original version as Jesus preached to the simple and trusting.
Though Mary Magdalene is celebrated as a saint by all Christian sects with feast day of commemoration as July 22, her option was not to be so. All she needed was the love of Jesus that bestowed on her and remain the trusting simple woman she became after meeting Jesus.