Apostolic Women in Early Christianity: Case study, Mary the Magdalene

Subject Areas : Christianity

vali abdi ¹ , Mohammad Ilkhani ² , Fatemeh Lajevardi ³

1 - Assistant professor of Religion and mysticism, Faculty of theology, Ferdowsi university of Mashad
2 - Professor of Philosophy, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran
3 - Assistant Professor, Department of Religion and Mysticism, Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch, Tehran, Iran

Received: 2022-11-06 Accepted : 2022-11-06 Published : 2022-08-23

Keywords: Mary the Magdalene, Gnostic gospels, Jesus Christ, Church fathers, disciples,

Abstract :

In the early Christianity, women alongside men continued to spread new religion across the world. Some of them supported Jesus’s disciples in economic terms, and some others, traveled from village to village, from town to town in order to proclaim “the kingdom of God”. Thus, several women have been figured out as missionaries. Meanwhile, throughout early Christian writings, Mary the Magdalene is known as the companion (Σύντροφος) of Jesus. According to Christian writings, she witnessed the Crucifixion, and contrary to the disciple who fled, she remained faithful to her master (διδασκάλος) until the last breath, and she was the first one who saw the resurrected Jesus and began to report the disciples. Moreover, Gnostic gospels and Church fathers have cited her as an apostle (απόστολος) and even as a disciple. Particularly, Gnostic writings refer to a considerable intimacy between her and Jesus Christ. In ongoing research, by exploring the New Testament, Gnostic treatises, and the writings of Church fathers, we will examine her role and image in Christianity up until the end of Middle Ages, and will refer to Mary and Jesus’s relationship. Additionally, we will concentrate on the main fact whether one can regard her as an apostle.  

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