Meditation for the Day

Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene, July 22

May the Discipleship of Mary Magdalene, and the Great Love Which She Lived Deep Within Her Heart and Soul for Her Lord and Savior, Become the Example for Our Own Discipleship.

“Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” And in this brief question, we recognize within the person of Mary Magdalene an abiding faith and a deep love which she held in her heart for her Savior.

How many times each week, or maybe even each day, do you and I find ourselves coming up short in our attempts to grow in holiness, in our attempts to become more loving, more virtuous, more charitable towards others?

Some days may seem more difficult than others, especially when we must deal with all the difficulties which the world seems to throw at us, especially within our various work environments, and most especially when we find ourselves dealing with co-workers who try our patience and just seem to “rub” us the wrong way.

And, in our weaknesses and in those times we fail to be all that God would desire us to be, we begin to understand the words Saint Paul wrote in his letter to the Galatians, “…in seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves are found to be sinners…”

Today, we celebrate, in a very special way, the life of Saint Mary Magdalene – for today, we memorialize her sanctity, her discipleship and her great love for her Savior and her Lord, Jesus Christ, as a special Feastday.

Except for the Mother of Jesus, few women are more honored in the Bible than Mary Magdalene. In both Luke’s and Mark’s Gospels, they tell us that Jesus had cleansed Mary from a possession of seven demons.

And the Gospels also tell us that Mary was a faithful and loving disciple who assisted Jesus and His disciples during His ministry on Earth; that she was one of the few people who stood at the foot of the Cross on Calvary. And in today’s Reading, Jesus appeared to her first before appearing to His Apostles.

There is, however, some confusion among Scripture scholars as to whether this Mary from the village of Magdala, is the same Mary who was to be stoned as a prostitute, and whom Jesus forgave, and told her to “…go and sin no more.”

And there are also other scholars who will contend that there is no Scriptural basis to the story of Mary Magdalene being the woman who washed the feet of Jesus with her tears and who dried them with her hair, and that she is not the Mary who is the sister of Martha and Lazarus. For the name Mary (Miryam מִרְיָם) was a very common Hebrew name in Israel.

Whether Mary Magdalene is all, some or none of these, as some traditions hold, I am sure that Mary Magdalene herself would insist that it does not really matter. I am sure that she would contend that we are all sinners in need of the saving grace of God, whether our sins have been great or small, whether they have been scandalous or not.

Most importantly, however, she is like one of us – human, frail, weak, in need of God’s Love, in need of God’s Divine Mercy. She is the true example of the faithful disciple, following in Christ’s footsteps, hanging on to His every word, trusting in Him implicitly, only wishing to serve His needs and His desires out of the purest of all love.

She is the example for all of us to follow, for she, even in the weakness of her human nature, never left His side, even when Jesus gave of Himself on Calvary as the ultimate Sacrifice out of His Love for each and every one of us.

And in Mary’s great love for her God, the Gospel tells us “…she wept” tears of sorrow.

May the discipleship of Mary Magdalene, and the great love which she lived deep within her heart and soul for her Lord and Savior, become the example for our own discipleship – always following Jesus, always placing Him at the very center of our lives.

So that, just as Mary heard Jesus call out her name at His tomb, we shall also, one day, hear Him call out ours. And we too shall weep, but our tears shall be tears of joy! †

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Please Comment, Like and Share, and Suggest to your Facebook friends – to spread the message of God’s Merciful Love.

Por favor Comente, Le Gusta y Comparta, y Sugiera a tus amigos en Facebook – en difundir el mensaje del Misericordioso Amor de Dios.

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Scripture for the Day

• “Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?’” (John 20:15ab)
• “…in seeking to be justified in Christ, we ourselves are found to be sinners…” (Galatians 2:17a)
• “Afterward he journeyed from one town and village to another, preaching and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. Accompanying him were the Twelve and some women who had been cured of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out.” (Luke 8:1-2)
• “When he had risen, early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons.” (Mark 16:9)
• “Be eager to present yourself as acceptable to God, a workman who causes no disgrace, imparting the word of truth without deviation.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
• “Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala.” (John 19:25)
• “Everyone who acknowledges me before others, I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father.” (Matthew 10:32)
• “But whoever is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him.” (1 Corinthians 6:17)

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Prayer for the Day

“Saint Mary Magdalene, woman of many sins,
who by conversion became the beloved of Jesus,
thank you for your witness that Jesus forgives
through the miracle of love.

“You, who already possess eternal happiness
in His Glorious Presence, please intercede for us,
so that, some day, we too may share
in the same everlasting joy. Amen.”

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