Mary, Called Magdalene

Mary, Called Magdalene
By Margaret George

Product Description
Was Mary Magdalene a prostitute, a female divinity figure, a church leader, or all of those? Biblical references to her are tantalizingly brief, but we do know that she was the first person to whom the risen Christ appeared-and the one commissioned to tell others the good news, earning her the ancient honorific, "Apostle to the Apostles." Today, Mary continues to spark controversy, curiosity, and veneration. In a vivid re-creation of Mary Magdalene's life story, Margaret George convincingly captures this renowned woman's voice as she moves from girlhood to womanhood, becomes part of the circle of disciples, and comes to grips with the divine. Grounded in biblical scholarship and secular research, this fascinating historical novel is also, ultimately, "the diary of a soul."


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Product Details
Amazon Sales Rank: #30544 in Books
Published on: 2003-05-27
Released on: 2003-05-27
Number of items: 1
Binding: Paperback
656 pages

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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Of all the women in the Bible, perhaps no one's presence has been as constantly reinterpreted as that of Mary Magdalene. Was she a prostitute? A prophet? In Margaret George's epic historical novel, Mary, Called Magdalene (Geroge's previous subjects include Henry VIII, Mary, Queen of Scots, and Cleopatra), Mary comes alive as one of Jesus' first believers, a woman of infallible visions and a faith that earns her the title "Apostle to the Apostles." With numerous biblical and scholarly texts serving as the core of this intriguing woman's story, George recreates the world of Galilean fishermen and the oppressions of the Jewish people under Roman rule. Cast out from her family after Jesus expels the demons that have ravaged her mind, Mary follows the man from Nazareth until they receive attention from the skeptical hordes and the Roman magistrates controlling Jerusalem.

Mary, from beginning to end of this giant undertaking, is a woman who struggles to reconcile her absence from her young daughter's life with the chance to be part of something important. Through the lens of her ever-inquisitive mind, the story covers the formation of Jesus' ragtag band of disciples and the crucifixion, and ends with Mary's mission as the head of the Christian church in Ephesus, where she died at the age of 90. What makes this a compelling read is that Mary's story connects humanity with faith in a way that's possible to understand, whatever our contemporary beliefs. --Emily Russin

From Publishers Weekly
George, whose niche is historical and biographical novels, begins this one ploddingly with suspenseless reportage on Mary Magdalene's pleasant, middle-class childhood in a prosperous fishing village. Scattered references to the idol/demon that will eventually possess Mary are intended as fateful omens, but her slow road to madness gets much less play than her conventional and uninteresting life. The novel improves considerably when Mary finds herself possessed by one demon, and then, helplessly, by six more. Her valiant efforts to first hide her possession and then find a cure are masterfully described. When a prophet named Jesus finally casts out her demons, she celebrates, only to realize that she must make a heartrending choice between following the prophet or going back to her husband, baby and extended family. At this point, George's novel becomes a safe, though readable, retelling of the gospels. Her main deviation from orthodoxy is her insistence that there were 16 disciples 12 men and four women who were equal in Jesus' eyes. Additionally, George emphasizes Mary's prophetic visions and Jesus' celebration of them, and in doing so gives credence to gnostic accounts of mysticism among the disciples. While some may compare this novel with Anita Diamant's The Red Tent, it bears a much stronger resemblance to Walter Wangerin's biographical novel about the apostle Paul. Like Wangerin's work, this imagines nothing seriously objectionable to even the most devout Christians. As such, it lacks the transgressive power of The Red Tent, but is still a well-researched and thought-provoking book.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
George sets herself the challenging task of re-creating the life of Mary Magdalene from scant biblical references.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


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Customer Reviews
Extremely illustrative, but not exactly historical
Despite what many other reviewers have said, despite my reservations about this book, which mirror some of theirs, I have to say that this is a truly inspiring read. If you divorce yourself from all of the enormous emotionality of discussing a topic that is so important to so many, it's just a great story. That said, having read her first three more historical novels, it is disappointing to me how little of the novel is based in fact, and is, according to her own afterword, invented completely by her.

As a non-Christian, unaware of even the most rudimentary facts of Jesus's ministry and time on Earth, I found it to be a very enjoyable way to get a feel for what was compelling about Jesus and how the birth of Christianity fit into the pervading social, political and religious backdrop. It was also interesting how matter-of-factly she dealt with things like demons, possession and visions, which are such "hard-sells" in American society today (I've often wondered if the messiah returned, or arrived, if he or she would be hard-pressed to stay out of a mental hospital in order to build a ministry as Jesus did).

If you are religious, and well-schooled in the history of Jesus's life and religion, I can imagine you would find a lot to dislike about this telling, but without all that background, there is some to be learned (although with caution, given all that she invented) and much to enjoy in the telling.

Moving
I LOVED this book!!! Was my Lenten read last year! I have always been curious about Mary Magdalen and this book does her tremendous justice!
I highly recommend it!

A Wonderful Historical Novel

Margaret George was born in Nashville Tennessee. When not continuing research for her novels in such places as Egypt, Rome, Israel and England she lives with her husband in Madison, Wisconsin. She is the author of many best selling historical novel including The Memoirs of Cleopatra and the Autobiography of Henry VIII.

This is a wonderful historical novel which asks the question, Who was Mary Magdalene? Her name first appears in the gospel of Mark. She was the one who discovered Jesus' resurrection, but before that little or nothing is heard or known of her. In the past she has been called many things by many people. Was she a prostitute as many learned scholars say, Was she a feminist icon, a church leader, perhaps none or all of these things.

Margaret George has researched closely much of the information that there is available about Mary and with the help of these she brings to life one of the most controversial characters of the scriptures. This is a work of fiction with facts interwoven into the story, as Margaret George tries to wipe away the myths that surround the life of Mary, Called Magdalene.