Mary M.

Today I am thinking about Mary Magdalene. Whenever I have pondered the cross, I have thought Of Mary of Jesus. Being a mother, I cannot imagine what it would be like to sit at the cross, seeing your child suffer and die. As mothers, we can filter out all the pain and anguish they may cause in our lives and love them in spite of it. How very painful to see one so pure and spotless, the flesh of your flesh, dying so inhumanely and so unfairly. It boggles my mind and I can't go there today.

But I can go to Mary M., commonly called Mary Magdalene. Just as Jesus was called a Nazrene because he hailed from the town of Nazreth, Mary received her surname from the town she originated, Magdala. I guess it would be like calling one person Mary Blue for her eyes or Mary Blonde for her hair. Something to differentiate between the two. In the gospel of Luke, Jesus exorcised seven demons from her. Prior to that she was said to be a notorious sinner. I heard a preacher call her a disciple of Christ, and for the first time I realized that there were more disciples than the twelve. Joanna, Salome, and the Mother of Jesus were the ones to go to the tomb that Sunday morning after the Sabbath to care for Jesus' body.

The scripture in John tells of the visit of Mary M. to the tomb. After the disciples come and then leave, discovering the tomb empty, Mary is left in the garden. She is asked by, who she sees as the gardener, why she is crying and who is she looking for. She explains she is looking for her Lord. He says one word, "Mary" and she knows it is him. We discussed this in my class this past Easter Sunday. Why did she not realize it was him and why did she suddenly recognize him.

There is something about your name. I have heard more than one NDE story (near death experience) describing the person who is dying going toward the light and he/she hears the voice of a loved one that has passed before them. They say the person's name, many times coupled with words like, "It is not your time yet". They recognize the voice, maybe in the way the person said their name.

Mary perhaps had heard it as he called forth the demons from her ravaged body. As he showed her mercy where none had before. As he thanked her for her support of her ministry. As he might have acknowledged her from the cross. She knew his voice when he called her name.

Oh, to hear him say my name. I can almost hardly wait.