HASKINS'S 1993 BOOK surveys the same topics covered in the more recent book by Philip Almond (see post for June 10)--Mary Magdalene in the gospels and the gnostic gospels, Gregory the Great's creation of the "composite Magdalene," the astonishingly inventive medieval legends about her, her becoming the icon of penitence--but in a great deal more detail.
Almond's book is brisker and a little livelier, but if you are in the mood for a really deep dive, go with Haskins. Haskins has an extensive background in art history, so she is particularly well informed on the long and ever-evolving iconological traditions around the Magdalene.
Her book was published ten years before Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, so there is just a glancing reference or two to the conspiracy theory that Mary and Jesus had children and that their descendants were the kings of France. The less said about that, the better, methinks.
Is Mary Magdalene having a moment? The New Yorker ran an interesting article by Eliza Griswold on her in April, and the Urban Abbey, a Methodist-affiliated congregation in Omaha, had a program called "Six Weeks with Mary Magdalene." I myself hope she is, and about time, too.
No comments:
Post a Comment