2017 Mary of Magdala Celebrations
Go and Tell My Sisters and Brothers: Celebrating Women Preachers
This year, FutureChurch will lift up women preachers from Scripture and history -- from Mary of Nazareth and Mary of Magdala to Catherine of Siena and Thea Bowman. Together we will honor and learn from their witnesses and ask them to pray with us as we work to lift up women’s voices in Church and society today.
Resources: FutureChurch has developed a packet with everything you need to celebrate the Feast of St. Mary of Magdala this year. Including:
- Options for Celebrating
- Sample Prayer Service
- Sample Op/Ed
- Resources for Women's Preaching
- Creative Ways to Preach in Your Community
- and more!...
This year, we are inviting you to:
Celebrate the Feast Day of St. Mary of Magdala (July 22nd) using the theme Go and Tell My Sisters and Brothers: A Celebration of Women Preachers
Learn about the rich heritage of women preachers from Scripture, history, and today
Advocate for opportunities for Catholics to hear the voices of women preaching today
Help spread the news about one of FutureChurch's newest resources www.catholicwomenpreach.org, where you can see women preach on the Sunday readings every week.
We hope you can join us! Click the link below to recieve an organizing packet as soon as they are available.
MORE INFORMATION ABOUT SAINT MARY OF MAGDALA
Mary of Magdala is perhaps the most maligned and misunderstood figure in early Christianity. In Christian art and hagiography, Mary has been romanticized, allegorized, and mythologized beyond recognition. Since the fourth century, she has been portrayed as a prostitute and public sinner who, after encountering Jesus, repented and spent the rest of her life in private prayer and penitence. Paintings, some little more than pious pornography, reinforce the mistaken belief that sexuality, especially female sexuality, is shameful, sinful, and worthy of repentance. Yet the actual biblical account of Mary of Magdala paints a far different portrait than that of the bare-breasted reformed harlot of Renaissance art.
In fact, Mary of Magdala was one of Jesus’ most influential apostles—and she was not a prostitute, said Distinguished Professor of Theology Elizabeth Johnson, CSJ, at Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus on April 14. Mary kept vigil at the cross throughout Jesus’ crucifixion, discovered the empty tomb after Jesus’ resurrection, and was then commissioned to “go and tell” the good news.
PowerPoint Presentation - St. Mary Magdalene: The Complex History of a Woman's Image
- Blog Post: Mary of Magdala's Best Friend and Advocate
- "Tell us, Mary, what you saw on the way" Stories of Origin and the Question before the Church Today view the presentation by Sr. Elizabeth Johnson at Fordham University (May 13, 2015)
(we recommend viewing the presentation in Google Chrome if you are able to do so, if you are loading in
another browser please pause the video for a few moments and allow it to load before pressing play)
handout for presentation
- Truth About Mary Magdalene Could Open Doors for Women in the Church, Scholar Says read more


