Priest, Prophet and King: On Receiving our Vocations
Saints Peter and Mary Magdalene
In a series on successful male-female partnerships, St. Peter and St. Mary Magdalen are an unlikely example. The Bible records only one interaction between them, when Magdalen tells Peter that the Lord has risen. The gospel accounts differ, but it seems Peter ran to see the empty tomb for himself, and did not believe her. They certainly were not close friends.
The contrast between them could not be more stark. While Peter is mentioned hundreds of times in scripture, Magdalen’s name pops up exactly thirteen times. There are medieval traditions and unofficial accounts (rejected by the Church) about both Peter and Mary Magdalen, with the latter drawing more attention today. The gap between history and myth is very large.
All the gospels agree on two facts. Jesus chose Peter to be the leader of his twelve man crew. And Jesus chose to appear to Mary Magdalene first after His resurrection. I’m not inclined to believe these were arbitrary choices. Jesus gave each a job to do, and they did, in fact, do their work well enough that everyone remembered it.
Don’t we often get lost in the details ourselves? It’s hard to know which tasks are most needful. During the Lord’s Passion, Peter variously refuses to have his feet washed at the Lord’s Supper, falls asleep on sentinel duty, nearly slices an ear off a guard, and then runs away at the crucial moment.
Magdalen has a better showing under pressure. Alongside the Blessed Mother, Magdalen, Salome, and the other women did not abandon Jesus for one minute, witnessing both his death and his burial. Devastated with grief, Magdalen goes to the tomb with spices to anoint the body, numbly clinging to Jewish rituals for burial. Just as her grief was total, so then was her joy!
If only she could convince the disciples of the truth! Despite a history that included the Transfiguration and Jesus walking on water, we have the future Pope essentially rejecting the prophetic witness of the Lord’s anointed messenger, Mary Magdalen. Mercifully, Jesus arrives on the scene to corroborate Mary’s story.
Jesus orchestrates a massive fish haul on the beach one morning. Peter’s thick head leads Jesus to ask him repeatedly, “Do you love me?” This is not an auspicious beginning for Christendom. The fact is, neither Peter nor Mary Magdalen asked for their respective roles in salvation history. Jesus himself chose them.
Because Mary Magdalen spent the majority of Jesus’ ministry following the disciples, and providing for them out of her means (Luke 8:1-3), I am inclined to believe she went back to that role after Pentecost.
And Peter overcame his doubts and impulsivity to capably lead the Church with the help of the Holy Spirit. His death by crucifixion followed in the path of Jesus. His preaching introduced thousands of people to Jesus. In the end, he did his job for the King.
Mary Magdalen’s prophetic witness came PRIOR to the apostles preaching the good news. Her prophetic witness might have been initially rejected by the apostles, but that did not invalidate her faith, nor render her actions useless. Once the King intervened, the disciples had to see women in a new way. Tell me that wasn’t necessary to the King’s plan!
Am I saying that the early Church was free from sexism and blatantly false assumptions about the capabilities of women? No. But Christianity through the ages has created more opportunities for women than any other religion. Jesus had great confidence in the women who served him in first century Palestine, and he has great confidence in you and I today.
No, the Church wasn’t perfect then, and it isn’t perfect now. This isn’t heaven. But, we can perform our part of his mission on earth. Jesus is the one who gives both men and women parts to play in his earthly ministry, be it as a priest, a prophet or a king. My guess is that Peter and the apostles never forgot who first encountered the Lord. Nor should you!
Photo credits: The Met: Saints Peter, Martha, Mary Magdalen, and Leonard
Correggio (Antonio Allegri) Italian ca. 1515