Mary of Magdala, Meditation Day Fourteen
 | Left: Mary Magdalene by Piero della Francesca (1415-1492), Florence. Mary is the personification of womanhood, a woman of regal and heroic idealism, her head betrays intellect and character. Click here or on the picture for an enlargement. Right: |  |
ReflectionArtistic tradition in the Middle Ages had looked on Mary of Magdala as the woman who could do what only men were allowed to do at the time: be Jesus’ close disciple, preach his Gospel, exploit the full range of her talents for her Master. With the Renaissance Mary began to be represented again as clerical preachers often preferred to see her: as the image of sinful womanhood, pitied, forgiven and repentant. For centuries we women have been forced to adopt a self image imposed on us by men. What kind of woman do we want to be? | ||