Today is the feast of St. Mary Magdalene. There are different options for the first reading. In an optional reading for the feast day from 2 Corinthians 5:14-17, St. Paul writes, “So whoever is in Christ is a new creation.” The Gospel is from John 20. It is the story of Mary’s meeting with Jesus after the resurrection. She was the first person to actually see the risen Lord, though she didn’t recognize Him at first.
There has been much conjecture about Mary Magdalene down through the ages. Many say that she was the woman caught in adultery, the story where Jesus said, “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.” We don’t really know that woman’s identity. In The DaVinci Code, she was supposedly married to Jesus and had a child with him. We can safely do away with that one. Was she a prostitute? An adulterer? A harlot? All we really know is that she had seven demons expelled from her, and she was a sinner. She was also a woman filled with love for Christ.
This is where the notion of “a new creation” comes in. St. Paul goes on to say, “The old things have passed away; behold, new things have come.” Mary Magdalene experienced a profound conversion. She put away her old ways of sin. New things – love of Christ and service to Him – replaced the old things. Are you a “new creation?” How has that manifested itself in your life? We can look to Mary Magdalene for a wonderful example.
Father, Mary became a new creation and put away the old ways of sin. Help us today to do the same. Amen.
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