Friday, May 19 – Sunday, May 21, 2017
Led by St. Shane Phelan, CMA & Sn Elizabeth Broyles, CMA
Mary Magdalene is one of the most powerful and controversial figures in the history of Christianity. She has been the object of art and legend unlike that of any other saint. Known in the canonical Gospels as a healed disciple and the first person to whom the resurrected Jesus appeared, she has been labeled a prostitute and also Jesus’ lover or wife. With the discovery of extra-canonical materials such as the Gospel of Mary another Mary emerged, one in whom we can witness the battles over women’s place in the movement centered on Jesus. Disciple? Apostle? Spouse? What’s at stake in these titles? We will look at the images and stories about Mary Magdalene to encounter her as a disciple and apostle, but also to better understand the energy that clusters around her. Debates about whether she was married to Jesus are not something to answer, but something to investigate. What is missing in the Church that these legends supply? Why does her sexuality define her, and threaten our ideas of holiness? Through her we can see openings into new possibilities for reclaiming erotic energy as sacred and imagining a Church that is truly inclusive. Mary Magdalene offers us the potential for healing the split between body and soul that has plagued the Church.
Elizabeth Broyles and Shane Phelan are the founders of the Companions of Mary the Apostle, an ecumenical community for all genders following Jesus with Mary Magdalene. They are Episcopal priests and spiritual directors and lead a variety of retreats.
Cost: $300, deposit: $80