Homily for the installation of Roberta Fuller as pastor at St. Mary Magdalene the First Apostle Catholic Faith Community,Pickering, Ontario
Marie Bouclin, Bishop, RCWP Canada | September 16, 2017
Mary Magdalene, First Apostle, patron of this community, is first and foremost your chosen model of discipleship. We revere her because she sought and received the healing touch of Jesus. She was a faithful follower of his teaching and supported him in his ministry. She was loyal to Jesus even in his darkest hours of suffering and death. She listened, deeply, and so Jesus shared with her the mystery of his resurrection. Clearly the beloved disciple, she is the archetype of mystical intimacy between the soul and the Divine.
Though she is recognized by all Christians as the first person to witness and proclaim the risen Jesus, Mary Magdalene still bears the burden of being greatly misunderstood throughout much of church history and by many even today.
Fortunately, there has been a great deal of scholarship dedicated to getting to know her better. Many wonderful books on Mary Magdalene shed insights into this amazing woman: historian Mary Malone1calls her “the acknowledged leader of the women who followed Jesus”. Joanna Manning writes that, “Mary Madalene played a pivotal role in the origin and development of christianity.” And goes on to say that the recognition of her in the Christian tradition will bring fresh inspiration and creative insights, rejuvenating Catholicism and Protestantism alike.2Cynthia Bourgeault calls her in the title of her book “The woman at the heart of Christianity”.3This list could go on. I’m sure you have your favourites. Today we simply acknowledge the importance of Mary Magdalene for all of us as Christians and particularly for you who are starting a new Catholic community bearing her name.
The spousal imagery from the first reading give us an idea of Mary’s all-encompassing, deep, passionate love for Jesus. The second reading is taken from the Gospel of Mary which is not included in the Canon of the New Testament but was written in the first century, contemporary of the gospels called Mark, Matthew and Luke. It would pre-date the Gospel of John.4
But let’s pause for a moment on this verse we just heard from John: “[Jesus says to Mary], do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”
“Do not hold on”… in other words: “Let go.” Jesus tells Mary that she has to “let go” of the Jesus she thought she understood. What understanding of Jesus are we disciples of 2017 being asked to let go? Can we move to a whole new dimension of our understanding of God by deep listening to Jesus? Is Jesus, ascended into God, different from Jesus the man who lived and taught 2000 years ago and whose message may have been distorted over the centuries? And if so, what preconceptions of faith in him, what understanding of church as a community of faith must we accept to leave at Jesus’ feet? Celebrating Mary Magdalene, the mystic, the most faithful of disciples, invites us to ponder these questions… and come up with possibly very different answers. We ponder as we pray “My soul thirsts for you, my God…”
Yes, Jesus says “Let go”… but then he says, “Go…” Go tell your brothers and sisters that I am going to God – my God and your God, meaning that where Jesus is going, we are called to follow. That is the profound yet utterly simple meaning of Christ’s rising. He is risen into God and so shall we. So what does Mary say to the others? She cries out, I imagine, in her joy and excitement, “I have seen the Lord”.
Mary, first Apostle has seen Christ alive and present. She has heard him and has received a mission. Tell people! Perhaps, as a side bar, it is easier to “go” if we have somehow been able to first “let go”. In any case, if you are here today, you have also “seen the Lord”. When? Where?
When you were deeply silent in prayer? In a moment of clarity at a time of heavy darkness? In a wave of calm in the middle of gripping fear? In the beauty of music or nature or a child’s innocence? In the face of a person who asked for help? Maybe even when you’ve come to church… have you heard the whisper of a divine voice, felt the assurance of a divine presence when you’ve gathered with others to break the Word and the Bread?
Jesus said to Mary, “Let go. Let me go.” Those moments of “seeing the Lord” are few, far between, and fleeting. But they are real and they compel us to “Go. Go tell.” Preach the Jesus message, as St. Francis would say, even using words if necessary. It is our whole life that must witness to the joy of the risen Christ.
This is why we come together as a community. To support and encourage one another in living the Jesus message, to sustain one another in joyful hope. And today, especially, we gather to remember Jesus by celebrating Eucharist together in honour of the Gospel’s first herald: Mary Magdalene, First Apostle, first witness of the resurrection. We give thanks that the Spirit is moving among you and calling you as a new Christian community, and for calling Roberta as your pastor and community gatherer.
Special thanks to Rev Jeff Doucette , pastor, and the community of Dunbarton-Fairmont United Church.
1Mary T. Malone, Women and Christianity, Vol 1, Novalis, 2000 p. 54
2Joanna Manning, The Magdalene Moment, A Vision for a New Christianity, Raincoast Books, 2006, p. 25
3Cynthia Bourgeault, The Meaning of Mary Magdalene, Discovering the woman at the Heart of Christianity, Shambhala, 2010
4Jehanne de Quillan, The Gospel of The Beloved Companion, the Complete Gospel of Mary Magdalene, Second Edition, CreateSpace, 2011, p. 4