The Magdalene Thread

Alicia Assad & Kelly Ingraham
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The Magdalene Thread reimagines Mary Magdalene as the feminine embodiment of heart-based spirituality and extraordinary faith. Through stories, science, and ancient spiritual wisdom, we seek to redefine the narrative, demystify wholeness, and amplify the truth about Love, as we have not yet known it. To listen, subscribe and read our work visit TheMagdaleneThread.Substack.Com. themagdalenethread.substack.com

Episodes

  1. Life After Death

    01/10/2024

    Life After Death

    When we enter the realm of Mary Magdalene—we are met with a choice. We can side-step the Bible, the history of early Christianity, and all that it requires of us, from learning about the Church fathers to peeling back the layers of patriarchy.  The concept of resurrection is art of wrapped in tradition and doctrine—but early Christianity was a riot of pluralism and there were many competing views about the story of Jesus, from literal to mystical. If you are willing to join us with an open heart and mind, the question we ask is: What do you choose to believe?  Death is the ultimate shift in perspective, as we consider views on resurrection and a life well-lived from mystery school traditions to positive psychology to better understand what “divinity” actually means and how it is connected to “the Good within our midst” in the words of the Gospel of Mary.  In this episode we cover:  * The courage it takes to challenge our conditioned belief systems, in Christianity or otherwise * Ancient perspectives on death and resurrection, and the symbols associated with them  * Mysticism and visions, how these play into “rising” and “the kingdom of God”  * Connections between mystery school traditions and the science of positive psychology, including post-traumatic growth theory  * How transformation, life-death-rebirth, is possible for all of us  * Miracles as a matter of mindset—what we can derive from ancient practices and apply to our modern world Learn more about The Magdalene Thread: A selection of sources:  * Animism is Normative Consciousness, The Emerald Podcast * Authentic Happiness, by Martin E. P. Seligman * Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-being By Martin E. P. Seligman * Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth: Her Stories and Hymns from Sumer by Diane Wolkstein Samuel Noah Kramer * Jesus Found in Translation: The Story Within the Story of the Bible's Earliest Gospel by Lizzie Berne DeGear * The Jesus Papers: Exposing the Greatest Cover-up in History by Michael Baigent * The Lost Art of Resurrection: Initiation, Secret Chambers, and the Quest for the Otherworld by Freddy Silva * The Masks of God, Anthology on Ancient Mythology including Primitive Mythology, Occidental Mythology, Oriental Mythology, and Creative Mythology by Joseph Campbell  * The Origin of Satan: How Christians Demonized Jews, Pagans, and Heretics by Elaine Pagels * Sacred Nature: Restoring Our Ancient Bond with the Natural World by Karen Armstrong * Thou Art That: Transforming Religious Metaphor by Joseph Campbell * Written That You May Believe: Encountering Jesus in the Fourth Gospel by Sandra M. Schneiders  You can see our full source list at:  https://themagdalenethread.substack.com/p/living-resources-on-mary-magdalene This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themagdalenethread.substack.com

    1h 29m
  2. Christ Maker

    16/09/2024

    Christ Maker

    “Christ” is a title meaning “anointed one,” translated from the Hebrew word for Messiah and deriving from an ancient practice of marking divinity. Yet another remarkable element of Jesus’ story often overlooked is that this sacred ritual is performed across all four canonical gospels, not by a high priest, but by a woman whom tradition believed to be Mary Magdalene. Yet—none of the four anointing scenes bears Magdalene’s name. As usual, parsing the details and examining each separately reveals clues otherwise hidden. Questions arise about who the anointing woman was, what this act indicates, and what it means in terms of Mary’s legacy.  While many scholars would rather cleave Mary Magdalene from the anointing scenes entirely, such a pathway diminishes her potential significance. A notion supported by the ground-breaking research done by Dr. Elizabeth Schrader Polzcer, who has clearly demonstrated changes to the story of Mary of Bethany, who is the anointing woman in John long held to be the same as Magdalene.  In this episode, we cover: * Untangling the details of the anointing woman to present this key scene in the scripture in a way that’s clear and digestible  * Shining light on clues around the anointing scene and all they may reveal to us  * Possible historical truth that links the anointing woman with rituals of high priestesses  * Highlight research by Dr. Polzcer that shows Mary of Bethany was edited out of key scenes in the Gospel of John in the 2nd century  * Sharing our perspective on whether or not Mary Magdalene was the anointing woman  Learn more about The Magdalene Thread here. Subscribe on Substack for the latest episodes & essays. A selection of sources mentioned in this episode include: Mary Magdalene: Myth and Metaphor by Susan Haskins A New New Testament: A Bible for the Twenty-first Century Combining Traditional and Newly Discovered Texts, compiled and edited by Hal Taussig Was Martha of Bethany Added to the Fourth Gospel in the Second Century? by Elizabeth Schrader Polczer, Harvard Theological Review 110:3 (2017) Woman with the Alabaster Box by Shane Clayton, Wandering Stars The Woman with the Alabaster Jar: Mary Magdalene and the Holy Grail by Margaret Starbird Read our full source list here. Subscribe at The Magdalene Thread.Substack.Com for new episodes and to read our full length articles that accompany each podcast episode—read Immaculate Deception here, with The Matter of Martha publishing next week. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themagdalenethread.substack.com

    1h 24m
  3. The Power of a Name

    02/09/2024

    The Power of a Name

    “Mary Magdalene” is a name that when spoken can electrify any situation—and for good reason, because her name holds meaning that goes well beyond the surface. Names, as cloaks of identity, greatly influence how we think of others, especially when it comes to figures in history. “Magdalene” has been shrouded in mystery since the very beginning, sometimes dismissed as a simple footnote, and at others elevated as a point of reverence. Here, we peel back the layers, examining each theory of what “Magdalene”—and “Mary”—might mean, syllable by syllable. This is a process that inspires curiosity and leads to a larger question, arguably the most essential one in all of religion: what is allegorical and what is literal?  In this episode, we cover: * All the competing theories on what “Magdalene” means, from the city on the Sea of Galilee to an honorific title * How Mary Magdalene may be linked to ancient prophecy and what her name has to do with that * What her name has to do with Mary’s connection to Egypt and priestesses * How Mary’s name ties her to a famous Biblical poem that is very ancient, and connected to the goddess Learn more about The Magdalene Thread here. Subscribe on Substack for the latest episodes & essays. A selection of sources mentioned in this episode include: Mary Magdalene, Bride in Exile by Margaret Starbird  Mary Magdalene: Myth and Metaphor by Susan Haskins Mary Magdalene's Turn: Text Criticism and Reception History of John 20:16 by Michael Peppard, Ephemerides Theologicae Lovanienses (2020) Mary the Tower by Diana Butler Bass The Meaning of 'Magdalene': A Review of Literary Evidence by Elizabeth Schrader Polczer & Joan Taylor, Journal of Biblical Literature140:4 (2021) Was Martha of Bethany Added to the Fourth Gospel in the Second Century? by Elizabeth Schrader Polczer, Harvard Theological Review 110:3 (2017) The Woman with the Alabaster Jar: Mary Magdalene and the Holy Grail by Margaret Starbird Read our full source list here. We want to take a moment to express our excitement and gratitude at the flow of new subscribers coming to The Magdalene Thread recently. Alongside exhilaration and joy we feel in creating and sharing this work, we have held a quiet hope that it resonates, and that our readers and listeners feel the magic we do. So thank you, we are so glad you’re here, and if there is anyone else you believe would enjoy this treasure trove on Mary Magdalene, we would love for you to share it with them. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themagdalenethread.substack.com

    1h 4m
  4. The Greatest Lie Ever Told

    19/08/2024

    The Greatest Lie Ever Told

    The greatest lie ever told was a narrative crafted with intention over hundreds of years to deal with an inconvenient truth: as the witness to the resurrection, Mary Magdalene could not be erased. For the church fathers, it would have been convenient to cut Mary out entirely, like they did to so many important figures, texts, and belief systems of the early Jesus movement. Mary’s prominence in the four canonical gospels—and the gnostic texts that put her on par with Peter—put pressure on the emerging church institution to confirm her personage while diminishing her power and authority. This is the story of what was done, how it happened, and the roots of why it all went down the way that it did, because restoring Mary’s name is about reclaiming power for all of us. In this episode, we cover: * How Mary Magdalene actually appears in the Bible and the influence of her position as the resurrection story’s key witness  * What gnosticism is & how this early version of Christianity—and how Mary was portrayed in it—played a role in the way she was diminished  * What exactly Gregory the Great said about Mary Magdalene when he laid out his case for Mary as the “penitent prostitute” in 591 CE  * Why the anointing women and their role, particularly the gospel of Luke, are essential to understanding this complicated story  Learn more about The Magdalene Thread here. Subscribe on Substack for the latest episodes & essays. A selection of sources mentioned in this episode include: Choosing the Better Part? Women in they Gospel of Luke by Barbara E. Reid The Gnostic Gospels by Elaine Pagels A homily of Gregory the Great and Mary Magdalene (Text of Homily 33) by Roger Pearse (2020) Mary Magdalene: Myth and Metaphor by Susan Haskins The Nag Hammadi Scriptures: The Revised and Updated Translation of Sacred Gnostic Texts Complete in One Volume  Read our full source list, updated weekly, here. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themagdalenethread.substack.com

    1h 23m
  5. Women, Sex & Sin

    05/08/2024

    Women, Sex & Sin

    Women, sexuality, and sin have been connected from the beginning of Christianity, forming a foundation of beliefs that has been highly influential on human history, shaping our modern reality. The truth is that it wasn’t always this way. Women played an integral role in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ—and for thousands of years before him, women, priestesses, and the divine feminine, were essential to the earliest forms of religion and human spirituality. It was not in spite of, but due to the power of women that the early Church fathers coalesced their arguments around the ties between women, sexuality, and sinfulness, drawing a thread from Eve to Mary Magdalene to the modern woman. In this episode, we cover: * How the messiness of humanity played a central role in the creation of the Bible and the canon as we know it today * Why the concept of original sin emanating from Eve, being tied to sexuality, and the heritage of all women is unique to early Christianity * Evidence of the leadership of women during Jesus’ ministry, from the Bible to non-canonical literature, to ancient art and artifacts * Why Mary Magdalene is integral to this conversation around the role of women in power in early Christianity Learn more about The Magdalene Thread here. Subscribe on Substack for the latest episodes & essays. A selection of sources mentioned in this episode include: * A History of Religious Ideas, Anthology by Mircea Eliade * Goddesses: Mysteries of the Feminine Divine by Joseph Campbell  * How St. Augustine Invented Sex, by Stephen Greenblatt, The New Yorker * The Invention of God by Thomas Römer * (m)adam: Adam’s Rib Reframed by Lizzie Berne DeGear * Mary and Early Christian Women: Hidden Leadership by Ally Kateusz * Mary Magdalene: Myth and Metaphor by Susan Haskins * The Meaning of Mary Magdalene: Discovering the Woman at the Heart of Christianity by Cynthia Bourgealt  Read our full source list here. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themagdalenethread.substack.com

    1h 2m
  6. Perspective & Possibilities on Mary Magdalene

    23/07/2024

    Perspective & Possibilities on Mary Magdalene

    Alicia Assad & Kelly Ingraham are writers and stay-at-home moms reimagining Mary Magdalene as the feminine embodiment of heart-based spirituality and extraordinary faith. Published on the 22 of July—Mary Magdalene’s feast day, this “Prologue” episode is an introduction to what The Magdalene Thread podcast will be sharing over the course of the 13 episodes first season. “Perspective and Possibilities on Mary Magdalene” sets the intention for all the awe, joy, and sacred creativity you can find in this space. The Magdalene Thread was born of a thousand stories exchanged within the daily routines and rhythms of nurture, in friendship and the messiness of motherhood. To read more, read About The Magdalene Thread. Subscribe to themagdalenethread.substack.com for updates on the latest episodes, essays, and resources. Thanks for reading The Magdalene Thread! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit themagdalenethread.substack.com

    16 min
  • 6 Episodes

About

The Magdalene Thread reimagines Mary Magdalene as the feminine embodiment of heart-based spirituality and extraordinary faith. Through stories, science, and ancient spiritual wisdom, we seek to redefine the narrative, demystify wholeness, and amplify the truth about Love, as we have not yet known it. To listen, subscribe and read our work visit TheMagdaleneThread.Substack.Com. themagdalenethread.substack.com

Information

  • Creator
    Alicia Assad & Kelly Ingraham
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    6
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © The Magdalene Thread
  • Show Website
    The Magdalene Thread