Pearl Anniversary

Today is the wedding anniversary of.........

No........no........NOT Mary Magdalene.....that I know of, anyway. It is the anniversary of Husband and I-----our PEARL wedding anniversary, to be exact! We'll see if someone will identify that one in the comments. (The painting posted here is from the Wikipedia article about Mary Magdalene.)

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And, you must be muttering under your breath, "What's that troublemaker Mary Magdalene doing on this post?" Well..........today, July 22, is her feast day on the traditional church calendar; certainly not something I was aware of back then on my wedding day, due to my Baptist upbringing which included complete ignorance of saints' feast days.

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In the summer of 2003, I happened to read The DaVinci Code........BEFORE the media picked up on the controversial aspect of its story. Because one of my favorite types of fiction is the historical mystery based in a foreign locale, this book looked intriguing to me; Mona Lisa's eyes on the cover drew me in. I did think it rather nervy of Dan Brown to write on the subject of a possible marriage between Jesus and Mary Magdalene, but an author is certainly free to write about whatever he chooses. Brown's speculating did somewhat upset the Life of Christ dioramas in my mind, however. The DaVinci Code dipped into obscure aspects of Roman and European history, too, and offered avenues for further exploration into subjects I'd barely heard of before.......the Cathars, the Inquisition, witch hunts, Constantine the Great, Rosslyn Church, etc. I subsequently read Dan Brown's other books, Angels & Demons, Deception Point, and Digital Fortress, finding each one very entertaining!

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After reading the DaVinci Code, I thought long and hard about Jesus and Mary Magdalene, leading me to ask, "Why is it such a problem to swallow the idea of a possible marriage between them?" Jesus was God incarnated as a human........a human, with a physical body. Like any human, he would have eaten food, burped, eliminated, sweated, coughed, sighed, sneezed, etc., etc., etc. What is our hang-up with the idea of Him possibly being married? Is it the thought of sinless Jesus engaging in the physical intimacies of marriage? Most likely, that's it. Is physical intimacy within marriage a sin? Last I knew......NO. Did the Church, for centuries, promote a less than positive view of sex, even within marriage? Yes, I would say so. That being the case, it wouldn't be too surprising to me if the Church had centuries ago quietly swept away any references to Jesus being married. People who study Jewish traditions claim there are hints in the Gospels of a possible marriage existing between Jesus and Mary Magdalene. How would any of us know, in this day and age; we're so far removed from ancient ways, and certainly, Jewish ways. At the very least, I think its highly probable Mary Magdalene loved Jesus-----as a human woman who falls in love with a human man------even if their relationship never progressed to consummation in marriage. Why on earth could this not be possible? And, beautiful to ponder?

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Last Sunday, during our church service, as we spoke the Apostles' Creed, I noticed we jumped from saying Christ was "born of the virgin Mary".........immediately to...... he "suffered under Pontius Pilate". We covered that 33-year span in less than one breath, and I think that's how we view Jesus' life on earth.......in a short series of dioramas of well-known events from His life. Let's get real.......He lived 33 years on earth........much, much more went on in His earthly life than what is relayed to us in the Gospel books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. I certainly don't know if there was a marriage between Jesus and Mary Magdalene, but likewise, I certainly don't know for sure that there wasn't one.

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Read this witty article to learn the origins of the celibate priest tradition in the Catholic Church. It didn't come from Jesus.

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Back to Mary Magdalene........her ancient connections to Provence, in southern France are fascinating. Here is a blog post with several links to Provencal Magdalene sites.

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Here....... a travel website from St. Maximin, Provence, France.

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And, here....... another blogpost showing photos of Mary Magdalene sights in Provence, France.

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Well, enough of Mary Magdalene. If it weren't for the chance fact that I was married on her feast day, she wouldn't interest me so much, probably. Sorry if any of this disrupts any deeply-ingrained beliefs. It shouldn't. We think we know so much and have everything all figured out, but there's much we're unaware of about SO many topics, especially concerning ancient history.

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You're probably just dying to know if I have any pearls of "wisdom" to share on my Pearl Anniversary! Hm-m......after that many years of residing within the Institution of Marriage.......here are a few thoughts that come to mind:

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1. Keep your spouse in your prayers.

2. Know that happiness does not come from another person (ie: your spouse).

3. Know that you can never change another person (your spouse)........what you CAN change is your reaction to that other person (your spouse).

4. Put ears to use more than mouth; listen more than you speak.

5. A wife will do well to realize the importance of the husband's vocation to him. Many years ago-----when I was still a good person and listened to Christian radio----- I heard a Focus on the Family broadcast in which the speaker was encouraging wives to realize that a man's self-image is wrapped up in his vocation, and the wife needs to step back and allow him latitude in that area.

6. Be undemanding.

7. Monitor the pulse of your husband's mood.......but, don't expect him to reciprocate. Tend your own mood yourself.

8. If all else fails........take a long walk or write a blog post!!!

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Have a great Mary Magdalene Day!!

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