Mary Magdalene
Witness at Golgotha
Mary Magdalene is a figure from the New Testament, a follower of Jesus who witnessed his crucifixion and was the first to see him after his resurrection.
Christian tradition long conflated her with an unnamed sinful woman, leading to her association with repentance and reformed prostitutes—an identification now rejected by scholars.
The Magdalene has become a symbol of devoted discipleship and, in some interpretations, a central but suppressed figure in early Christianity.
Institutions for "fallen women" were historically called Magdalene houses or asylums.
Christian salvation teaching
- New TestamentSecond biblical division
- JesusChristian faith's divine son
- crucifixionExecution by cross
- resurrectionRevival from death
Easter · Passion · apostle · disciple · witness · tomb · anointing · Galilee
Remorseful rejection of past wrongs
- forgivenessReleasing resentment toward offenders
- redemptionRecovery or moral restoration
- transformationThorough change in form
- conversionAct of changing states
tears · alabaster jar · sinner · absolution · grace · reformed · washing feet · ointment
Official declaration of sainthood
- venerationProfound admiring respect
- feast daySaint's commemorative holiday
- patron saintHoly figure guarding devotees
- relicsPreserved items from antiquity
holiness · sanctity · hagiography · liturgy · intercession · pilgrimage · shrine · beatification
Accessible to few
- visionaryImaginative planner of futures
- revelationSurprising disclosed truth
- spiritual knowledgeAwareness of transcendent truths
- companionOne who keeps company
Religious conspiracy thriller novel
- Holy GrailLegendary cup from scripture
- conspiracyClandestine coordinated scheming
- Jesus Christ SuperstarMusical about final days
- sensationalismOverhyped news coverage
Erroneous belief or understanding
- conflationMerging distinct concepts incorrectly
- misidentificationWrongly recognizing something
- rehabilitationRecovery from injury/addiction
- reputationCollective opinion of someone
slander · misinterpretation · scholarly debate · revisionist · apocrypha
Gospel
Christian salvation teaching
- New TestamentSecond biblical division
- JesusChristian faith's divine son
- crucifixionExecution by cross
resurrection · Easter · Passion · apostle · disciple · witness · tomb · anointing · Galilee · Jerusalem
repentance
Remorseful rejection of past wrongs
- forgivenessReleasing resentment toward offenders
- redemptionRecovery or moral restoration
- transformationThorough change in form
conversion · tears · alabaster jar · sinner · absolution · grace · reformed · washing feet · ointment · devotion
canonization
Official declaration of sainthood
- venerationProfound admiring respect
- feast daySaint's commemorative holiday
- patron saintHoly figure guarding devotees
relics · holiness · sanctity · hagiography · liturgy · intercession · pilgrimage · shrine · beatification · iconography
esoteric
Accessible to few
- visionaryImaginative planner of futures
- revelationSurprising disclosed truth
- spiritual knowledgeAwareness of transcendent truths
Da Vinci Code
Religious conspiracy thriller novel
- Holy GrailLegendary cup from scripture
- conspiracyClandestine coordinated scheming
- Jesus Christ SuperstarMusical about final days
Dan Brown · sensationalism · speculation · fiction · bestseller
misconception
Erroneous belief or understanding
- conflationMerging distinct concepts incorrectly
- misidentificationWrongly recognizing something
- rehabilitationRecovery from injury/addiction
reputation · slander · misinterpretation · scholarly debate · revisionist · apocrypha
- Bible FiguresAbraham, Moses, David, Paul, Peter
- Jesus ChristChristology, crucifixion, nativity, resurrection, ascension
- Christian ConvertsSaint Paul, Saint Augustine, Augustine, Constantine, Cornelius
- early churchapostles, early church, Church Fathers, apostolic fathers, Acts of the Apostles
- Passion playspassion plays, crucifixion, crucifixion scene, Stations of the Cross, crown of thorns
- BibleOld Testament, New Testament, Holy Scriptures, Adam, Moses
Mary MagdaleneJudas Iscariot
Disciple who betrayed Christ
Peter · Saint Peter · Pontius Pilate · Caiaphas · Saint Paul