Gospel of Mary

The Gospel of Mary is an early Christian text discovered in 1896 in a fifth-century papyrus codex written in Sahidic Coptic.

As the earliest extant fragment of the gospel (the Rylands papyrus) dates to the early Third Century, it must predate this.

[9] Barbara J. Silvertsen alternatively suggests that she may be a sister of Jesus - an individual who has largely been lost in history.

[11] Arguments in favor of Mary Magdalene are based on her status as a known follower of Jesus, her appearance in other early Christian writings.

She summarizes: “It was precisely the traditions of Mary as a woman, as an exemplary disciple, a witness to the ministry of Jesus, a visionary of the glorified Jesus, and someone traditionally in contest with Peter, that made her the only figure who could play all the roles required to convey the messages and meanings of the Gospel of Mary.”[15] Richard Valantasis writes in The Beliefnet Guide to Gnosticism and Other Vanished Christianities (see Beliefnet) that the Mary here is Mary Magdalene.

Valantasis clarifies that this does not “confirm an earthly marriage between her and Jesus – far from it – but it opens an incredible window into the intellectual and spiritual world of the second century C.E.” The idea that there would be a gospel from Mary Magdalene is “controversial,” however because Andrew objected to the strangeness of Mary’s revelations from Jesus.

Peter argued, as Valantasis mentions, that “Jesus would not have revealed such important teachings to a woman,” and that “her stature cannot be greater than that of the male apostles.

Whilst myths about Magdalene abound, there is no legend or myth that she authored a gospel.’ The most complete text of the Gospel of Mary is contained in the Berlin Codex, but even so, it is missing six manuscript pages at the beginning of the document and four manuscript pages in the middle.

King believes, however, that references to the death of Jesus and the commissioning scene later in the narrative indicate the setting in the first section of the text is a post-resurrection appearance of Christ.

Tell us the words of the Savior which you remember – which you know (but) we do not, nor have we heard them.’”[11] Mary responds to Peter’s request by recounting a conversation she had with Christ about visions.

The revelation describes an ascent of a soul, which as it passes on its way to its final rest, engages in dialogue with four powers that try to stop it.

According to Pheme Perkins, on the basis of thirteen works she has analyzed,[21] the Gospel follows a format similar to other known Gnostic dialogues which contain a revelation discourse framed by narrative elements.

The Gospel of Mary contains two of these discourses (7:1–9:4 and 10:10–17:7)[citation needed] including addresses to New Testament figures (Peter, Mary, Andrew and Levi) and an explanation of sin as adultery (encouragement toward an ascetic lifestyle) which also suit a Gnostic interpretation.

Karen King considers the work to provide an intriguing glimpse into a kind of Christianity lost for almost fifteen hundred years...[it] presents a radical interpretation of Jesus' teachings as a path to inner spiritual knowledge; it rejects His suffering and death as the path to eternal life; it exposes the erroneous view that Mary of Magdala was a prostitute for what it is – a piece of theological fiction; it presents the most straightforward and convincing argument in any early Christian writing for the legitimacy of women's leadership; it offers a sharp critique of illegitimate power and a utopian vision of spiritual perfection; it challenges our rather romantic views about the harmony and unanimity of the first Christians; and it asks us to rethink the basis for church authority.

Peter and Andrew represent orthodox positions which deny the validity of esoteric revelation and reject the authority of women to teach."

Tuckett argues that the women followers in the Gospel of Mary are positive role models for the reader.