The Conversion of Mary Magdalene

 
Via Pulchritudinis
The Way of Beauty
 
By Sharon Clossick

The Conversion of Mary Magdalene, Sharon Clossick, 16 x 20", Oil on Canvas

We are all familiar with the popular saint, Mary Magdalene.  She is mentioned on numerous occasions in the bible, sometimes more than the apostles.  Some believe her to have been a prostitute before her conversion.  Others believe she was possessed by demons.  Regardless of who Mary Magdalene was before her conversion, what we know is that she turned out to be one of the most loyal and loving followers of Jesus Christ.  This is what intrigues me about Mary Magdalene.  We know she was a key figure in Christ’s life and even walked with him during his ministry.  Jesus had a very special love for Mary.  She was the first apostle to see Jesus at the tomb after his resurrection.  He trusted her to go and tell the others of His rising!
 
Jesus embraced the dignity of Mary Magdalene even despite the life she led prior to her knowing Him.  She understood and knew Jesus’ unconditional love for her.  Pope John Paul II, in his Theology of the Body talks about how in Genesis Adam “knew” Eve.  Adam understood the heart of Eve. This “knowing” is profoundly intimate because Adam understood the true dignity of the human person of Eve.  This is the desire of each and every human person’s heart.  And the good news is that Jesus knows all of us in this most profound and personal way.  We can only come to know this love by opening our hearts to Jesus and allowing His grace to penetrate us.
 
The relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene is so beautiful.  We can all relate to Mary in the sense that we are all sinners.  Jesus doesn’t condemn us, but rather loves us in our sin.  We know that sinning not only hurts us, but hurts Jesus as well.  Though He lovingly always points us in the right direction, we have free will to choose right or wrong for ourselves.  Regardless of what we choose, His love for us never waivers.  Mary Magdalene embraced Jesus and allowed herself to be immersed in His grace, allowing herself to be transformed by the power of His love.  Rather than hiding from her sin in shame, she ran to Jesus seeking forgiveness and conversion.  How freeing this can be if only we let go of our fear!
 
Mary Magdalene is a great example to us of humility and love because she allowed Jesus to forgive her and bless her with new life.  Her love shown through not only for Jesus, but for herself as well.  Mary recognized her own dignity by respecting and accepting that she was beautifully made in God’s image and likeness.  This is the beauty I attempted to capture in my most recent painting, The Conversion of Mary Magdalene.  The symbol of Jesus’ divinity is shown in His red robe as he embraces Mary in her pain.  You can feel Mary finally resting in Jesus' grace and love.  The lilies in the painting represent Mary’s new purity in Christ.  The white color signifies peace, hope and purity, all virtues given to her in a new life in Christ.  Although we are not certain that Mary Magdalene is the “Mary” who washed Jesus’ feet the night before his crucifixion, we can speculate that she possibly might have been the one due to her great love for Jesus and His great love for her.  The basin in the painting symbolizes the perfumed oil Mary used to wipe the feet of Jesus with her hair.  The brown background symbolizes both Jesus and Mary Magdalene’s earthly existence.  May we all follow the example of Mary Magdalene and run to Jesus, clinging to Him and allowing Him to wipe away all our tears and hurts. 

Prints available for purchase.   

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