Bible verse discipline equals dom11/10/2023 ![]() Taking advantage of this opportune moment, I would like to underline two ideas inherent in the biblical and liturgical texts of this Feast which assist us to better grasp the importance of this holy woman for today. The Gospel of John tells us that Mary Magdalene wept because she could not find the body of the Lord (Jn 20:11) and that Jesus had mercy on her by letting himself be known as her Master, thus transforming her tears into paschal joy. ![]() What is certain is that Mary Magdalene was part of the group of Jesus’ disciples, she accompanied him to the foot of the Cross and, in the garden where she met him at the tomb, was the first “witness of Divine Mercy” (Gregory the Great, XL Hom. The outcome of this reform of the Second Vatican Council led to the texts of the Missale Romanum, the Liturgia Horarum and the Martyrologium referring to Mary of Magdala. The Bollandists made a detailed study of the problem of identifying these three women and prepared a path for the liturgical reform of the Roman Calendar. This interpretation continued to influence western ecclesiastical authors, Christian art and liturgical texts relative to this Saint. It is true that ecclesial tradition in the West, especially since the time of Gregory the Great, has identified Saint Mary Magdalene, and the woman who anointed Christ’s feet with perfume in the house of Simon the Pharisee, and the sister of Lazarus and Martha, as one and the same person. It is precisely in the context of the Jubilee of Mercy that our Holy Father Pope Francis has taken this decision, in order to underline the relevance of this woman “who so loved Christ and was so greatly loved by Christ”, as Rabanus Maurus affirms on various occasions when he speaks of her (“dilectrix Christi et a Christo plurimum dilecta”: De vita Mariae Magdalenae, Prologus), as well as Saint Anselm of Canterbury who says of her “chosen because you are beloved and beloved because you are chosen of God” (“electa dilectrix et dilecta electrix Dei”: Oratio LXXIII ad sanctam Mariam Magdalenam). Collect for 22 July and the new Preface). Saint Mary Magdalene is an example of a true and authentic evangeliser, that is an evangelist who announces the central joyful message of Easter (cf. The importance of this continues today in the Church, as is evident in the new evangelisation, which seeks to welcome all men and women “of every race, people, language and nation” (Rev 5: 9), without any distinction, to announce to them the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ while accompanying them on their earthly pilgrimage, and offering them the wonders of God’s salvation. Saint John Paul II paid great attention not only to the importance of women in the mission of Christ and the Church, but also and with special emphasis on the particular role of Mary of Magdala as the first witness who saw the risen Christ, and as the first messenger who announced the Lord’s resurrection to the Apostles ( Mulieris dignitatem n. This decision, in the current ecclesial context, seeks to reflect more deeply upon the dignity of women, on the new evangelisation and on the greatness of the mystery of God’s Mercy. ![]() Here below we offer our readers the official English text.īy the express wish of the Holy Father, Pope Francis, the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments published a new Decree on the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, 3 June 2016, in which the celebration of Saint Mary Magdalene was elevated and inscribed in the General Roman Calendar with the rank of Feast. The Congregation for Divine Worship’s article appeared, in Italian, in the Friday, June 10, edition of the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano. The article, titled Apostle of the Apostles, explains the Pope’s decision and highlights the prominence given to Mary Magdalene for centuries in the Church’s tradition. ![]() The decree, signed by Cardinal Robert Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, and dated JSolemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus - was accompanied by a new Latin Preface for the Mass, and an article by His Excellency Arthur Roche, Secretary of the same Congregation. Mary Magdalene to the dignity of a feast, the same rank given to the liturgical celebration of the Apostles, the Vatican announced on Friday. VATICAN CITY - Pope Francis has raised the liturgical celebration of the memorial of St. FULL TEXT: Official English text of “Apostle of the Apostles” explaining decree ![]()
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