Mariam, the Magdalen, and the Mother
(Indiana University Press, 2005)
Essays in this volume offer original scholarship by Jewish, Christian, and Muslim scholars on the religious and prophetic experience of Mary Magdalen and her depiction in Christian art (Miriamic Vision); on aspects of Mary Magdalen’s composite identity overlapping with Jewish, Gnostic, early Christian, and Manichaean traditions, together with early Christian, patristic, and Islamic traditions about Jesus’ mother (Miriamic Procession; Miriamic Tradition).
REVIEW:
“Good’s edited book is both a challenge and a delight. The challenge is watching ten competent scholars working carefully with a multitude of languages and religious traditions to bring a fresh assessment of the woman named Mary Magdalen. The complexity of the endeavor is captured in the book’s stated intention, rather than revisiting her singularity, Mariam, the Magdalen and the Mother argues that the Miriamic roots of her composite identity and prophetic vision are prominent in all religious traditions of the first five centuries of the common era. The delight of the book is discovering the relationship of the names Miriam, Mary, and Maria, and the relationship of the women bearing these names. The scope of the book widens with essays dealing with Mary in Gnostic gospels, Islam, and Manichaeism. This work has copious footnotes, an impressive array of works cited, and a useful index. It would be a difficult task for the general reader, but advancing students, scholars, and professionals will find it revealing and rewarding. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper—level undergraduates and above.”
— A. L. Kolp, Baldwin-Wallace College