There's Something about Mary

I've been thinking about this mysterious woman that many have speculated about. Some say she was the woman caught in adultery and some have linked her to a public moment of a generous anointing of Jesus feet and still others note that she may well have been a woman who was recognized at the level of a disciple in the days that Jesus lived and ministered on the earth.

I don't know that any of us can say for sure who she was, what she did, or the actual affects her life had on the development of the Church. Too much has been lost in the translation of history to have any certain answers. What I have come to ponder is her apparent dedication to the truth, the truth she recognized in the life and message of Jesus.

Some scholars, theologians and preachers have focused incessantly on the possibility of her life of prostitution. Sadly, they link the generous anointing to the perceived forgiveness she was given when the Pharisees brought her to Jesus in an attempt to justify stoning her. Jesus redirected the "justice posse" with a simple statement, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her" (John 8:7). I heard very few messages from the pulpit that pause to ponder this section of the passage authentically. Typically there's a rush of points to get to the fact that Jesus let the woman go with a simple statement of the facts, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you? Neither do I. Go and sin no more."

Certainly we want to connect with the free grace of forgiveness that was demonstrated there. However, I think there is so much more and we miss it when we rush the passage. Jesus demonstrated something deeply powerful in his response. He recognized her value. Aside from the accusations, aside from the breaking of the religious law, aside from the all the things that only the heart of God could've known, He saw, above all else, her value. And in seeing her and her value, the path was laid for her to begin to see it too.

That takes me to the anointing scene found later in the Gospel of John. A woman, that tradition holds as Mary Magdalene, is found pouring expensive perfume on Jesus' feet. I can't help but stop and wonder about the motivation. What lead to that point? Why is this story included in the Gospel's at all? And then I think about how much it reflects the value that Jesus had once recognized in Mary. The story of Mary's generous gift demonstrates the almost innate response that one has when they come to realize how much they are valued.

So then, I have to wonder how many us actually understand that the forgiveness and grace we are offered through Christ stems from how much we are valued. And further, what is our motivation for our giving (be it financial or otherwise)? Have we connected as deeply and thoroughly with the way God sees us that we have found the innate response that flows with generosity? Not simply because we realize how much we have been forgiven, but even more because we know the reality of our value. Does the motivation of our faith stem from the obligation of receiving forgiveness, or do our lives reflect a deeper understanding?