-
Mary Magdalene: The world will only change if we change.
-
Daniel: You brought shame on our family. What did you think you were doing?
Mary Magdalene: I needed to pray.
-
[first lines]
Mary Magdalene: And she asked him, "What will it be like? The kingdom?" And he said, "It is like a seed, a single grain of mustard seed, which a woman took and sowed in her garden. And it grew and it grew. And the birds of the air made nests in its branches."
-
Mary Magdalene: I can't marry Ephraim. I'm not made for that life.
Daniel: Then what on Earth are you made for? You want me to bind your breasts and shave your head - so you can become a man?
-
Jesus: What is it you fear in yourself?
Mary Magdalene: My thoughts. My longings, my unhappiness.
-
Jesus: What is it you long for?
Mary Magdalene: I'm not sure. To know God.
Jesus: And yet you've felt God's presence.
Mary Magdalene: Sometimes, in the stillness, I think I feel it.
Jesus: It's always been there. All it needs is your faith.
-
Jesus: God's kingdom is taking root. So we must prepare. You must wash away the stains of your corruption and be born anew. Like children. I have been hidden for too long. And now you hide. Each one of you.
-
Jesus: Listen. In the silence. Is there something calling? Do you have the courage to follow what you hear?
-
Mary Magdalene: My brothers and I used to see how long we could hold our breath under the water in the lake, how deep into the weeds we could swim. I loved it down there. It was like I didn't need my body. I didn't need the earth. And then I would rise up into the air, into the light. Is that what it feels like to be one with God?
-
Jesus: What shall I teach?
Mary Magdalene: Are we so different from men you must teach us different things? We are women. Our lives are not our own.
-
Jesus: Lord, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Give us today the bread of tomorrow. And forgive us our debts. For we forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not bring us to the test.
Mary Magdalene: May peace be upon you.
Jesus: Amen.
-
Mary Magdalene: Look at me. Look at me. You are seen and heard in every act of care. You answer to God with every act of love.
-
Mother Mary: I loved him, you see, but he was never completely mine.
Mary Magdalene: God must have asked so much of you.
Mother Mary: What about what God has asked of you?
-
Mother Mary: You love my son, don't you? Then you must prepare yourself, like me.
Mary Magdalene: For what?
Mother Mary: To lose him.
-
Jesus: Open your eyes to the light. It has begun. Don't stop it now. Don't let them stop it.
Mary Magdalene: I'll be with you. I won't leave.
Jesus: Mary. You are my witness.
-
Jesus: Give thanks to the Lord, for herein lies good. A love that endures forever. Let Israel declare.
Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Thomas, Matthew, Mary Magdalene: His steadfast love is eternal.
Jesus: Let the house of Aaron declare.
Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Thomas, Matthew, Mary Magdalene: His steadfast love is eternal.
Jesus: Let those who fear the Lord declare.
Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Thomas, Matthew, Mary Magdalene: His steadfast love is eternal.
-
Mary Magdalene: Has any of this happened as you expected it to?
-
Mary Magdalene: This whole time, we've been looking for a change in the world, but it's not what we thought. The kingdom is here, now.
-
Mary Magdalene: The kingdom, it can't be built through conflict. Not by opposition, not by destruction. It grows with us, with every act of love and care, with our forgiveness. We have the power to lift the people, just as he did, and then we will be free, just as he is.
-
Mary Magdalene: I value each one of you as he did. You are all my brothers, and I thank you. But I will not stay and be silent. I will be heard.
-
Peter: [speaking to mary magdalene] My son was hiding my tools in the sand. And suddenly... He was there. Jesus of Nazareth. He called my name. I saw Him. And it was like everything... that I had in my life they were like... those pictures painted on glass. And He became the only real thing in the world. But what you did in the village... Mercy. That was mercy.
-
Matthew: Mary.
Mary Magdalene: Matthew.
Peter: [speaking to mary] You were with Him?
Mary Magdalene: To the end. Peter, as the sun rose, I saw Him. He was there and He was... All His pain was gone from Him.
Peter: A dream.
Mary Magdalene: It wasn't a dream. He was there.
John: Mary, He is gone from us. He is dead.
Mary Magdalene: He's not gone. Even death cannot hold Him. This whole time we've been looking for a change in the world, but it's not what we thought. The kingdom is here, now.
Thomas: We failed. There is no kingdom.
Mary Magdalene: What, the people would rise that He would be crowned king, did He ever say this to you?
James: Mary. You saw Him? Truly? But then the kingdom, how can that be right?
Mary Magdalene: Because it's not something we can see with our eyes. It's here within us. All we have to do is let go of our anguish and our resentment and become like children just as He said.
Peter: What do you mean?
Mary Magdalene: The kingdom, it can't be built through conflict. Not by opposition, not by destruction. It grows with us with every act of love and care with our forgiveness. We have the power to lift the people just as He did and then we will be free just as He is.
Joseph: This is what He meant. And we have been walking this path to revolution as if the kingdom would be born of flames and blood.
Peter: Mary. Why would He come to you alone?
Mary Magdalene: Why does that matter?
Peter: Because you say the kingdom is here. Now. And just outside that door, there is no new world. No end of oppression. No justice for the poor, for the suffering.
Mary Magdalene: How does it feel to carry that anger around in your heart? Does it lessen as the days go by? We have the power to relieve their suffering. It is up to us.
Peter: I believe you, Mary. I believe that you saw Him. That He came to you. And it was a sign... that He will return... and He will bring the kingdom. The true kingdom. The new world.
Mary Magdalene: The world will only change as we change.
Peter: It's not right that you come here now to tell us that He has chosen you before us. That He has brought you some... special message.
Mary Magdalene: He gathered us for what was inside. We were all precious to Him. We were all his apostles.
Peter: Every man in this room... is His rock, His church... upon which he will build... His glorious new world... with one purpose... and one message.
Mary Magdalene: Your message. Not His.
Peter: You have weakened us, Mary. You weakened Him.
Mary Magdalene: All I can do is hope that you've heard what I have said. Pray that you see me as I am. I value each one of you as He did. You are all my brothers and I thank you. But I will not stay and be silent. I will be heard.
-
Jesus: You do not lose heart... even now. Didn't you ask what will it be like? The kingdom?
Mary Magdalene: [internal monologue] It is like a seed. A single grain of mustard seed... which a woman took and sowed in her garden. And it grew... and it grew... and the birds of the air made nests in it's branches.
-
James: Mary. He's waiting. Look.
Jesus: [to mary] What shall I teach?
Mary Magdalene: Are we so different from men you must teach us different things?
Susannah: We are women. Our lives are not our own.
Jesus: Your spirit's your own. And you alone answer for that. And your spirit is precious to God. As precious as that of your husband... or your father.
Susannah: Then who should we obey? If God commands one thing, but our husbands, our fathers tell us another?
Jesus: You must follow God.
Mary Magdalene: So are we to defy them and leave our lives behind?
Jesus: Yes. Though they judge you... persecute you... you must forgive them.
Susannah: Forgive them? A year ago a woman from Cana... many of us knew her here. She was young. Her husband found her with another man... and he and his brothers... they dragged her to the river and they raped her. And after they were done... they drowned her. In the court before they were sentenced one of them repented, "God, forgive me." But I'm not God, father.
Jesus: How does it feel to carry that hate in your heart? Does it lessen as the months go by? It seeps into your days... your nights... until it consumes everything you once were. Those men, they too, were filled with hate. You are strong sister, but you must forgive. There is no other way to enter the kingdom of God. Will you join us? Will you be born anew?
Mary Magdalene Quotes
Extended Reading
