No, there is no direct evidence or historical consensus to suggest that Mary Magdalene wrote a gospel. The four canonical gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) are attributed to other authors within early Christianity.
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Mary Magdalene is a prominent figure in the New Testament of the Bible, often associated with Jesus Christ and identified as one of his most devoted followers. Due to her significant role, there has been speculation and popular belief regarding whether she authored a gospel. However, the prevailing historical and scholarly consensus suggests otherwise.
“No, there is no direct evidence or historical consensus to suggest that Mary Magdalene wrote a gospel. The four canonical gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) are attributed to other authors within early Christianity.”
Interesting Facts about Mary Magdalene and the Gospel:
- Mary Magdalene is mentioned in the New Testament as one of the women who witnessed the crucifixion and burial of Jesus, as well as the empty tomb after his resurrection.
- She is notably mentioned more times in the Gospels than some of the apostles, which has led to her prominence in popular culture.
- The Gospel of Mary, discovered in 1896 in Cairo, Egypt, is often associated with Mary Magdalene. However, scholars believe it was written in the 2nd century, well after Mary Magdalene’s lifetime, and doesn’t contain her authorship.
- Other Gnostic texts, such as the Gospel of Philip and the Gospel of Thomas, also mention Mary Magdalene but do not attribute authorship to her.
- Early Christian theologians and historians, like Tertullian and Irenaeus, do not mention Mary Magdalene as an author of any gospel.
Mary Magdalene’s significance and her potential authorship of a gospel have captured the imagination of people throughout history. However, without substantial evidence or historical consensus, it remains unlikely that she wrote a gospel. As historian Karen L. King stated, “Among the extracanonical gospels, the Gospel of Mary is widely considered to be the earliest and, in some sense, most important. Yet its origin and significance remain contentious.”
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The “gospels” of Mary Magdalene, Thomas, and Judas, also known as the Gnostic gospels, were not included in the Bible because they lack authenticity and credibility. These texts were written by Gnostics who believed they possessed hidden knowledge, but scholars agree that their authorship is not genuine. The Gnostic gospels were written long after the New Testament, lack historical verification, contradict the canonical gospels, and lack a sense of divine inspiration. Ultimately, these books did not meet the criteria for inclusion in the Bible.
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Bound in leather and written in Coptic, this was the Gospel of Mary. Like the books found at Nag Hammadi, the Gospel according to Mary Magdalene is also considered an apocryphal text. The story it contains begins some time after the resurrection. The disciples have just had a vision of Jesus.
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Did Mary Magdalen write a gospel? It has no known author, and although it’s popularly known as a “gospel,” it’s not technically classed as one, as gospels generally recount the events during Jesus’ life, rather than beginning after his death.
Similarly, What is the book written by Mary Magdalene? The Gospel of Mary of Magdala: Jesus and the First Woman Apostle.
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Regarding this, How many gospels is Mary Magdalene mentioned in?
Response to this: four gospels
All the four gospels identified her, either alone or as a member of a larger group of women which includes Jesus’s mother, as the first to witness the empty tomb, and, either alone or as a member of a group, as the first to witness Jesus’s resurrection.
In respect to this, Why isn’t the Gospel of Mary in the Bible? Response to this: The Gospel of Mary is an early Christian text deemed unorthodox by the men who shaped the nascent Catholic church, was excluded from the canon, and was subsequently erased from the history of Christianity along with most narratives that demonstrated women’s contributions to the early Christian movement.