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Women in the Gospel - Introduction

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The women of the Christian scriptures such as Mary, the mother of Jesus, the woman with the flow of blood, the Canaanite woman, the Samaritan woman, Martha, Mary of Magdala, and the woman who anoints Jesus’ head offer hope-filled stories of the Jesus who can liberate, heal, and empower women as well as men today. As disciples and equals with the male followers of Christ, these women of the gospel were chosen by Christ to proclaim the Good News of the inclusivity of God’s reign: that all people are welcome at the banquet table, especially the downtrodden, marginalized, rejected, and powerless. The convincing women whose powerful testimony and activist lives fill the pages of this book are radiant reflections of the feminine face of God. They show us how to be strong witnesses to the Holy One in our midst. These women invite us to experience woman-courage, woman-hope, woman-strength, woman-wisdom, and woman-passion. Their spirit liberates, energizes, and empowers us. Dialogue with the...
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The Samaritan Woman

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The Samaritan Woman from Praying with the Women of the Bible by Bridget Mary Meehan T he story of the Samaritan woman at the well records the longest conversation between Jesus and anyone in the gospels. Jesus and his disciples were traveling through Samaria on their way from southern Judea to northern Galilee. He stopped to rest at the village of Sychar by the well of Jacob. The disciples left him there alone to buy food supplies. On this hot day, a Samaritan woman approached the well around noon to draw water. Jesus began the conversation by asking her for a drink. The woman was surprised by his request and answered: “You’re a Jew. How can you ask me, a Samaritan, for a drink?” (Jn 4:9). The woman was startled by his question because she realized that this man was a Jew. The Jews and Samaritans despised each other ever since the ten tribes were driven from the land when the Assyrians defeated Israel in 722 BCE and exiled most of the people. Some Israelites re...
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Martha

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Martha from Praying with the Women of the Bible by Bridget Mary Meehan According to the Gospel of Luke, Martha, her sister Mary, and her brother Lazarus live in a village near Jericho. In John’s Gospel, they live in Bethany and are portrayed as friends of Jesus. The gospels record three encounters between Martha and Jesus. In Luke’s account Martha protests to Jesus that she has to do the household chores alone, while her sister Mary sits at Jesus’ feet and listens to his words (10:38–42). In John 11:1–45, Martha and Mary send a message to Jesus that their brother Lazarus is sick. When Jesus arrived in Bethany, Lazarus had been dead for four days. Martha went to meet Jesus and told him about Lazarus’ death. Jesus assured her that her brother would rise again. Martha replied that she knew that he would rise again on the last day. “Jesus then said to her, ‘I am the Resurrection, and I am Life: those who believe in me will live, even if they die; and those who are alive and...
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Woman with the Flow of Blood

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Woman With the Flow of Blood from Praying with the Women of the Bible by Bridget Mary Meehan T he story of a Galilean woman with the flow of blood, recorded in all three of the Synoptic Gospels, describes the sufferings of a woman who was afflicted with a hemorrhage for twelve years (Mk 5:25–34; Lk 8:43–48; Mt 9:20–22). According to Jewish cultic law, menstruation was a time of uncleanness and any discharge of blood from a woman outside her period made her unclean (Lv 15:25). Hence, for twelve years this woman not only suffered because of her condition which was related to her gender, but she was also cut off from relationships and activities with other people. Anyone and anything she touched became ritually unclean. Leviticus 15:25–30 states that not only was the woman unclean during her menstrual flow, but also, any man whom she touched was commanded to wash himself and his clothes. He remained unclean until the evening. On the eighth day after her discharge was ov...
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The Canaanite Woman

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The Canaanite Woman from Praying with the Women of the Bible by Bridget Mary Meehan According to Matthew’s Gospel, the mission of Jesus is directed to the Chosen People of Israel. The first example of a change in this direction was when Jesus released a girl from demonic possession at the persistent insistence of her mother. It was the impact of the woman’s faith that moved Jesus to go beyond the limits of his mission to the people of the covenant. As a Gentile, the Canaanite woman was a despised foreigner, a pagan, and an outsider. Yet, she is the one who reveals to Jesus that his ministry is to the whole world, not just the Chosen People. According to the story, Jesus enters Tyre and Sidon in southern Phoenicia. He has been healing people and confronting the Pharisees; his disciples have warned him of the Pharisees’ hostility toward him. The disciples don’t seem to understand a parable and Jesus has to explain it to them again. In other words, Jesus was not having a good...
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Mary of Magdala

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Mary of Magdala from Praying with the Women of the Bible by Bridget Mary Meehan A s the apostle to the apostles, Mary of Magdala is one of the most prominent women in the Christian scriptures. She comes from Magdala, on the Sea of Galilee. According to the gospels she was a woman from whom Jesus had cast out seven demons (Mk 16:9). We are given no description of the effects the demons had on her. Demon possession usually indicated some kind of emotional or physical illness. “Possessed by a demon” was a way to describe someone who did not behave according to the accepted mores of society. Seven different demons would seem to indicate that Mary of Magdala experienced intense personal pain. Whatever the seven demons meant, Jesus had healed her and she chose to become one of his disciples.1 According to Luke 8, Mary was one of the women who followed Jesus and supported his ministry with their resources. “The Twelve were with him, as well as some women who h...
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Woman Who Anoints Jesus' Head

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Woman Who Anoints Jesus’ Head from Praying with the Women of the Bible by Bridget Mary Meehan T he story of the woman who anoints Jesus is told in all four gospels. In Mark and Matthew, the anointing occurs at the home of Simon the leper in Bethany. In Luke, the place is unknown, and Simon becomes a Pharisee. In John, the location is the home of Martha in Bethany. In Mark and Matthew, the head of Jesus is anointed; in Luke and John his feet are anointed. According to Mark, Matthew, and John, the meaning of the story is the anointing of Jesus’ body before burial. There are three different women in these accounts. In John’s Gospel the woman is identified as Mary of Bethany, a close friend of Jesus. Luke changes the identity of the woman from disciple to sinner and the focus is on forgiveness of a sinful woman.1 The passion narrative of Mark’s Gospel provides the context for the story of the woman who anoints Jesus. It takes place two days before the Passover. In the prece...
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Mary, Mother of Jesus

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Mary, Mother of Jesus from Praying with the Women of the Bible by Bridget Mary Meehan T he Bible portrays Mary as the Mother of Jesus and the wife of Joseph who conceived her baby through the power of the Holy Spirit while she was a virgin. The story of the virgin birth is told in two different places in scripture. Matthew’s Gospel presents the story from the point of view of Joseph. The angel appears before Joseph and tells him, “Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Mt 1:20–21). Luke tells the story from the perspective of Mary. In Luke, the angel appears to Mary saying, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus” (Lk 1:30–31). Mary asks the angel to explain how this will happen since she is a virgin. Then the...
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