On Being Mary - March 9

Yesterday, being International Women's Day, I reflected like all others, on the many roles that women play in society.  Whether these roles are equitable, whether women are taken advantage of, whether certain cultures of women are even treated fairly within their own gender... I distinctly remember my own feelings of decreased value, as a woman, when I decided to quit working, & stay home full time, to raise our eldest son. Feelings that I matured out of & decisions that I value having made now.

Today, in my time of reflection, I was reading Matthew 28.  This is the Bible passage where 2 'Marys,' Mary Magdalene & another, were going to the tomb of Christ.  There, they encountered an angel who told them that Jesus was risen.  They would not find his body at the tomb.  They were instructed to go & tell this shocking, but Good News, to his disciples.

In our previous church, & many years ago, I'm sad to say, I did dramatizations of many of the Bible's Marys.  When I read of the above encounter, I clearly remembered playing this Mary in an Easter drama.  I can remember the trepidation, in the character, of her having to go & tell the men what she had witnessed.  In a time, when a woman's word would definitely not be widely accepted or appreciated.  Today, sitting here pondering, on my sofa, I thought of how many times I have been this Mary.  Times when I have had to share the news...the often unwelcome, sad or hard to believe truth.  I, once, had to share with a friend, that her boyfriend was being unfaithful to her.  Had to being the operative words here.  Being a Mary was definitely not the easy thing.  The easy thing would have been to act like I knew nothing, to say nothing & possibly let that unhealthy relationship carry on for who knows how long.  Was it the popular vote, did she appreciate my candidness, at the time, or even want to believe me? Certainly not - I was definitely a Matthew 28 Mary!

Another time, I played the Mary who washed Jesus' feet, in tears, with her hair.  Luke 7: 36-50  I won't get into the controversy of whether this was Mary Magdalene or not.  All of the actors, in this play, were behind a white drop sheet & backlit so that you could only see our shadows.  We re-enacted the scene while a narrator carried the script.  We got a good review, from the congregation, saying it had been a powerful narrative, on the story.  What I remember was the gritty realness, of the portrayal, for me.  The feet, of the other actor, were very real...gnarled, hairy toes, skin callused, cracked & dry.  I dipped my wig into the basin, in front of me, & washed those feet.  The feet that could have been very much like the actual feet of our Saviour.  Many times, life calls us to be this Mary.  The rubber to the road Mary who has to just buckle down & do the job, regardless of its nature.  Life shows up, with no reluctance, with these jobs.  Waiting for test results, tending to broken bones & hearts, failed exams, punishing schedules, funeral arrangements, bedsides of the sick, car accidents, birth & death...  Like Mary, you drop your hair, you dip into the pool of whatever resources you have, & you begin the task before you, however unsavory...

And yet another time, I played Mary, the mother of Christ, as she could be imagined in every stage of His life.  In every stage, this Mary looks different.  Not much is recorded of Christ, as a child, but as a young boy of 12, he went missing, only to be found days later, in the temple.  Luke 2: 41-52  Imagine a mother's grief & tension over not knowing where her young son is.  Or watching the ridicule, as he aged & began his ministry, where many did not believe.  And as we all know the story's end, watching his final & unbearable end, crucified at Calvary.  As a young Mom, it's the sleepless nights, the sick baby, the endless monotony of redundant tasks...as an older Mom, it's the nights fraught with worry til the door opens & closes signalling your child is home safe, the broken hearts you cannot bandage, the mistakes you have to watch being made.  And finally, the release...letting the child go to make their own way in the world.  The Mary in you wants to hold on for dear life, to say, "Stay, please stay - you have no idea what is waiting for you out there...hardship, heartache, sorrow, joy, love & pleasure...all beyond your wildest dreams..." But you let go, like the Mary of old, with hope...wild, fierce hope...for all that is to come.

So, I salute all my fellow Marys.  All the women who have come along & walked beside me, challenged me, loved me when I was least loveable, listened, laughed, cried & hoped.  May Women's Day be every day as we share in celebration of our oneness & comradery.  God Bless!