Below is the talk I presented for the Mary Magdalene Studies Association Annual Conference on 7/22/22. Video recording to follow.

We find ourselves at a critical place in the human evolution – a time during which systems which have been built on fear, power, oppression, and control are in a fast journey toward their own collapse.  It is a time not unlike the time in which Jesus, and the Magdalene, themselves lived. Jesus, through his own training and practice, uncovered the both the cause and the cure of what was ailing humanity and shared this knowledge and training with his disciples.  The cause was a lack of what we would now call “psycho-spiritual development.”  The cure was a transformational process which led its participants into what in canonical scripture Jesus called Malkuth (kingdom of God), and what is referred to as Anthropos in the gnostic gospels.

Having said all this, Christ departed.

The disciples were in sorrow,

shedding many tears, and saying:

“How are we to go among the unbelievers

and announce the gospel of the Kingdom of the Son of Man?

They did not spare his life,

so why should they spare ours?”

Then Mary arose,

embraced them all, and began to speak to her brothers:

“Do not remain in sorrow and doubt,

for his Grace will guide you and comfort you.

Instead, let us praise his greatness,

for he has prepared us for this.

He is calling upon us to become fully human (Anthropos).”

Thus Mary turned their hearts toward the Good,

and they began to discuss the meaning of the Teacher’s words.

Gospel of Mary Page 9:5-20

Mary, called Magdalene, was the one among Jesus’ disciples to fully embody these teachings.  This is evidenced in these words from Luke’s gospel:

After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.

Luke 8: 1-3

Jean Yves-Leloup in his translation and commentary on Mary’s gospel explains what it meant to be “cured of seven demons.”  He described it as a process of initiation through which its participants were freed of the inner “demons” that would otherwise infringe on their ability to be the most authentic self – the person God made them to be. This is further confirmed by contemporary authors writing about ancient alchemy including Dennis William Hauck. 

In being cured of seven demons, Mary completed and then mastered the transformational process taught by Jesus, both experiencing Malkuth, and becoming anthropos – fully Divine and Fully Human.  In this, Mary was fully empowered in her unique giftedness and fully embodied her mission and purpose in this lifetime. She became sovereign unto herself by transmuting the unhealed wounds, past traumas, and spiritual fears such that she had now become a radiant temple through which her Divine nature could be fully expressed and manifest in the world.  As such, Mary, called Magdalene, became, like Jesus, a vessel and catalyst of Love in the world.

For 2000 years, this process of transformation has been both a closely guarded secret, and hiding in plain sight. In Mary’s own gospel, she describes a portion of that process:

“Freed from this third climate, the soul continued its ascent,

and found itself in the fourth climate.

This has seven manifestations:

the first manifestation is Darkness;

the second, Craving;

the third, Ignorance;

the fourth, Lethal Jealousy;

the fifth, Enslavement to the Body;

the sixth, Intoxicated Wisdom;

the seventh, Guileful Wisdom.

These are the seven manifestations of Wrath,

and they oppressed the soul with questions:

‘Where do you come from murderer?’

and ‘Where are you going, vagabond?’

The soul answered:

‘That which oppressed me has been slain;

that which encircled me has vanished;

my craving has faded,

and I am freed from my ignorance.’”

“’I left the world with the aid of another world;

a design was erased,

by virtue of a higher design.

Henceforth I travel toward Repose,

where time rests in the Eternity of Time;

I go now into Silence.’”

Having said all this, Mary became silent,

Gospel of Mary 16: 1-19, 17: 1-7

While we do not have the complete text of Mary’s gospel, between the pages that have been recovered and canonical scripture, we can stitch together an effective process for supporting human beings in becoming self-actualized. Self-actualized people know:

• Who they are.
• What their unique gifts are.
• How they are being called to develop and share these gifts for the sake of their own fulfillment, and for the sake of the betterment of the world.

Additionally, self-actualized human beings are able to

• Reason, discern and exercise their own truth.
• Have cultivated a deeply intimate relationship with their own inner authority.
• Are not blindly compliant with the status quo
• And are naturally compassionate and caring toward others.

Jesus, and Mary Magdalene supported people in becoming self-actualized because they knew that those who had successfully achieved anthropos would naturally come together in the creation of a better world.

The need to support humanity in becoming self-actualized has never been more critical than it is today.  Fortunately, we have both scripture and Mary’s gospel to provide clues as to how we might accomplish this. We also have two systems from the ancient world from which I believe Jesus and Mary drew to create their methods.

1. The Tree of Life from the ancient tradition of Jewish mysticism.
2. The Chakra system from ancient India.

I have drawn from both in the creation of the tools I use in my own ministry of supporting people in becoming self-actualized. My book, Authentic Freedom – Claiming a Life of Contentment and Joy and the protocol which it describes is based exclusively on the chakra system integrating scripture with contemplative prayer and creative mindfulness to produce a simple yet effective protocol for freeing ourselves of our own “demons.” The Tree of Life figures prominently in the shadow and depth work I do with both clients and students in support of their journey toward anthropos.

When we apply the methods Jesus taught and which were perfected in Mary, such that she was given the title of Magdalene, we find ourselves living in a whole new world. Supporting others in doing the same, lead the way to the new world promised by the ancients, and fully articulated as the Holy Bride in the Book of Revelation:

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.  I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of the heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.  And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them.  They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” 

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!  Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”    He said to me, “It is done.  I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End.  To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life.  They who overcome will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.”

Revelation 21: 1-7

The time to bring forth the new world is NOW and the Magdalene provides the example and the tools for doing so.  Self-actualization is the method and Love is the means.

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Magdalene Courses with Lauri Ann Lumby

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