What’s With Mary Magdalene and the Eggs? Is She the Original Easter Bunny?

And why do they talk such trash about her anyway?

I’m looking at one of my favorite ‘holiday angel’ SoulCollage® cards.*

I began making 8 X 5” collages on matt boards in 2006 when I discovered SoulCollage® on Google. I immediately ordered supplies and joined a group. There I learned how our souls speak the language of images and we can learn to read those messages.

It’s like having our own personal Tarot or divination deck.

This process, invented by Seena B. Frost, weaves together her threads of art therapy, Jungian psychology, and her Master of Divinity studies. I’m blessed to have known and been taught by her before she took her ‘spirit walk’ in 2016.

This particular card shows an iconic Mary Madeline peering into the window of a dusty art room, pointing to a white egg she’s holding in her brown hand. Like any saint in Eastern Orthodox iconic paintings, she sports a golden halo. (The above image is a remake of my original. See note below.)

I don’t know the artist, because I cut up the postcard for my collage. The card came from my favorite spiritual bookstore, Sagrada here in Oakland. Every year they send cards out reminding us how much we love to do our holiday shopping with them. It’s true. I do.

Sagrada’s owned by a couple. The wife’s also named Mary and she adores Mary Magdeline. So it’s no surprise that’s who’s on that holiday card. I loved the image so much that I grabbed a small stack of them while buying gifts for friends and family.

But it was Christmas. Why is Mary holding an egg?

It turns out Mary’s thing with eggs revolves around Easter and Jesus’ resurrection as the Christ.

She’s often shown with an egg in these iconic illustrations, sometimes white ones. Like mine. And sometimes blood-red ones. I did not know this, but I’m learning more to deepen the meaning of my Soul card. Here’s what I’m learning:

Mary and the White Eggs

This is a simple story: Mary happened to have a basket of eggs with her when she went to the tomb to wash Jesus’ dead body. In those days it was the custom to clean bodies and anoint them with oils and spices such as myrrh and aloe, to offset the coming stench of decay.

This would also give her some private time to pay her last respects.

Did she bring the eggs to feed the friends who joined her at the tomb? Or was this a stop on the way to a potluck brunch? We may never know because what happened next overshadowed the healthy snacks issue.

When Mary got to the tomb, she didn’t have to worry about how to roll the heavy stone ‘door’ out of the way. It was already moved. Peering in, she found the tomb empty.

Who’d snatched the body?

“Mary?”

She heard her name called and turned to find Jesus standing before her just as he had in life. According to some versions he also said, “Touch me not” when she engulfed him in her arms.

Was he still a bit fragile in his new form? Or was he helping her release him in preparation for his forthcoming ascension?

No doubt they were cooked but not deviled, given the occasion.

What about the red egg?

There are at least three versions of this story.

One says Mary had those eggs with her at the cross. And they were dyed red with Christ’s blood as he died. (No wonder the words are homonyms!)

Another says that when she discovered the empty tomb, her egg turned red.

But here’s the most interesting one:

Jesus’ resurrection had a profound effect on Mary. So much so, the was designated an apostle, and taught and testified, spreading the good word wherever she could.

She was also a wealthy and respectable woman in her own right. She provided the funds and resources for Jesus’ teaching and healing work. Even though He could turn water into wine and multiply loaves and fishes, there were other expenses, like taxes and donkey rentals Mary underwrote.

As word spread and her influence grew, she eventually gained an audience with Emperor Tiberius. She carefully documented Pilate’s horrific treatment of Jesus. Then she handed Tiberius an egg, proclaiming, “Christ is Risen!”

This seemingly impossible event made Tiberius laugh. He told Mary that Christ’s rising from the dead was as likely as the egg in her hand turning red.

Which the egg immediately did, right then and there!

Tiberius was favorably impressed. He even had Pontius Pilate removed from Jerusalem under an order of ‘imperial displeasure.’ The story says she then continued to evangelize the Emperor’s Court.

So why do they talk trash about Mary Magdeline?

Jesus was a man ahead of his time.

He empowered the women following Him and spreading His teachings by teaching Mary and others to perform healings and miracles. As you can imagine, this threatened many of the guys in his entourage. Especially the ones who didn’t do their homework and relied on their Teacher to bail them out of many a storm.

It was easy to discredit Mary by referring to her as a sinner and a prostitute. None of that is mentioned in the Bible. It does say Jesus healed her of some demons that possessed her.

Her reputation got worse before it got better.

Pope Gregory sealed her fate in one of his sermons circa 568 or so. Fortunately, neither the Eastern Orthodox Church nor Protestantism bought into that myth when they split from mainstream Catholicism.

According to History.com: Finally, in 1969, the Church admitted [as part of Vatican II] that the text of the Bible does not support that interpretation. Today, Mary Magdalene is considered a saint by the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran churches, with a feast day celebrated on July 22.

Not only is she a saint, she started the much-loved tradition of dyeing Easter Eggs in honor of the Risen Christ. This doesn’t mean the Easter Bunny is suddenly out of a job.

But let’s all remember, rabbits can’t lay or dye eggs!

*Note: I can’t share my original SoulCollage® card because that would be in violation of photo copyrights. So I remade it in Canva.com with shareable images, including an icon of Mary Magdeline with an egg. That’s it at the top of this post.

When I ‘read’ this new soul card, I got this message: Look into the window of your soul and make those deep connections as you give birth to your creative offspring. Remember, you don’t have all the time in the world.

Marilyn Flower writes humor to laugh the changes she wants to see and make. She’s the author of Creative Blogging: Ninja Writers Guide to Character Development and Bucket Listers, Get Your Brave On. Clowning and improvisation strengthen her resolve during these crazy times. Follow her Sacred Foolishness and Stay in touch!