Overview
From one of Italy's most renowned historians of religion, an exciting new portrait of one of Christianity's most complex--and most misunderstood--figures: Mary Magdalene Jesus' favorite and most devoted disciple? A prostitute shunned from her community? A symbol of female leadership and independence? Who really was Mary Magdalene, and how does her story fit within the history of Christianity, and that of female emancipation? In this meticulously researched, highly engaging book, Adriana Valerio looks at history, art, and literature to show how centuries of misinterpretation and willful distortion--aimed at establishing and preserving gender hierarchies--have stripped this historical figure of her complexity and relevance. By revealing both the benign and the pernicious misrepresentations of Mary Magdalene, this thought-provoking essay reaffirms the central role played by women in the origins of Christianity and their essential contribution to one of the founding experiences of Western thought and society.
Full Product Details
Author: Adriana Valerio ,
Wendy Wheatley
Publisher: Europa Compass
Imprint: Europa Compass
Dimensions:
Width: 11.70cm
, Height: 1.30cm
, Length: 17.80cm
Weight: 0.136kg
ISBN: 9781609457051
ISBN 10: 1609457056
Pages: 128
Publication Date: 16 November 2021
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: Available To Order
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Reviews
A masterful work. --Osservatore Romano A short and readable yet sweeping and well-researched essay that stands out for its intellectual honesty [ . . . ] We are all Mary Magdalene. --Cultura al femminile
"""Brilliant... Essential reading for anyone who cares about Church history and gender equality... In the wake of the #MeToo movement and debates surrounding sex work, Valerio's investigation speaks to our times with impressive relevance.""--Reading in Translation ""A masterful work.""--Osservatore Romano ""A short and readable yet sweeping and well-researched essay that stands out for its intellectual honesty [ . . . ] We are all Mary Magdalene.""--Cultura al femminile"
Author Information
Adriana Valerio is a historian of religion and has taught History of Christianty at the University of Naples. One of the first Italian women to graduate in theology, for the last three decades she has researched the role and memory of women in the history of Christianity. Translator Wendy Wheatley was born in Hartford, Connecticut in 1962 to American parents. After spending her formative years in The Netherlands and Belgium, she moved to Milan in 1986 to work as a designer with the architect Ettore Sottsass. His request to translate his writings blossomed into a career compatible with raising a family.
