Maria Magdalena

Maria Magdalena, yaani wa Magdala (kwa Kigiriki Μαρία ἡ Μαγδαληνή) ni mmoja kati ya wanafunzi maarufu zaidi wa Yesu wa Nazareti, hasa kutokana na sifa ya kuwa wa kwanza kumuona amefufuka (Mk 16:9; Yoh 20:16).

Habari zake kadiri ya Injili
Ni kwamba, kadiri ya Injili, baada ya kushuhudia kifo cha Yesu na mazishi yake (Mk 15:40-16:1; Math 27:56-28:1; Yoh 19:25), upendo na juhudi vilimfanya mwanamke huyo awahi kwenye kaburi lake alfajiri ya siku ya Jumapili. Huko alitokewa na malaika na kuambiwa amefufuka.

Ndiye aliyewapasha habari hiyo mitume wa Yesu kabla hawajaenda kaburini na kulikuta halina maiti.

Baada ya Maria, hao pia walitokewa na Yesu mwenyewe, kuanzia mtume Petro.

Kabla hajaanza kumfuata, Maria alikuwa amepagawa na mapepo saba (Mk 16:9). Alipoponywa na Yesu, alijitolea kumhudumia na mali yake pamoja na wanawake wengine (Lk 8:2).

Habari yake kuu katika Yoh 20
1 Alfajiri na mapema Jumapili, kukiwa bado na giza, Maria Magdalene alikwenda kaburini, akaliona lile jiwe limeondolewa mlangoni pa kaburi.

2 Basi, akaenda mbio hadi kwa Petro na yule mwanafunzi mwingine ambaye Yesu alimpenda, akawaambia, "Wamemwondoa Bwana kaburini, na wala hatujui walikomweka."

3 Petro pamoja na yule mwanafunzi mwingine wakaenda kaburini.

4 Wote wawili walikimbia lakini yule mwanafunzi mwingine alikimbia mbio zaidi kuliko Petro, akatangulia kufika kaburini.

5 Alipoinama na kuchungulia ndani, aliona sanda, lakini hakuingia ndani.

6 Simoni Petro naye akaja akimfuata, akaingia kaburini; humo akaona sanda,

7 na kile kitambaa alichofungwa Yesu kichwani. Hicho kitambaa hakikuwekwa pamoja na hiyo sanda, bali kilikuwa kimekunjwa na kuwekwa mahali peke yake.

8 Kisha yule mwanafunzi mwingine aliyemtangulia kufika kaburini, akaingia pia ndani, akaona, akaaamini.

9 Walikuwa bado hawajaelewa Maandiko Matakatifu yaliyosema kwamba ilikuwa lazima afufuke kutoka wafu).

10 Basi, hao wanafunzi wakarudi nyumbani.

11 Maria alikuwa amesimama nje ya kaburi, akilia. Huku akiwa bado analia, aliinama na kuchungulia kaburini,

12 akawaona malaika wawili waliovaa mavazi meupe, wameketi pale mwili wa Yesu ulipokuwa umelazwa, mmoja kichwani na wa pili miguuni.

13 Hao malaika wakamwuliza, "Mama, kwa nini unalia?" Naye akawaambia, "Wamemwondoa Bwana wangu, na wala sijui walikomweka!"

14 Baada ya kusema hayo, aligeuka nyuma, akamwona Yesu amesimama hapo, lakini asitambue ya kuwa ni Yesu.

15 Yesu akamwuliza, "Mama, kwa nini unalia? Unamtafuta nani?" Maria, akidhani kwamba huyo ni mtunza bustani, akamwambia, "Mheshimiwa, kama ni wewe umemwondoa, niambie ulikomweka, nami nitamchukua."

16 Yesu akamwambia, "Maria!" Naye Maria akageuka, akamwambia kwa Kiebrania, "Raboni" (yaani "Mwalimu").

17 Yesu akamwambia, "Usinishike; sijakwenda bado juu kwa Baba. Lakini nenda kwa ndugu zangu uwaambie: nakwenda juu kwa Baba yangu na Baba yenu, Mungu wangu na Mungu wenu."

18 Hivyo Maria Magdalene akaenda akawapa habari wale wanafunzi kuwa amemwona Bwana, na kwamba alikuwa amemwambia hivyo.

Heshima aliyopewa baada ya kufa
Maria Magdalena anahesabiwa mtakatifu katika madhehebu mengi ya Ukristo, akiadhimishwa tarehe 22 Julai. Katika Kanisa la Kilatini Papa Fransisko ameipa hadhi ya sikukuu.

Tazama pia
Watakatifu wa Agano la Kale
Orodha ya Watakatifu Wakristo
Orodha ya Watakatifu wa Afrika
Orodha ya Watakatifu Wafransisko

Tanbihi

Marejeo 

 Acocella, Joan. "The Saintly Sinner: The Two-Thousand-Year Obsession with Mary Magdalene." The New Yorker, 13 and 20 Februari 2006, p. 140–49. Prompted by controversy surrounding Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code.
 Brock, Ann Graham. Mary Magdalene, The First Apostle: The Struggle for Authority. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 2003. ISBN 0-674-00966-5. Discusses issues of apostolic authority in the gospels and the Gospel of Peter the competition between Peter and Mary, especially in chapter 7, "The Replacement of Mary Magdalene: A Strategy for Eliminating the Competition."
 Burstein, Dan, and Arne J. De Keijzer. Secrets of Mary Magdalene. New York: CDS Books, 2006. ISBN 1-59315-205-1.
 Jansen, Katherine Ludwig. The Making of the Magdalen: Preaching and Popular Devotion in the Later Middle Ages. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2000. ISBN 0-691-05850-4.
  ISBN 0-226-45381-2.
 Pearson, Birger A. "Did Jesus Marry?." Bible Review, Spring 2005, pp 32–39 & 47. Discussion of complete texts.
 Picknett, Lynn, and Clive Prince. The Templar Revelation. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1997. ISBN 0-593-03870-3. Presents a hypothesis that Mary Magdalene was a priestess who was Jesus' partner in a sacred marriage.
 Shoemaker, Stephen J. "Rethinking the ‘Gnostic Mary’: Mary of Nazareth and Mary of Magdala in Early Christian Tradition." in Journal of Early Christian Studies, 9 (2001) pp 555–595.
 Thiering, Barbara. Jesus the Man: Decoding the Real Story of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. New York: Simon & Schulster (Atria Books), 2006. ISBN 1-4165-4138-1.
 Wellborn, Amy. De-coding Mary Magdalene: Truth, Legend, and Lies. Huntington, Indiana: Our Sunday Visitor, 2006. ISBN 1-59276-209-3. A straightforward accounting of what is well-known of Mary Magdalene.

Viungo vya nje 

 "Saint Mary Magdalene." Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
 "St. Mary Magdalen", Butler's Lives of the Saints
 The Life of St. Mary Magdalene: Saint of the Christian Church 
 St Mary Magdalene, Catholic Encyclopaedia 1911
 Convent of Saint Mary Magdalene 
 St Mary Magdalen and the case for the ordination of women in the Catholic Church 
 Legends of Mary Magdalene
 The Pesher Technique: The Marriage of Jesus by Barbara Thiering
 Miriam/Myriam M'Gadola: Mary Magdalene
 Articles and more than 40 Paintings 
 Early Christian Writings: Gospel of Mary
 Gospel of Mary Magdalene
 Showing inaccuracy of The Da Vinci Code in respect to Mary Magdalene

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