This group will continue to meet regularly, on the last Monday of each month, to chat about a book inspired by Rua Red’s exhibition programme.

Mary Magdalene Revealed is a new book by Meggan Watterson, bestselling author, Harvard-trained feminist theologian, and founder of the House of Mary Magdalene. Meggan was a key participant in Rua Red’s Active Research Programme, which informed the work artists made for The Magdalene Series, curated by Maoliosa Boyle. This text draws on many of the themes explored in the gallery’s current exhibition, Grace Dyas’ film, A Mary Magdalene Experience.

‘A gospel, as ancient and authentic as any of the gospels that the Christian bible contains, was buried deep in the Egyptian desert after an edict was sent out in the 4th century to have all copies of it destroyed. Fortunately, some rebel monks were wise enough to refuse—and thanks to their disobedience and spiritual bravery, we have several manuscripts of the only gospel that was written in the name of a woman: The Gospel of Mary Magdalene.

Mary’s gospel reveals a radical love that sits at the heart of the Christian story. Her gospel says that we are not sinful; we are not to feel ashamed or unworthy for being human. In fact, our purpose is to be fully human, to be a “true human being”— that is, a person who has remembered that, yes, we are a messy, limited ego, and we are also a limitless soul.

And all we need to do is to turn inward (again and again); to meditate, like Mary Magdalene, in the way her gospel directs us, so that we can see past the ego of our own little lives to what’s more real, and lasting, and infinite, and already here, within. With searing clarity, Watterson explains how and why Mary Magdalene came to be portrayed as the penitent prostitute and relates a more historically and theologically accurate depiction of who Mary was within the early Christ movement. And she shares how this discovery of Mary’s gospel has allowed her to practice, and to experience, a love that never ends, a love that transforms everything.’ (megganwatterson.com)

Limited copies of Mary Magdalene Revealed are available to borrow from Rua Red’s front desk or you are welcome to purchase your own. The book is available online through retailers such as Eason and Amazon.