But she was not possessed by one as the movie mentioned but by many. Your contributions mean so much. In the Bible, there is no indication that Nicodemus met Mary Magdalene or that he tried to heal her or exorcise her evil spirits. The trauma of her rape is hinted at again in Season 2, Episode 5, and is the trigger that causes Mary to backslide. When he encounters her again in Season 1 Episode 2, he is surprised to discover that she has been completely healed and is free of the evil spirits. There are also characters and stories from the Gospels that the creators have left out. In the same way, we get our first glimpse of the pre-resurrected Jesus as we follow her struggles in the first episode. Her name always was Mary, but through her past of turmoil, mental illness, rape, or whatever else caused her to be mentally tortured, she led everyone to believe she was Lilith. Jesus clearly expected his disciples to sin frequently and made it clear that he was committed to pursuing them and offering forgiveness (. **Update: I explore the origin of the name "Lilith" in my recent post **. Mary Magdalene is never called Lili or Lilith in the Bible. Luke notes that Mary had seven spirits exorcised from her, but the other women experienced miraculous healing as well. In the modern vernacular, a "red light district" is a term that refers to an area of the city known for prostitution, strip clubs, and other immoral establishments. The Hebrew word "lilit" only shows up in Isaiah 34:14, where most modern translations render it as something along the lines of "night bird." The episode with the woman at the well in the season finale could have been an interesting opportunity to bring her character into conflict with the other male disciples, but this opportunity was also missed. To the credit of the production team, you cant discern a denominational slant from the script. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Anyway, I love the series. Just before Luke introduces us to Mary Magdalene, he tells a story about a prostitute that Jesus forgives (, Since I criticized Season 1 of The Chosen for making Mary too perfect, it's only fair that I acknowledge how Season 2 seeks to rectify that issue. But why does Mary Magdalene get all the attention and not Joanna or Susanna, who are also mentioned? I found that my youth struggled to sort out the different characters, so you might want to do a quick slide show of the key characters using the character images I've included throughout this post. It is an excellent form of Lectio Divina. These experiences cause Mary to flee back to her old life, drinking and gambling. we first meet her as a client flees her place in "the Red Quarter"), but it's relatively disinterested in depicting what her life as a prostitute was actually like. In the Bible, there is no indication that Mary Magdalene fell back into sin, backslid, or left Jesus. I offer my work for free and rely on the generous support of readers like you. In The Chosen, we see a brief flashback during Season 1, Episode 1 that strongly implies that Mary was raped by a Roman soldier. Jesus is said to have cast seven evil spirits out of her (Luke 8:1-3). The implications of Mary living in the "Red Quarter" are still there. To recap: in Episode 5 of Season 2, Mary begins to experience PTSD tied to the trauma of her rape by a Roman solider (implied very quickly in Episode 1 Season 1). Narrative Ambiguity & Charitable Reading, The Chosen: 6 Good Friday & Easter Episodes, The Rings of Power, LOTR, and Bible Adaptation, Amazon Prime's The Rings of Power & The Challenges of Biblical Adaptation, In Defense of The Chosen and Other Christian Movies, Books, & Media (Part 1), In Defense of The Chosen and Other Christian Movies, Books, & Media (Part 2), Imagining Mary Magdalene (5 More Bible Adaptations While You Wait for The Chosen Season 2), The Chosen Season 3 Episode 6: Recap, Review, & Analysis, Intensity in Tent City (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 6 with Youth or Small Group), The Chosen Season 3 Episode 5: Recap, Review, & Analysis, Clean Part 2 (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 5 with Youth or Small Group), The Chosen Season 3 Episode 4: Recap, Review, & Analysis, Clean Part 1 (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 4 with Youth or Small Group), The Chosen Season 3 Episode 3: Recap, Review, & Analysis, Physician, Heal Thyself (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 3 with Youth or Small Group), Two by Two (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 2 with Youth or Small Group), Little James in The Chosen & Scripture (Adapting Biblical Characters), Homecoming (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 1 with Youth or Small Group), John the Baptist in The Chosen (Adapting Biblical Characters), Lilith, Demons, & Evil Spirits in The Chosen (Adapting Biblical Characters), 2022 BY THE BIBLE ARTIST. Jesus heals her evil spirit(s) at the end of Episode 1. Mary Magdalene was a female disciple who traveled with Jesus during his ministry (Luke 8:1-3). And just like one day Mary will initially fail to recognize the risen Jesus, confusing him for a gardener, she initially fails to recognize Jesus when he first comes to her, confusing him for one of the men who's been hassling her. Season 2 Reflection P2: What was The Chosen Season 2 about? I thought Mary's storyline in Season 2 of The Chosen had a lot of potential but it was unfortunately not given enough room to breathe. Jesus is said to have cast seven evil spirits out of her (, As I noted above, in the Bible there is no indication that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute. In The Chosen, when we first meet Mary Magdalene, most of the characters refer to her as Lili. If you liked this post, you might want to check out some of my other posts on The Chosen and Bible adaptation. The Bible includes Mary Magdalene in a list of women who had evil spirits healed by Jesus. Due to COVID restrictions, my youth group watched The Chosen online using Zoom. Also the guy who plays Jesus is Catholic, which is kind of cool. Episode 7 Guide: Did Nicodemus Follow Jesus? After sharing that information, you can ask: What stuck out to you about Mary Magdalene's depiction in The Chosen? More importantly, allowing some of the disciples to judge Mary a bit more would have added more tension and could have fueled future arcs. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. When they are engaged in sin, it's often a result of their difficult circumstances or their status as outsiders, and so what they primarily need is love and acceptance, not forgiveness and repentance. Meanwhile, in the youth ministry that I lead, I had the chance to view and discuss season one of The Chosen with several high schoolers and found it very fruitful. The creators of The Chosen probably chose this name because it is associated with demons in Jewish traditions. I hope I better can temper myself. An adaptation like The Chosen isn't meant to replace the Bible; it's meant to drive us deeper into the Bible and spiritual reflection. Expert Answers: The Gospels never refer to Mary as Lilith. Because The Chosen seeks to be kid-friendly, it may use the term "Red Quarter" in order to hint to older viewers that Mary is either a prostitute or a sexually immoral woman without explicitly mentioning prostitution or sex. The Hebrew word "lilit" only shows up in Isaiah 34:14, where most modern translations render it as something along the lines of "night bird." These parallels are more than a neat bit of foreshadowing. And the parallels don't end there. What's disappointing is that it doesn't delve too far into the implications of this. EDIT: I still have my concerns, but I believe my rash judgment is sinful, so I'll keep it to myself. In The Chosen, when we first meet Mary Magdalene, most of the characters refer to her as Lili. In the Bible, there is no indication that Mary Magdalene was raped. Although we'll have to wait in order to understand fully what the show wants us to conclude, this could be a subtle and effective way to show how Jesus' ability to heal and save is ultimately grounded in his willingness to die and rise again. Explain: The Chosen is a multi-season streaming series that's adapting the four Gospels. The Chosen isn't trying to mess with the Bible. You can also purchase the DVDs of season 1 on Amazon if you're worried about trying to stream & do Zoom at the same time. If you liked this post, you might want to check out some of my other posts on The Chosen and Bible adaptation. In The Chosen, when we first Mary Magdalene in Season 1 Episode 1, she has already been possessed by evil spirits for some time. I can appreciate what theyre trying to do with the show: Theyre taking their time to build your relationship with the characters and to delve into some of the backstory so that everyone becomes a three-dimensional person, not just a mumbling zombie foil for Jesus. After Jesus heals her evil spirit, she resumes calling herself "Mary," her birth name, and refuses to answer to the name associated with her spiritual oppression. East pencil writes or draws used for note taking West pencil is yellow has a eraser and lead. Lilith was close to committing suicide by walking off a cliff before a dove (Holy Spirit) caught her interest and she followed it back to town, where she had an emotional moment being healed by Jesus who quoted her trusted childhood Bible verse from Isaiah and exorcised her with a hug. As a result, adaptations of the Gospels from previous generations place a greater emphasis on how Jesus calls Mary to repent and brings about her moral transformation. Just before Luke introduces us to Mary Magdalene, he tells a story about a prostitute that Jesus forgives (Luke 7:36-50). I have Bible studies/discussion guides for each episode of The Chosen Seasons 1-3, blogs exploring how The Chosen adapts key biblical figures, and articles exploring the controversial nature of adaptation. In the Bible, there is no indication that Nicodemus met Mary Magdalene or that he tried to heal her or exorcise her evil spirits. Thank you for your input. [SPOILERS] what is Jordan Peele's 'Nope' about? The second passage is the Scripture that Mary has written down: This passage that Mary's father taught her is from the Book of Isaiah. The creators of The Chosen probably chose this name because it is associated with demons in Jewish traditions. Many characters and stories are based on events in the Gospels, but there are also characters and events that the creators made up to tie things together. When Nicodemus encounters her, we discover that the evil spirit that is possessing her is named Lilith. As it was, we didn't really get a good sense of why Mary responded the way she did. Yes, we see that Jesus had warm and empowering relationships with females. In The Chosen, Nicodemus meets Mary Magdalene in Season 1, Episode 1. Click here for my affiliation policy. When Nicodemus encounters her, we discover that the evil spirit that is possessing her is named Lilith. Its not perfect, but its a pretty great start. I've condensed the lesson into an easily printable pdf below. In The Chosen, Mary Magdalene is played by Elizabeth Tabish. Matthew, Mark, and John also describe Mary as a witness of Jesus' crucifixion/burial (Matthew 27:55-61, Mark 15:40-47, and John 19:25). Pray World's oldest person, French nun Sister Andre, dies at Thief steals St. Michael statue from church, trips, and A photo I took of our altar at Midnight Mass this Christmas, Mother on death bed, priest refused to see her. This association with prostitution opens a variety of directions for adaptations to take in their portrayal of her, especially given the affection Jesus shows for her (John 20). The important role that Mary Magdalene plays in The Chosen is not nearly as surprising as that of Nicodemus. Under the influence of this tradition, many people see Mary as being emblematic of Jesus' compassion for lost and broken souls, and this makes her a perfect candidate for the kinds of stories that The Chosen wants to tell. However, Jesus knew her real name. (he calls her by name at the end when he heals her). LOTR, Harry Potter), In [adaptation], can you think of some characters or stories that were added by the film? As I noted above, in the Bible there is no indication that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute. All four Gospels suggest Mary was the first witness of the resurrected Jesus (Matthew 28:1-10, Mark 16:1-8, Luke 24:1-11, and John 20:1-18). Lilith here could just mean demon possessed. In The Chosen, it is not entirely clear whether Mary Magdalene was engaging in prostitution before the events of Season 1, Episode 1. Prostitute that Jesus had warm and empowering relationships with females Mary Magdalene is played by Elizabeth Tabish there are characters. Our first glimpse of the production team, you can ask: What stuck out to about. With the Bible, there is no indication that Mary had seven spirits from! Delve too far into the implications why is mary magdalene called lilith in the chosen this guy who plays Jesus is said to have seven. Check out some of my other posts on the generous support of like... 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