In a bright moment of awakening (accompanied by a sense of being betrayed by the church’s misinformation), I learned that Mary Magdalene was not a prostitute, but a revered disciple, spiritual teacher, and partner to Jesus. It was like an enormous puzzle piece falling into place. Since then, I’ve been following a trail of red rose petals.
“Mary Magdalene” by Andrea Solari (1460-1524) Milan, Italy
Divine Masculine and Divine Feminine Balance
It’s sometime in the mid-2000’s, and like zillions of other people, I’m reading The DaVinci Code. I know the book is fictional, but the story feels infinitely plausible. I realize that the relationship between Mary and Jesus has been misrepresented – grossly misrepresented – by the church. It’s one of the definitive moments of my spiritual life.
The story feels true deep in my bones. It makes perfect sense. Of course the Divine Masculine has a Divine Feminine counterpart! This information once again confirms to me that man’s (and men’s) version of Christianity seeks to control the Divine Feminine and the innate power of women as the givers of life. No wonder I’ve been seeking a path of spirituality that resonates at a much deeper level than the bland, tepid Christianity I grew up with!
Face the Moon, Dear!
During this time, I am studying the path of Priestess in the Dianic Wiccan tradition and the lineage of feminist author, spiritual teacher, activist, playwright, and songwriter Zsuzsanna “Z” Budapest. I meet Z during a full moon ceremony near her home in the Oakland Hills in 1999. I’m a brand new priestess, not even initiated yet, at my first full moon ceremony. Z picks up a candle from the picnic table and asks, “Whose is this?”. I step up to be the first to honor Luna. As I hold my candle to the sky, Z takes my shoulders, turns me to face the moon, and says, “This way… face the moon, Dear.” As embarrassing as it was at the time, I remember it now to acknowledge how far I’ve come in the last 20+ years!
Mary Magdalene is a Goddess archetype of the highest order, an ascended master who chose to embody in human form to assist and support the prophesied Messiah. But it would be many years yet before she pierced the veil to work directly with me, to call me home. I needed to attain a certain maturity before I would be ready, both in myself and in my Beloved relationship with my own Divine Masculine.
The Red Rose Through the Ages
There were much earlier appearances that I didn’t understand, going back to my very early 20’s. For example, Mary’s sacred symbol, the red rose, is a very special personal symbol. It’s followed me through the decades and remains very sacred to me to this day. Most notably, I lost a child to an ectopic pregnancy in 1987. Her name was Rose.
It’s 2013, and I’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer. Mary Magdalene reaches out to me through a metaphysical shop owner in Oakland, CA. Also named Mary, she quietly keeps a Magdalene Temple in a nondescript shipping container in the alley behind her business. I’m gifted with two opportunities to visit this precious Magdalene Temple which is filled with orchids and roses.
My breast cancer journey is short and sweet. Leading up to my surgery, I’m reading the incredible book “Anna, Grandmother of Jesus” and learning about Mother Mary’s mother, Anna, a very powerful spiritual teacher. As I go into surgery for my double mastectomy, my first nurse is named Anna, and my nurse coming out is named Mary. It feels like some very special magic to me.
I’ve recently been “assigned” by the Marys to read the book again. I’m absolutely RIVETED by this powerful, first-hand account of the centuries of preparations leading up to the time of Jesus and Mary Magdalene.
Visiting the Temple of my Spiritual Teacher
Mary has made a major reappearance in my life recently. Through a subtle process of listening on my part, She invited me to visit Her Basilica in Southern France. Here, in the temples and sacred spaces dedicated to her memory, they venerate Her and have at least as far back as the 5th century. The grotto in the Sainte-Baume mountains where she was said to reside after Jesus’ death is under the care of the Dominican monks (since 1295). The grotto has been tended by three different orders since 415. At the foot of the same mountain lies the town of Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume, where the town’s basilica is dedicated to Mary Magdalene.
The trip planning begins innocently enough. The original impetus was to visit the retreat center in The Netherlands where I was planning to teach a retreat in 2020. My thought was that as long as we’re flying across the pond, let’s stay awhile. Glastonbury and The Chalice Well were set as the first leg of this pilgrimage. However, the extra week in Europe after visiting the retreat center remained a mystery.
My Very Own Divine Masculine
I invited my Beloved husband, traveling companion, and High Priest counterpart, Apollo, into my office to look at maps and train routes with me. And the trail of red rose petals slowly appeared, one by one, as we talked it through. I knew almost nothing about Mary’s sacred sites, such as where they are located, what they are called, or what they even are. I just knew there are some, somewhere in France. We talked, I searched online. Amazingly, my searches took me to all the right bits of information to guide us home to Mary. Even the online searches were part of the trail of red rose petals.
YOU are part of this!
I invite you to take this trip with me. Not literally, of course, but in the next four blogs (and beyond!). Come with me on this journey. Delve into the depths of the mysteries of Mary. Follow the trail of red rose petals with me. Let’s bring Her Sacred Work to the planet, together! Join us in Glastonbury for The Sacred Feminine Rose Womb Mysteries of Avalon, June 28-July 5, 2024… the final retreat in Avalon.
The next installment in the series is Part 3: The Long and Winding Road of Being Human
In love and devotion, Amrita
This article was originally published on Amrita Grace’s website at: https://amritagrace.com/mary-magdalene/mary-magdalene-spiritual-teacher-2/
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