Women, sexuality, and sin have been connected from the beginning of Christianity, forming a foundation of beliefs that has been highly influential on human history, shaping our modern reality.
The truth is that it wasn’t always this way. Women played an integral role in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ—and for thousands of years before him, women, priestesses, and the divine feminine, were essential to the earliest forms of religion and human spirituality.
It was not in spite of, but due to the power of women that the early Church fathers coalesced their arguments around the ties between women, sexuality, and sinfulness, drawing a thread from Eve to Mary Magdalene to the modern woman.
In this episode, we cover:
How the messiness of humanity played a central role in the creation of the Bible and the canon as we know it today
Why the concept of original sin emanating from Eve, being tied to sexuality, and the heritage of all women is unique to early Christianity
Evidence of the leadership of women during Jesus’ ministry, from the Bible to non-canonical literature, to ancient art and artifacts
Why Mary Magdalene is integral to this conversation around the role of women in power in early Christianity
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A selection of sources mentioned in this episode include:
A History of Religious Ideas, Anthology by Mircea Eliade
Goddesses: Mysteries of the Feminine Divine by Joseph Campbell
How St. Augustine Invented Sex, by Stephen Greenblatt, The New Yorker
The Invention of God by Thomas Römer
Mary and Early Christian Women: Hidden Leadership by Ally Kateusz
Mary Magdalene: Myth and Metaphor by Susan Haskins
The Meaning of Mary Magdalene: Discovering the Woman at the Heart of Christianity by Cynthia Bourgealt
Read our full source list here.
Women, Sex & Sin