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    The Secret Magdalene
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    The Secret Magdalene
    Unavailable
    The Secret Magdalene
    Audiobook18 hours

    The Secret Magdalene

    Written by Ki Longfellow

    Narrated by Bernadette Dunne

    4.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Raised like sisters, Mariamne and Salome are indulged with riches, position, and learning-a rare thing for females in Jerusalem. But Mariamne has a further gift: an illness has left her with visions; she has the power of prophecy. It is her prophesying that drives the two girls to flee to Egypt, where they study philosophy, mathematics, and astronomy in the Great Library of Alexandria.

    After seven years they return to a Judaea where many now believe John the Baptizer is the messiah. Salome too begins to believe, but Mariamne, now called Magdalene, is drawn to his cousin, Yeshu'a, a man touched by the divine in the same way she was during her days of illness. Together they speak of sharing their direct experience of God; but Yeshu'a unexpectedly gains a reputation as a healer, and as the ill and the troubled flock to him, he and Magdalene are forced to make a terrible decision.

    This radical retelling of the greatest story ever told brings Mary Magdalene to life-not as a prostitute or demon-possessed-but as an educated woman who was truly the "apostle to the apostles."


    From the Hardcover edition.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateApr 3, 2007
    ISBN9781415939499
    Unavailable
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    Reviews for The Secret Magdalene

    4.5/5

    214 ratings38 reviews

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    • 2/5
      I'm not sure I understand what the fuss is all about.
    • 4/5
      The Secret Magdalene gathers elements in the Christ myth as conceived in the Gnostic tradition, and unifies them through the character of Mariamne / Mary Magdal-Eder / Mary Magdalene. Longfellow imagines the actions of Jesus / Jehoshua as a deliberate effort to craft a Jewish godman myth, after the myth of Osiris. The book itself reinforces the idea the Bible usefully can be read this way: in effect a constellation of important themes and positions, arranged as a story; and not as divine revelation as advocated by the Roman Catholic Church.Brings home the End Times atmosphere prevalent among many during the life of Jesus, the competing doctrines and sects such as the Essenes, the Sicarii, the sense of urgency driving their members.Nice evocation of landscape and geography.Intriguing portrayal of the family of Jesus and his cousin John of the River / John the Baptiser: presumably not all were so related within the Bible as edited by Deuteronomists? I'm not sufficiently familiar with the Bible narratives to identify when & how Longfellow changed or invented relations, or to assess how plausible these relations are. Similarly, unclear how closely the Biblical stories such as the Woman at the Well were followed in this story.Hieratic to the extent Longfellow first references explicitly the doctrine of constructing a godman myth as a medicinal lie, then proceeds to relate her story (which, in fact, follows that narrative). Suggests Longfellow's story is itself a Socratic teaching.Also raises the possibility the tale is constructed as a variant of the Memory Palace, predicated on the structural elements of narrative rather than architecture. This possibility in turn suggests that Longfellow's story would be useful primarily as a mnemonic, that is: to recall facts and concepts, and prompt reflection thereupon, and not as the initial presentation of the argument or concepts. Yet for all but an extremely small minority of readers, the story will be just that, the first encounter of the argument, not an engaged recollection of it. Of course the author would anticipate that situation: does she play with that duality, with a separate intent for each audience? Use it pragmatically as a means for propagating the meme (an established hieratic practice)?
    • 3/5
      While I enjoyed the story, this novel was too academic for me, especially all the references to the various tribes and their beliefs. I thought it took a lot away from this adaptation of Magdalene.
    • 5/5
      This is a superb novel that assumes that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were a couple during his life and that once he had died, she was the focus of one among several teaching/preaching groups. Its ideas follow on from the (non-canonical) Gospel of Philip. Thought provoking.
    • 5/5
      I really loved this book... eagerly awaiting the third (this is the first) in her series.
    • 5/5
      Now I'm a Texan and a Christian but that doesn't mean I'm dumb and never ask any questions. I'm always asking questions, just ask my children and my grandchildren. So reading this book was like reading about me, Mary Magdalene was so full of questions. I just loved her and I loved Jesus of course and it could have been like this, and it just about broke my heart. But at the same time it lifted me higher than any preacher or minister ever has in my whole life. This book is like a long gospel but one that makes a whole lot of sense and I LOVED it even as it made me hurt all over. I just read a new book by this writer about Hypatia of Alexandria called Flow Down Like Silver: Hypatia of Alexandria and I reviewed that too.
    • 5/5
      This book is the best read I've had in a long time. It's now my favorite modern book. Since I'm not a Catholic or even a Christian anymore, nothing offended me. Actually, it excited me and brought me closer to ideas about reality that any church teaching I ever suffered through. But it's more than that. It's also an exciting read.
    • 5/5
      This book was wonderful. I truly felt like I was there and lived through the whole storyline. I also loved Longfellow's take on the life of Jesus. I was originally going to rate this 4 1/2 stars instead of a perfect 5 because I found the long pages dealing with philoshophy to be a bit dry and tedious to get through, but the last 100 pages of the book was so intense and fantastic that I had to give it a 5. This is a story that will stay with you a long while after you have finished it.
    • 5/5
      This book takes a little effort but it is soooo worth it. It is not a beach read and it is not something to skim looking for the good bits. It's a work of art, flawed as most art is, but art. And it glows with wisdom.
    • 5/5
      Tremendous book. A classic in the making. Read it open-hearted and enraptured.
    • 5/5
      I'd just read Gilbert's "Eat, Pray, Love" and found it both intriguing as well as annoying. I don't have the lovely freedom to just take off around the world. I don't know many who do. But I realize that has nothing to do with Gilbert's journey, that's just me being whiny. So when I picked up The Secret Magdalene I expected to feel a bit of the same. Wrong. The writer of this book knows what Gilbert was seeking already, how I couldn't say, but she's talking about it through the story we all know and some of us believe is the absolute truth---the Christ story. I got more out of this book than from years of sitting in an ashram or on a pew. I found myself at times almost weeping with discovery. The only reason I kept back a half star is because nothing is perfect and I would offend the book by calling it perfect. It's small imperfections make it even more moving.
    • 5/5
      Didn't bother rating all my other books since they're the best. But this one is an odd one for me. As a scientist, it was a curious read, yet compelling. Einstein said all breakthroughs in science come from a sudden insight, not laborious thought. This book is that insight for me. I'm now furiously thinking about all I think I know about reality. Also liked reading outside my personal box. This is a book I'll have to read again.
    • 5/5
      A very big book. An important book. A book to read and reread. Every night as I read it, I looked forward to my time with Mariamne, savored each word, jumped out of my skin at special moments. Great book.
    • 5/5
      I'm having trouble knowing how to review a book like this. I guess readers might think it's a religious book, but it's not. It isn't religious at all, not as I understand the word which is, I think, a system for boxing up a search for meaning into a package and then those on top controlling everyone else's mind through that box. This book is just the opposite. The opening of all the boxes and freeing all the minds. It freed mine. But it's done in such a clever and interesting way I must sit and ponder a bit before I can tackle a real review. This is just a placeholder until I can find the words to tell you how important and wonderful this book is. Unless it offends your "box." Then I suppose you might not like it at all.
    • 5/5
      Just finished this book. It's my favorite book. My mind is still spinning. What a ride artistically, mentally and spiritually.
    • 5/5
      I've just finished this book and I am sure I will start all over again tomorrow. I've only done this once before when I just couldn't stand to leave the world I'd lived in as long as I read my book. It was if I was there, walking with these people, struggling against a world of ignorance and ugliness that cannot see beauty. What is different now? What a beautiful book. I recommend it to anyone who loves language and literature and the search for the spiritual. There are, I admit, moments some might call boring or difficult. For me they were thrilling passages filled with ideas. But if that isn't for you, skip them, but don't skip this book. Look at the sales of Tolle or someone like Tolle. You can have what you seek from Tolle (and don't get) here, in this book. Plus adventure and character and tears and love. Wow. I can't say enough.
    • 5/5
      A book to read and read again, to savor and thrill to and learn from. A book to cry over and gnaw off your fingernails too. In short a great read. It also, without trying, teaches you all that stuff other books preach about in the most intriguing and involving way.
    • 5/5
      This is become my favorite book. I've read all my life. I think of myself as a discerning reader. All the classics: English, Russian, German, French, American...and more and more. And some of these books have never left me. This is going to be one of them. I notice it's not on any bestseller list and it's not mentioned by the professionals as brilliant, and yet it's the most brilliant thing I've read in years. It has it all: great writing, a great idea, profound research, profound ideas, and a compelling storyline that takes you on an alternate journey through a story you think you know. Mary Magdalene here is not a whore or a penitent sinner. She's wise and funny and vulnerable. And she's not regulated to the carrier of Christ's child. I was stunned. Several times I wanted to shout: YES! I'VE THOUGHT THAT! A revelation and a keeper.
    • 5/5
      No point in detailing the plot. Every point in speaking of the effect this book had on me. Things that confused me, seem cleared up. The path I've been seeking seems straight before me. And a bonus, this book is beautifully written, amazingly imagined, and speaks from a mystics understand. I was, and am, in love with it. More, please more, from this author.
    • 5/5
      Funny how some books are so good and so important and only a handful of people know about them, and of those, some don't know what they're looking at. And then there's all those books everyone's heard of that don't mean a damn thing and won't be around next year. This is the kind of book that will stay in print slowly growing like a pearl in an oyster until one day someone "important" finds it and it gets the attention it deserves. Until then, I feel honored to be an early reader.
    • 4/5
      This is a deeply profound work of immense import. I agree with another reviewer here. It may take time, but someday a lot of people will know this. I read there's a movie in the making. Cannot wait to see that.
    • 5/5
      I love love love this book. The only way the writer could have written it is for her to KNOW. And while I do not KNOW, I have a much better understanding of what mystics are getting at. To take the much malinged Mary Magdalene and make her into a person so interesting and so real is truly a challenge. To do the same for Yeshu/Jesus and every other name you associate with this story is even more than a challenge for Jesus has been diefied. Here he is a man, a real man, as she is a real woman, and all the more holy for it. I hope this book gets bought or checked out or borrowed and is read and read and read. Never mind those it offends with their "by the book" heads in the sands faith. They are lost. For those who would be found, here is the book.
    • 5/5
      I've just finished this book. I don't write reviews. Don't feel qualified. But I have to say this book had such an impact on me I couldn't just give it five stars and stay silent. It's not just a great book, it's a powerful book that changes you. I expect people who have unquestioned beliefs can't be changed by anything. True believers are exactly that, believers. Not thinkers. But if you have questions about reality. If you can't quite swallow all you've been taught, then this book will hit you between the eyes with answers. And the answers, as Mariamne says, will lead to more questions. Which is what being human is all about. It's not about knowing anything because no one really knows anything. It's about seeking. The quest is everything. I LOVED this book.
    • 5/5
      One of the only books I have ever read which not only caught me up in its story, but made me think. You go through life believing all sorts of things, never questioning them, and then one day, something happens to make you ask (if you are honest with yourself): is this really true? Was George Washington a great president? No. Did the holocaust actually occur. Yes! Is the United States acting honorably in the Middle East? Uh, no. Is what I've been taught as a Christian (in my case, Lutheran) literally true? After this book, I'd now answer, NO. But does it matter? No. What matters is what stands behind the diluted teaching that has come down to us. In this book the teaching is fresh and new and powerful and full strength. Read it, read it, read it. And if your mind and heart are open, all the self help books in the world won't hold a candle to it.
    • 5/5
      I've read this book three times. I know a woman who's read it seven times. I guess this is VERY much the book for you, or it isn't. Important books often elicit big reactions. I follow no religion. This might help make this book reach me. But the woman who read it seven times is a Christian. She said it made her understand the underlying love and hope of her beliefs, damaged by the unquestioning orthodox. But this is not a book about Christianity. It's not about religion. It's about a man and a woman seeking answers to the meaning of existance and doing it together, under extraordinary historical circumstances. What could be a more important novelistic theme? A book for the ages.
    • 3/5
      While the story was interesting enough as I was reading it, I put this book down about half way through and could barely force myself to pick it up again. I did eventually finish it.
    • 5/5
      Big fan of Longfellow now. I'll be first in line for her next book. Love historical fiction, but to find something in this genre that changes my heart is an experience of a lifetime. As for the writing, it transports you to a time and a place with more passion and presense than I have ever experienced. Kudos to this one,.
    • 5/5
      Best book I've read in years. Most profound I've ever read. Wish it would jump off the shelves like Tolle's turgid messes do. There's a reason gold is buried, a reason it requires effort to find it. But this one will get found, slowly but surely.
    • 5/5
      Just finished this book. Can't get it out of mind. I love books or I wouldn't be here, and those I love linger. This one will not only linger, it seems to have changed me in some fundamental way. It's a novel and so has all one can ask of a novel: lovely writing that suits its subject, a need to turn a page, a falling in love with the characters as you live with them. But it's also a sort of Gospel. It's a teaching, a finding, a revelation. I honestly predict this one is going to become a classic. If it doesn't stay in print for years and years, then my tastebuds fail me. And they haven't done so yet. (Annabelle C.)
    • 5/5
      As a lit teacher, I've begun to teach this book. I've chosen it because it not only shows my students an example of beautiful contemporary writing and the value of research, but most importantly that thing that comes along with the best literature that lasts long after the last page is turned. There is Meaning here. You've come away with more than a great story wonderfully told, but with a new way of thnking and feeling. Only the best accomplish this.