Liz Curtis Higgs - Unveiling Mary Magdalene: Discover the Truth about a Not-So-Bad Girl of the Bible

Higgs, with her conversational style and characteristic humor, is the perfect author to popularize such scholarship. While Jesus no doubt redeemed Mary Magdalenes soul, Higgs has nobly rehabilitated her reputation.

Publishers Weekly Starred Review

I love Lizs work! She entertains while teaching and leaves me with points to ponder long after. Her insights are fresh and exciting and will draw readers back into the Word.

F RANCINE R IVERS , author of the Lineage of Grace series and!
Redeeming Love

Liz has done it again! She captures the heart and circumstances of a woman of Magdala and brings her into the twenty-first century. Then after captivating us with Marys story and with careful and detailed research, Liz unveils the biblical and historical truths of a demonized woman misunderstood by many but gloriously set free by Jesus Christ. What hope and promise this will bring to many women who cannot comprehend how very precious they are to God.

K AY A RTHUR , author of Lord, Give Me a Heart for You

Liz takeswith humility and humorthe evangelical message and puts it in a lens that anybody can look through. A truly remarkable accomplishment.

Religion and Ethics News Weekly

This book gives genuine insight into who Mary Magdalene really was, and it does it in a very personal and revealing way. I was definitely drawn into the character of Mary, as Liz Curtis Higgs brings her to life from the pages of the Bible. She presents the unforgettable portrait of a courageous woman who will be forever remembered as the first evangelist to proclaim a risen Jesus!

R EBECCA S T . J AMES , recording artist

In a style all her own, Liz Curtis Higgs tells the story of Mary Magdalene. And what a distinctive, refreshing style it is. Her books are always placed at the top of my must read list. Unveiling Mary Magdalene is just one more reason why.

R OBIN L EE H ATCHER , author of Ribbon of Years

Everything touched by Liz Curtis Higgs turns to humor and encouragement. Higgs connects each of her Bad Girls with her readers. A refreshing look at Bible characters we dont hear much about!

Church & Synagogue Libraries

Wow! What more can I say? Liz Higgs has found her groove. This lady knows how to paint a story. The lesson of Unveiling Mary Magdalene lingers like good perfume. But most of all what Liz is offering in this masterful rendering of story/allegory and sound biblical teaching is hope and liberation. And its yours for the reading.

M ICHELLE McK INNEY H AMMOND , author of How to Be Blessed and Highly Favored

Higgs is such a fine writer. She invites us to see badness not as something out there but as something within. The key, needless to say, lies in pulling the right lesson from each bad example. And Higgs is superb at it.

Deseret News

I love Liz Curtis Higgs because she extended her love to me first. In this new book, Liz extends that same compassionate love while she challenges our preconceived notions about Mary. Some of her challenges may encourage you, but some may disturb youthis is the way with most things that help us grow. But in the end, you will be drawn back to the good medicine she offers and the irresistible, unconditional love that shines through on each and every page!

S HARON E WELL F OSTER , author of Passing by Samaria

U NVEILING M ARY M AGDALENE
PUBLISHED BY W ATER B ROOK P RESS
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All Scriptures quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked ( AMP ) are taken from The Amplified Bible. Old Testament, copyright 1965, 1987 by The Zondervan Corporation. The Amplified Bible. Copyright 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org). Scripture quotations marked ( CEV ) are from the Contemporary English Version. Copyright 1991, 1992, 1995 by American Bible Society. Used by permission. Scripture quotations marked ( ICB ) are taken from the International Childrens Bible. Copyright 1986, 1988, 1999 by Thomas Nelson Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked ( KJV ) are taken from the King James Version. Scripture quotations marked ( MSG ) are taken from The Message by Eugene H. Peterson. Copyright 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked ( NASB ) are taken from the New American Standard Bible. Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org). Scripture quotations marked ( NEB ) are taken from The New English Bible. Copyright 1961, 1970 by the Delegates of the Oxford University Press and the Syndics of the Cambridge University Press. Scripture quotations marked ( NKJV ) are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked ( NLT ) are taken from The Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked ( RSV ) are taken from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

eISBN: 978-0-307-55211-2

Copyright 2001, 2007 by Liz Curtis Higgs

Previously published under the title Mad Mary, copyright 2001 by Liz Curtis Higgs.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Published in the United States by WaterBrook Multnomah, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House Inc., New York.

W ATER B ROOK and its deer colophon are registered trademarks of Random House Inc.

The Library of Congress has cataloged the original paperback edition as follows:
Higgs, Liz Curtis.
Mad Mary: a bad girl from Magdala, transformed at His appearing / Liz Curtis Higgs1st ed.
cm.
Mary Magadalene, Saint. I. Title.
BS2485.H54.2001
226.092dc21 2001039017

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T o all who have searched for light in the darkness.
T o all who have waited for grace to be spoken.
T o all who have longed for his appearing.

Today I felt pass over me A breath of wind from the wings of madness.
C HARLES B AUDELAIRE

Jake didnt see her until it was too late.

A woman disguised as a bundle of rags bolted out of the Park View Pet Shop and directly into his path, nearly knocking him to the icy sidewalk. Instead, she was the one who landed there in an awkward heap, her face crimson, her eyes averted.