The Testament of Mary

   

Those who, with a patriarchal perspective,  refer to the biblical Mary of Nazareth as the "Co-Redemptrix" and view her in terms of Renaissance iconography will probably find Colm Toibin's portrayal of  Jesus' mother as something approaching blasphemy.

Those who view Mary as a young Jewish girl who gave birth to a boy child who would eventually propose a new world-view will find The Testament of Mary to be a thought-provoking and disturbing portrayal of a confused old woman reflecting back on her son, his strange behavior, his death, and her feelings of guilt. 

The Gospels  refer to Mary by name on only 17 occasions and 12 of those are in the Gospel of Luke. In addition, the Gospels of Mark and John together refer to "Jesus' mother" three times, but not by name. In addition there are various references to Mary Magdalene, and Mary, sister of Lazarus. In the light of so few New Testament references, many are perplexed by the the central role the  patriarchal Roman Catholic Church has given Mariology. Unfortunately for this long-held position of the Church fathers, their portrayal of Mary as the subservient, submissive woman does not resonate with this generation of women who have proven themselves to be equal partners with their male friends and spouses. 

In this fictional account, Mary in her old age is living in Ephesus in a home provided by her son's disciples. Often Mary considers  this arrangement to be incarceration. "They" are watching and do not want her talking to others. In addition, these disciples are trying to convince her to support various theories they are proposing, e.g. her son being the "Son of God.."; the story of the "virgin birth".  She cannot agree, much to their consternation.

Doctrinal issues aside, the story is that of a mother who loses her first-born son at an early age to a humiliating, torturous execution. . She is confused and worried as he begins a public life with a rag-tag group of  followers whom she considers to be dangerous, unbalanced radicals. He ignores her pleas to distance himself from his followers and go into hiding to escape the notice of the authorities and the  almost certain consequences.

The Gospels tell us that upon Jesus' arrest the disciples disappeared into the woodwork, and Peter denied any association with Jesus. Mary, however. observes her son's ordeal by hiding within the mob that was following his journey to crucifixion, but she too flees near the end to keep from being discovered. And this, the abandonment of her son in his final hour, haunts her existence, especially in old age.

Although The Testament of Mary is a work of fiction, like all good fiction, it provokes the reader to reread the Gospels and speculate on all those details the Evangelists were not able to provide. If this book succeeds in making us more careful, and critical, readers of the Gospels, it serves everyone's best interests. 

Notes:
1) Colm Toibin is an Irish writer and this book was among those considered for the prestigious Man Booker Prize. 
2) In keeping with the fictional nature of this work, I purposely did not use capital letters for pronouns referring to Jesus.