She is clearly sleeping with a man out of wedlock when the episode begins and they are sleeping together in "the Red Quarter" - a sleazy part of town. Since I criticized Season 1 of The Chosen for making Mary too perfect, it's only fair that I acknowledge how Season 2 seeks to rectify that issue. Why do you think The Chosen is trying to connect episode 1 to what will happen when Jesus is resurrected? Interestingly, The King of Kings (1927) also uses Mary Magdalene to introduce us to Jesus for the first time. So I'm glad The Chosen did something - I just hope that, instead of trying to jam so many story arcs into each season, future seasons trim the fat to make room so significant arcs like Mary's have room to be fully realized. They were fully engaged by the show on the level of entertainment but also seemed solidify their understanding of important gospel events and figures, as well as the cultural context. In The Chosen, when we first Mary Magdalene in Season 1 Episode 1, she has already been possessed by an evil spirit, Lilith, for some time. The assumption at that time was that women became prostitutes because they were inherently immoral and desirous. Over the past year, we've been exploring how The Chosen adapts biblical characters like Mary Magdalene, Nicodemus, Peter, Andrew, Matthew, Jesus, and the Romans. And the parallels don't end there. Why do you think the creators added them? Many Christians still memorize this passage to remind them of how God is always with us, even in the most difficult trials. Mary Magdalene was a female disciple who traveled with Jesus during his ministry (Luke 8:1-3). She was a witness of Jesus' crucifixion and burial (Mark 15:40-47) and also the first person to discover the empty tomb, witness the resurrected Jesus, and share the good news with the disciples (John 20:1-18). Jesus is said to have cast seven evil spirits out of her (Luke 8:1-3). In the passage, who is it that says, "I have called you by name"? Have you seen other examples of how Jesus can show up suddenly and change someone's life in a big way? I think the producer said he wanted to do eight seasons total. I think Mary went by Lilith when she came to Magdala, not scripturally speaking, but for the story line. After sharing that information, you can ask: What stuck out to you about Mary Magdalene's depiction in The Chosen? The important role that Mary Magdalene plays in The Chosen is not nearly as surprising as that of Nicodemus. In The Chosen, during Season 2, Episodes 5-6, Mary Magdalene briefly leaves Jesus and falls back into sin, before being sought out, forgiven, and restored to ministry. The first passage is regarding Mary Magdalene (Lilith): In case you didn't catch it, at the end of The Chosen episode 1 we discover that the character called Lilith for most of the episode is actually named Mary Magdalene. Without getting too detailed, I found it helpful to get my youth thinking about what adaptations are and how they work. This association with prostitution opens a variety of directions for adaptations to take in their portrayal of her, especially given the affection Jesus shows for her (John 20). Over time, the label stuck and now many adaptations depict her this way. I hope I better can temper myself. An adaptation like The Chosen isn't meant to replace the Bible; it's meant to drive us deeper into the Bible and spiritual reflection. Your contributions mean so much. The trauma of her rape is hinted at again in Season 2, Episode 5, and is the trigger that causes Mary to backslide. In The Chosen, when we first meet Mary Magdalene, most of the characters refer to her as Lili. Although there's nothing in the Gospels that suggests that these two figures should be linked together, Mary mistakenly became identified with the forgiven prostitute in the interpretative tradition of the Western Church. The Chosen seems to be hinting that Mary is a prostitute (e.g. Enough said.). The creators make changes in order to adapt the biblical stories to TV. Im not a person who cries during Jesus movies, but Ive cried several times during this series, because you can just feel the humanity of the scenes and everything is ten times more relatable. we first meet her as a client flees her place in "the Red Quarter"), but it's relatively disinterested in depicting what her life as a prostitute was actually like. Narrative Ambiguity & Charitable Reading, The Chosen: 6 Good Friday & Easter Episodes, The Rings of Power, LOTR, and Bible Adaptation, Amazon Prime's The Rings of Power & The Challenges of Biblical Adaptation, In Defense of The Chosen and Other Christian Movies, Books, & Media (Part 1), In Defense of The Chosen and Other Christian Movies, Books, & Media (Part 2), Imagining Mary Magdalene (5 More Bible Adaptations While You Wait for The Chosen Season 2), The Chosen Season 3 Episode 6: Recap, Review, & Analysis, Intensity in Tent City (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 6 with Youth or Small Group), The Chosen Season 3 Episode 5: Recap, Review, & Analysis, Clean Part 2 (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 5 with Youth or Small Group), The Chosen Season 3 Episode 4: Recap, Review, & Analysis, Clean Part 1 (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 4 with Youth or Small Group), The Chosen Season 3 Episode 3: Recap, Review, & Analysis, Physician, Heal Thyself (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 3 with Youth or Small Group), Two by Two (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 2 with Youth or Small Group), Little James in The Chosen & Scripture (Adapting Biblical Characters), Homecoming (Exploring The Chosen Season 3 Episode 1 with Youth or Small Group), John the Baptist in The Chosen (Adapting Biblical Characters), Lilith, Demons, & Evil Spirits in The Chosen (Adapting Biblical Characters), 2022 BY THE BIBLE ARTIST. After Mary's encounter with Jesus, we never really get to see her deal with her former life. Normally I wouldn't care but this is a movie about Jesus, and if the people behind it are trying to do good, but it is a great disservice for me to bad-mouth it until the full plot is revealed. Everything is very true to the Gospels, and theres no dialogue written to score theological points. Dallas Jenkins (Director) is not Catholic, but - in my mind - makes the best Christian films I have seen anywhere. To the credit of the production team, you cant discern a denominational slant from the script. There is however a very clear disclaimer at the beginning of the series saying this isnt word-for-word and its no replacement for reading your Bible, etc. The specific demon is not named in Scripture. I have Bible studies/discussion guides for each episode of The Chosen Seasons 1-3, blogs exploring how The Chosen adapts key biblical figures, and articles exploring the controversial nature of adaptation. Jesus is said to have cast seven evil spirits out of her (, As I noted above, in the Bible there is no indication that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute. When Nicodemus encounters her, we discover that the evil spirit that is possessing her is named Lilith. This is symbolically tied to her encounter with another demon, Belial, who calls Mary Lilith, asserting the continued existence and power of her old identity. Just long enough to make this point: Adaptations often add, change, and leave out details, because what works in a book isn't always the same as what works in television or film. She becomes too perfect and seems to have no ongoing struggles in her faith like Peter or Andrew. Personally, I would have been much more interested in a subplot about Mary's former pimp trying to coerce her back into her former life than I am with the overly long fish taxation plot. In The Chosen, it is not entirely clear whether Mary Magdalene was engaging in prostitution before the events of Season 1, Episode 1. I wouldn't take too long discussing these questions. Due to COVID restrictions, my youth group watched The Chosen online using Zoom. For more details, check out my post focused specifically on Lilith, Demons, and Evil Spirits. FYI: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Lilith was close to committing suicide by walking off a cliff before a dove (Holy Spirit) caught her interest and she followed it back to town, where she had an emotional moment being healed by Jesus who quoted her trusted childhood Bible verse from Isaiah and exorcised her with a hug. In The Chosen, we see a brief flashback during Season 1, Episode 1 that strongly implies that Mary was raped by a Roman soldier. [Spoilers] Did anyone else misinterpret the HotD Finale? I will definitely continue watching it then, I just wanted to make sure! PROUDLY CREATED WITH WIX.COM, Mary Magdalene, Lilith, & the Redeemer (Exploring The Chosen with Youth), Elizabeth Tabish as Lilith/Mary Magdalene in The Chosen, Over the past year, we've been exploring how The Chosen adapts biblical characters like, You may want to warn students beforehand that this episode contains some demonic activity. You can find episode one, The Bible includes Mary Magdalene in a list of women who had evil spirits healed by Jesus. These experiences cause Mary to flee back to her old life, drinking and gambling. ***Update: Learn more about the origin of "Lilith" in my recent post ***. When making the Chosen, he is advised by a Catholic Priest, Rabbi, and Evangelical Pastor. However, some biblical interpreters mistakenly labeled her as such because the story before Luke 8 is about a prostitute being forgiven. Its not perfect, but its a pretty great start. Episode 7 Guide: Did Nicodemus Follow Jesus? Jesus is said to have cast seven evil spirits out of her (, As I noted above, in the Bible there is no indication that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute. I hope you enjoy them! For more details, check out my post focused specifically on Lilith, Demons, and Evil Spirits. Episode 8 Guide: The Woman at the Well, Eden, & Zohara, Christmas with The Chosen: The Messengers, The Chosen Season 2 Controversy (Jesus, the Bible, & the Process of Inspiration), Should Nicodemus Kneel? Still, at the end of the day, the 12 disciples who get the most screen time in the Gospels are all males. This comes out powerfully in the first Episode like to show you why is mary magdalene called lilith in the chosen here. Below I'll share an outline describing how to do a Viewing Party for The Chosen Episode 1 (I Have Called You by Name). An adaptation like The Chosen isn't meant to replace the Bible; it's meant to drive us deeper into the Bible and spiritual reflection. Unfortunately, because Mary's change happens so quickly, her character goes from being pretty dynamic in episodes 1-2 to being a pretty flat in the remainder of the season. I love this series. When he encounters her again in Season 1 Episode 2, he is surprised to discover that she has been completely healed and is free of the evil spirits. The Chosen does the "misunderstood reject rather than sinner" quite a bit in Season 1, but I think it's a sensible direction for Mary's character. It is an excellent form of Lectio Divina. The implications of Mary living in the "Red Quarter" are still there. Just before Luke introduces us to Mary Magdalene, he tells a story about a prostitute that Jesus forgives (, Since I criticized Season 1 of The Chosen for making Mary too perfect, it's only fair that I acknowledge how Season 2 seeks to rectify that issue. I'm not saying we needed to see anything explicit, but the show certainly could have implied a bit more than it did. When Nicodemus encounters her, we discover that the evil spirit that is possessing her is named Lilith. The creators of The Chosen have published a series of interactive Bible Studies that help viewers explore some of the Scripture and biblical themes that inspired the show. Yes, there are plenty of women who show up in the Gospels. Later Jewish tradition described a demonic figure known as Lilith in a variety of ways. The creators of The Chosen probably chose this name because it is associated with demons in Jewish traditions. She is clearly sleeping with a man out of wedlock when the episode begins and they are sleeping together in "the Red Quarter" - a sleazy part of town. Have my posts about Bible adaptation helped you learn more about the Bible and explore it with your ministry or family? As it was, we didn't really get a good sense of why Mary responded the way she did. Under the influence of this tradition, many people see Mary as being emblematic of Jesus' compassion for lost and broken souls, and this makes her a perfect candidate for the kinds of stories that The Chosen wants to tell. Luke briefly describes how Mary Magdalene was exorcised by Jesus and became one of his traveling followers (Luke 8:1-3). He is advised by a Catholic Priest, Rabbi, and Evangelical Pastor spirits out of her ( Luke )! Chosen, he is advised by a Catholic Priest, Rabbi, and theres dialogue! Her, we discover that the evil spirit that is possessing her is Lilith... 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