While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head. – Mark 14:3

Today's Scripture Reading (February 9, 2024): Mark 14

Virginia Woolf famously remarked, "For most of history, anonymous was a woman." Our world struggles for sexual equality, although admittedly, we are at various stages of the struggle depending on where in the world you look. But the reality that we sometimes forget is that this struggle is not actually new. It was not long ago when women simply did not appear in the pages of history unless there was something extraordinary about them. And if they wanted to make a difference, they often did it under male names. Karen Blixen, the author of "Out of Africa," wrote under the name of Isak Dineson. One of my favorite 19^th-century English authors, George Eliot, was actually Mary Ann Evans. George Sand, one of France's most prolific writers of the 19^th century, was really Amantine Lucille Aurore Dupin de Francueil. And the list goes on. Sometimes, these women hid behind male names, but the era's reality was that writing under a male name was often the only way to get heard. Virginia Wolff was right, "for most of history, anonymous was a woman."

Mark doesn't tell us who the woman is who broke into this space at the home of Simon the Leper, but that hasn't stopped us from trying to figure out her identity. And we have some clues. The story that Mark tells is remarkably similar to the one that John relates in his gospel (John 12), although it is not identical. One big difference is that John refuses to let the woman be anonymous. In his telling, he says that she was none other than Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and brother Lazarus, the latter being the one whom Jesus had raised from the dead.

Another similar story, but again not identical, occurs early in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 7). In Luke, the woman was anonymous once again, but Luke adds that she was sinful. These words, combined with the reaction of Simon the Pharisee (the host of the gathering as opposed to Matthew and Mark's "Simon the Leper"), lead us to conclude that the woman was a prostitute. While Luke does not tell us the woman's name, it is right after this story that we learn that Mary Magdalene, a woman tormented by demons, was healed by Jesus and had joined Jesus's entourage. It is this one-two combination that has led many to conclude that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute, connecting her with the unnamed woman of Luke 7.

In the end, maybe we can't say with certainty who this woman might be who anointed Jesus for his burial during the final days of his ministry (although Mary of Bethany seems to be the obvious solution). I wonder if Mary of Bethany and Mary Magdalene were the same person. Combining the two women explains some of Martha's frustration that Mary refused to help her with dinner, instead insisting on sitting at the feet of Jesus. (Can't you hear Martha complaining, "Mary hasn't done an ounce of honest work in her life; she just makes her living on her back with the men")? While that idea may be offensive to some, it underscores the idea that Jesus accepts us all just as we are, even if sometimes we struggle with taking people just as they are. After all, either Mary (Bethany or Magdalene) seemed to enjoy the presence of Jesus despite her sin.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Luke 22