A drawing of Mary Magdalene rendered by Leonardo DaVinci
After the slow going of the Old Testament, everything seems to be moving so fast. It's like we were slowly walking through the Bible and now we're hurtling headlong to it's inevitable conclusion. Jesus' righteousness is just unfathomable and threatening and outright offensive to the religious people of His day. Are they really trying? In this reading, a Pharisee invites Him to his house. And Jesus openly tells him that the woman of questionable character that the Pharisee is uncomfortable with has done the right thing while the Pharisee has failed to.
The role of women in Jesus' ministry is touched on in this reading, too. We have Jesus defending the sinful woman at the Pharisee's house and we also have a note on the women who are supporting Jesus financially. This seems like this would have been controversial in His day. Herod's got to love the fact his own household is involved.
After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joanna the wife of Cuza, the manager of Herod's household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.
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