(dup) Gospel of Mary Magdalene (duplicate copy)

Gospel of Mary Magdalene

[Pages 1-6 missing. Text begins in the middle of a teaching.]

The Savior answered them: All formed things, all creatures, and all shaped natures exist in relation to one another. What has come into being will return to the root from which it came. The nature of matter dissolves according to its own nature. Let the one who has ears understand.

Peter asked Him about sin. He wanted to know whether sin belonged to matter itself or to some other source.

The Savior answered: Sin is not a substance placed inside creation, as though creation itself were evil. Rather, people bring sin into being when they act from disordered desire and do what belongs to corrupted nature. Because of this, the Good came into your midst, to restore every nature to its proper root.

He taught them that desire gives birth to disturbance. Passion, when it rises from a disordered joining, throws the whole person into confusion. For this reason, He urged them to be steady, courageous, and established in the true form of life.

When He had said these things, the Blessed One greeted them in peace. He said: Peace be with you. Receive my peace within yourselves. Do not let anyone mislead you by saying, Look here, or Look there. The Son of Man is within you. Follow Him. Those who seek Him will find Him.

He then sent them to proclaim the message of the Kingdom. He warned them not to create extra laws beyond what He had given, and not to become lawgivers in a way that would bind them again. After saying this, He departed.

The disciples were troubled. They wept and grieved, saying: How can we go to the nations and proclaim the message of the Kingdom? If they did not spare Him, how will they spare us?

Then Mary rose among them. She greeted them all and spoke to them as brothers. She said: Do not weep. Do not grieve. Do not let your hearts be divided. His grace will be with you and will shelter you. Instead, let us praise His greatness, for He has prepared us and made us truly human.

When Mary said this, their hearts turned toward the Good. They began to discuss the Savior’s words.

Peter said to Mary: Sister, we know that the Savior loved you more than the rest of the women. Tell us the words of the Savior that you remember, the things you know and we do not know, the things we have not heard.

Mary answered: I will tell you what has been hidden from you.

She began to speak of a vision and said: I saw the Master in a vision, and I said to Him: Master, I see You today in a vision.

He answered: Blessed are you, because you did not waver when you saw Me. For where the mind is, there is the treasure.

Mary asked: Master, when someone sees a vision, does the person see it by the soul or by the spirit?

The Savior answered: The vision is not seen by the soul alone, nor by the spirit alone, but by the mind that stands between them. It is there that the vision is received.

[Pages 11-14 missing. The central section of Mary’s vision is lost.]

[Text resumes after the missing pages.]

Desire said to the soul: I did not see you descend, but now I see you ascending. Why do you speak falsely, since you belong to me?

The soul answered: I saw you, but you did not truly see me. You did not recognize me. I was with you like a garment, but you did not know me.

After saying this, the soul went away rejoicing greatly.

Then the soul came to another power, which is called Ignorance. That power questioned the soul and said: Where are you going? You are bound in wickedness. You are bound; do not judge.

The soul answered: Why do you judge me, though I have not judged? I was bound, but I did not bind. I was not recognized, but I have recognized that all things are being dissolved, both the things of earth and the things of heaven.

When the soul had overcome the third power, it rose upward and saw the fourth power. This fourth power had seven forms.

The first form was Darkness. The second was Desire. The third was Ignorance. The fourth was the Excitement of Death. The fifth was the Kingdom of the Flesh. The sixth was the Foolish Wisdom of the Flesh. The seventh was the Wrathful Wisdom.

These are the seven powers of wrath. They questioned the soul: Where do you come from, slayer of humanity? Where are you going, conqueror of space?

The soul answered: What bound me has been slain. What surrounded me has been overcome. My desire has ended. Ignorance has died. In a world, I was released from a world. In a type, I was released from a higher type. From the chain of forgetfulness, which exists only for a time, I have been freed.

From this hour onward, the soul said: I will enter into rest, in silence.

When Mary had said these things, she became silent, for this was as far as the Savior had spoken with her.

Andrew answered and said to the brothers: Say what you think about what she has said. I do not believe the Savior said these things. These teachings seem different from what we know.

Peter also opposed her. He asked whether the Savior had really spoken privately with a woman, apart from them. Should they all now turn and listen to her? Did He prefer her over them?

Then Mary wept and said to Peter: My brother Peter, what do you think? Do you think I invented this in my heart? Do you think I am lying about the Savior?

Levi answered Peter and said: Peter, you have always been quick-tempered. Now I see you arguing against the woman as though you were her adversary. If the Savior made her worthy, who are you to reject her? Surely the Savior knew her well. That is why He loved her more than us.

Levi continued: Let us be ashamed. Let us put on the perfect human. Let us separate as He commanded us and proclaim the good message, not laying down any other rule or law beyond what the Savior said.

When they heard this, they began to go forth to proclaim and announce the message.