Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Catholic
Women in Religion
St Mary of Egypt, The Great Fast, And Social Sin

St Mary of Egypt, The Great Fast, And Social Sin

Last updated on: March 26, 2023 at 2:49 am by Henry Karlson

0 Comments

St Mary of Egypt, The Great Fast, And Social Sin 2023-03-26T02:49:56-05:00 Henry Karlson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Ted: St. Mary Of Egypt Is Remembered During The Great Fast / flickr

The Great Fast reminds us of ways we can and should get to know ourselves better. That means, of course, it is about metanoia, about repentance, even as it is also about forgiveness. We need to accept forgiveness for ourselves. While recognizing our own faults, we should not be too harsh or critical of ourselves, for such harshness leads to despair. We must come to terms with who we are. We must recognize the good as well as the bad, seeing the good as why we should accept forgiveness and all the graces which come with it. But we must also come to terms with the ways which we have failed ourselves. We should discern the reasons why we have had such failures. Recognizing the good will help us accept forgiveness despite all those failures, for we will see that they do not take away from who we are. We can truly become free, free from all the failures, and all the ways those failures have come upon us, either by ourselves, or by the hands of others. We are not in this alone. Much of what we do, good and bad, comes in part from our relationships with others. When people treat us badly, and only expect us to act poorly in return, we end up giving them what they expect – we let them, in this way, gain some control over us, and so through their bad influence, we often find drifting away from who we really are.

We see this presented in the story of St. Mary of Egypt, and in the way she is remembered on the fourth Sunday of the Great Fast in the Byzantine tradition.The legends we have of her often highlight the way she turned her away from a life of prostitution to that of a holy ascetic, eventually becoming a solitary living out in the desert all by herself. She is said to have lived many years all by herself until, near the end of her life, she had a brief encounter with a priest, an encounter which allowed her to tell her story to him, whereupon she asked him to bring her communion, which he did soon before she died. There are many ways to read and interpret these legends, some, which are popular, are rather offsetting, as they suggest Mary was totally at fault for her life of prostitution, making her story not one which highlights her nobility and greatness, but one which diminishes her; they are misogynistic readings which, like so many misogynistic reading of “sinner”-saints, uses her as a scapegoat for the sins of others. If we examined her life more carefully, we should note society, and not Mary, was at fault for what happened, as it did nothing to help or protect her when she needed it. She had nothing. She couldn’t survive on her own. Society failed her. She did what she needed to live. Men used her and abused her. It was society, it was men, who were at fault. If she had been treated justly, if men didn’t just look at her as a thing to be used but instead someone to help flourish in life, she could have kept her innocence and found her way much sooner. But she was always innocent. She was always one whom Jesus loved. This is why Jesus, through the help of the Theotokos, directed her to turn her back on society, away from the prying eyes and abusive hands of men in order to find her dignity, and with it, much joy and gladness. It was men who made her into something she was not to be, and it was getting away from them, she was then set free and truly found herself. This is something we find hinted at in the normative version of the story which was made concerning her life, though the earlier rendition of her life made by Cyril of Scythopolis in his The Lives of the Monks of Palestine, implies something similar; in it we are told a somewhat different reason for why she went out to live alone in the desert, even as we are given a different telling as to how her existence in the desert was discovered:

My name is Mary. I became cantor of the holy church of the Resurrection of Christ, and the devil made many scandalized with me. Fearing lest, in addition to being responsible for such scandals, I should add sin to sin, I entreated God to rescue me from being the cause of such scandals. [1]

Once again, we can discern a misogynistic reading of her life, suggesting that she was to blame for what others thought. It is possible this led people to wishing she had been a prostitute, and slowly making her backstory so that she became what they desired her to be. It is also possible the stories can represent elements of a story which none fully tell; she might have been a prostitute who, after her conversion, become a cantor, but people looked upon her based upon what she had done to survive. If we can say that someone who steals in order to survive finds their need renders their culpability to being slim to none, we can suggest similar mitigating circumstances affect the culpability of those who find themselves forced into a life of prostitution. The key, once again, is to understand how society helps create the situation by not helping those in need. And, of course, men in society have all kinds of reasons to want to keep it that way. Thus, whether she was a prostitute, or she was just someone men fantasized over, it is important for us to place the majority of the blame on the men. She shouldn’t be blamed for what others thought of her. She had become a cantor, and it would seem, men found themselves attracted to her. They took advantage of the situation, and so she found herself manipulated and abused by them, all the while they tried to tell her it was her fault, a common excuse given by men to those whom they abuse. Sin was added to sin, as the “devil,” the evil in men’s hearts, led them to engage thoughts and activities which would bring scandal to the church. The only solution she could find was to get away from it all, to live alone, outside of society, outside of the evil which lies in the hearts of men; she was not the cause of the scandal, but she was made to feel such by men, and so by getting away from them, she was able to free herself from their abuse. Once free, she was able to get to know herself and her great dignity, the dignity which men wouldn’t let her find so long as they had power over her. Because of what they had done to her, she had to make a break from society and live a solitary life in the desert. There, without all of the abuse, without all the manipulation, without all the scapegoating which made her feel as if she were to blame for all that was done to her, she found the grace and way of life she needed for her own good, a life far from all the men who would abuse her if they could.

What we should learn from this is that when society turns people into outcasts, forcing them to live and act in ways which no one likes, society should be seen as the one to blame, to be the one culpable for what those people do. Sadly, its victims tend to be turned into scapegoats, and as a result, the ones society have abuse get more and more abused aimed at them. Such people need to find a way to get beyond society, from the pressures society put on them, and especially, from the systematic structures of sin which reinforces the evil done by society, so that they can move beyond the abuse and the scapegoating which constricts and wounds them. Once they do so, they can truly come to know themselves, seeing the good within which society did not want them to see. That is, they will come to know the good within themselves, the good which God sees and loves. Seeing it, they will accept God’s grace and help. They will acknowledge they might have done some wrong, thanks to the pressures put on them, but they will be able to see why such wrongdoing does not define them. Thus, they will find themselves capable of transcending their past as they truly come to realize their own potential and greatness.

St. Mary was a beautiful young woman that was used by all kinds of men who had no care or concern for her; indeed, once they had their way, they treated her with contempt, making her feel everything was her fault, when she was the one who had the least bit of agency in the situation. She found her agency once she was able to get away from all the evil influences coming upon her from society, that is, from the men who wanted to use and abuse her. She was set free, and the pure, lovely young woman was able to come to her self, to know what men and society did not want her to know.

We, too, must realize that we have to get beyond the influence of society, at least in regard the systematic structures of sin which society embraces, to push beyond them, so that we can engage the path which leads us to knowing ourselves. Thus, the Great Fast reminds us not only of the things which we have done with our own free agency, things which we should truly repent for doing, but also of the things which we have done while not being so free, allowing us to understand that when there is no such freedom, we have little to no culpability for what we do. We are not always the free agents we are led to believe, and so we are not always as culpable for all we do. Systematic structures of sin infect society, and those who embrace those structures and use them for power and glory, are truly those who are most culpable, even if they will try to find a way to dismiss their own culpability by placing the blame on those they have manipulated and abused. We, therefore, must work to overcome those systematic structures of evil. Sometimes, that might mean we need to get away from it all in order to come to know ourselves and see the good which they tried to circumvent. But often, it means, we must stay where we are and fight those structures, seeking to eliminate them from society, transforming it from within. Then, we shall find we are helping not only ourselves, but society as a whole. And in the end, as the story of St. Mary shows us, it is those who have been pushed down, those who are humble, even if they have become compliant to their abusers, who are the ones who will be lifted up and shown for how glorious they really are. For, as we have been told, the first shall be last, and many of those whom the world thought nothing of will be the greatest in the kingdom of God.

[1] Cyril of Scythopolis, The Lives of the Monks of Palestine. Trans. R.M. Price (Collegeville, MN: Cistercian Publications, 1991), 257 [Life of Cyriacus; Mary of Egypt?.

Stay in touch! Like A Little Bit of Nothing on Facebook.
If you liked what you read, please consider sharing it with your friends and family!

N.B.: While I read comments to moderate them, I rarely respond to them. If I don’t respond to your comment directly, don’t assume I am unthankful for it. I appreciate it. But I want readers to feel free to ask questions, and hopefully, dialogue with each other. I have shared what I wanted to say, though some responses will get a brief reply by me, or, if I find it interesting and something I can engage fully, as the foundation for another post. I have had many posts inspired or improved upon thanks to my readers.

General Christian

Women in Religion

Previous Post

March 24, 2023

We Must Embrace Mercy To Have Mercy

Next Post

March 28, 2023 St. Therese Of Lisieux Shows Us It Is Ok To Have Questions

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"Gosh, did that hit the spot. I have been having great anxiety lately. And I ..."

Mark Wilson

Rejecting Doom: Christian Hope And Human ..."

"Justice and peace are two sides of the same coin. Where there is justice, there ..."

Dr.Cajetan Coelho

Justice First, Charity Beyond It: Serving ..."

"Thank you for your very, very powerful and very, very insightful analysis of the relationship ..."

alwayspuzzled

Justice First, Charity Beyond It: Serving ..."

"Given the amount of lethal malevolence that has prevailed in human history for the past ..."

alwayspuzzled

We Must Value Our Health

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Abortion Abraham abuse Aesthetics AI Aliens Ambrose Ancestors and Everything Andrew Angels Animals Anne Anthony Antisemitism apologetics Apophatic Apostle John Aquinas Artificial Intelligence Asanga Ascension Asceticism Assumption Atheism Attachment Augustine Authority Avarice Balthasar Baptism Beauty Biden birthright citizenship Bishops Black History Books Buddhism Bulgakov Byzantine Calendar C.S. Lewis Calcidius Catholic Catholicism Catholicism Celibacy Charity Chastity children Chrismation Christ Christmas Christology Church Climate Change Common Good Communion Confession Confirmation Conscience Constantine conventions conversion councils Covid Creation Cross Dead Death Death Penalty Debate Deception Demagogues Demons Desert Monks Desert Mothers Desire destruction development Dialogue Dignity Dionsyius Dionysius Discipline Diversity Division Doctor Who doctrine dogma Dormition Dualism Easter Easter Series Ecumenical Councils Ecumenism Education Election Empathy Environment Error Eschatology eschaton Eternity Ethics Eucharist Evangelism Eve Evil evolution Faeries Faith Fear femininity Ficino Florence Florensky Folktale Fools Forgiveness Freedom Future gender Gentile Gentiles Glory Gnostic God gods Good Samaritan Goodness Gospel Government Grace Great Fast Guns Hate healing Health Heaven Hell Hellenism Heresy Hierarchy Hildegard Hinduism History Holiness Holy Spirit Holy Week Hope Horror Human rights humanity Humility hypocrisy ICE icon icons Identification Identity Idol II Nicea Immigration incarnation Individualism Informal Reflections Inklings Intention Inter-Religious Interfaith Internet Interpretation Intrinsic evil Irenaeus Islam Israel Jacob Jerome Jesus Jews John Chrysostom John of Damascus John the Baptist Joseph Judaism justice Justification kenosis Kindnesss Kingdom of God Kingdom of Heaven Law Law of Moses Lazarus Leaf by Niggle Lent Lenten Reflection Liberation Theology Lies Life Listen Literature Liturgy locutions Logic Logos Love Marriage Martyrs Mary Mass Maximos The Confessor Meanness Meditation Mercy Middle Path Migrants Mind Miracles Miriam Morals Moses Movies Music Muslims Myths Names Nationalism Native Americans New Year Nicea Nicholas Nothing Novatian Obedience Occam's Razor Ordination Origen Original Sin Orthodox orthopraxis Pagans Palamas Palm Sunday Paradise Paschaltide Paul Peace Pentecost person Peter piety PKD Plato pluralism Plurality Poem Poetry Poiltics Politics Poor Pope Pope Francis Pope Leo XIV Post Office Prayer Pride Pro-life Prodigal Son propaganda Prophecy Prophets Providence Putin Racism Reading Reason Reflection Refugees Relationships Religion Religion Series Religious Liberty Repent Republicans Rest Resurrection Rich Rites Russia Sacraments Saints Salvation Salvian Santa Science Scripture Self-Giving Sexuality Sibyl Sick Silence Sin Singlehood Social Justice Society Sodom Solovyov Speculations Spiritual Reflection St. Cyril of Alexandria St. Justin Martyr Suffering Sunday of the Paralytic Man Sunday of the Samaritan Woman Superhero Supreme Court Teaching Technology Thanksgiving The Father the Universe Theological Reflection Theology Theosis Theotokos Thomas Timaeus Time Tolerenace Tolkien Tradition Transfiguration Trinity Trump Truth Uncategorized Unity Universities USCCB Value Vatican II Vegetarian Vices Violence Virtue Vocations War Water Welcome Wisdom Womanhood Women Work World View Worship Writing Zacchaeus

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz