Thoughts on Mary Magdalene and the Creative Act

The Mary Magdalene Celebration is inspired by the Christian biblical character of Mary Magdalene, a disciple of Jesus Christ and a woman about whom many stories have been told. This mythological richness encloses truths that build and empower women and men whose souls perceive a calling to evolve and grow through the creative act.

The creative action takes the form of a promesa, an act of gratitude for prayers heard. In Puerto Rican tradition, a promesa includes songs dedicated to the saint whose intervention is being recognized and to whom gratitude is being expressed. The promesa invites the entire community to join in song and prayer to celebrate a miracle.

As humanity grows towards an inner expansion that recognizes the connection of all humans and all of nature, owe seek to find ways to feel and consciously nurture that connection. Artists know that all creative expressions are paths to that place of oneness. When we engage in the creative act, we affirm an inner sense of peace and joy, and enter a deep loving embrace to which we surrender our soul. This moment of coherence deeply affects our entire being, and we find balance.

This creative act extends to our community, the kindred souls that find and hold the thread we are also holding. And as we share, we give and receive.

In this particular creative act, the promesa, in this offer of gratitude for the miracle of art and life, Mary Magdalene becomes a symbol of oneness. As her story informs us of the path of the human soul, we find inspiration in this shared story to imagine what is possible.

We use all our senses to express our humanity through a communal and creative action. We sing, we dance, we are enveloped in color and scent, we taste together. We move to the vibration of the drum. And when our souls are replete, the memory of a moment of fullness accompanies us the rest of the journey.

Through art, we blossom.

Mary Magdalene: Woman, mother, virgin, widow, prostitute, sage, goddess, follower, leader, saint, scholar, voice, presence, secret… at every stage of life, a symbol to imagine, and a dance with inspiration.