Daughter of Jerusalem by Joan Wolf is a fictional telling of
the life of Mary Magdalene.
The story begins in Mary’s younger years, when her father
takes her from Bethany to live with her aunt Leah in Magdala. Leah lives with her in-laws and their large
family. Mary seems to have trouble
fitting in with the girls her age.
However, she becomes friends with Daniel. He is the son who is being groomed to be a
scribe. Soon their friendship grows into
a desire to marry. Unfortunately, the
head of this family has decided that Mary is to marry an old rich Jew, who has
homes in Jerusalem and Sepphoris.
Mary is heartbroken to be taken from Daniel and married to
this old man, who only wants Mary as a means to gain an heir. Mary soon loses many of her Jewish ways as
she is now living in a town that is more Roman than Jewish. When Mary’s husband encourages her to take a
lover to help her become pregnant, events seem to get out of control. Before you know it, Mary’s lover has her
husband killed!
As a wealthy widow, Mary decides it is time to go back
to her Jewish life. She returns to
Bethany and is reunited with her sister, Martha and her brother, Lazarus. After spending some time with her family,
Mary decides to build a home and settle near the Sea of Galilee. This is where her life truly begins. This is where she meets Jesus, the Son of God,
who will forgive her sins and change her life forever!
This was an interesting story to read. It led me back to the
scriptures to check on the actual details of the true story!