The warm rose-colored sunrise over the silent Sea of Galilee captivates anyone spirited enough to venture out over the waters before dawn. Last week just before sunrise, I paddled toward the center of the lake from the Duc In Altum shoreline. At this distance, the only sound was water lightly lapping the edge of my…
Dearest Magdala Family, We are in the final stretch of preparation for the Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene celebrated on the 22nd of this month. A few years ago, Pope Francis elevated this liturgical memory to the rank of “feast.” With this, the Pope wanted to underline the importance of Mary Magdalene in the life…
In his youth, Rabbi Shimon Ben Lakish (3rd century C.E.) was a gladiator, leading a vicious life. However, after a chance encounter with Rabbi Johanan, he changed his life and would in turn become one of the wisest and sharpest rabbis that ever existed. One day, Ben Lakish had a bitter dispute with Rabbi Judah…
The Gospels say that Mary Magdalene was delivered by Jesus from seven demons, that she followed him and helped him with her resources (see Lk 8:1-2), that she was at the foot of the cross (see Jn 19:25), and that she was the first to see the risen Lord (see Jn 20:11-17). Nothing else. In…
In May, Galilee looks like a giant quilt of vibrant green and golden yellow squares with fields ready for the early summer wheat harvest. Hiking these hills in April, I picked off heads of waist-high young wheat nibbling on the kernels inside, imitating the apostles who Mathew describes picking heads of grain and eating them…
Ancient Jewish sources speak of a certain Nikai, who was a scribe at the synagogue of Magdala in the 2nd century AD. According to some, he was an exemplary Jew: every Friday morning he would travel from Magdala to Jerusalem, give a lesson on the scriptures in the Temple, and then return before the sunset…
Dearest Magdala Family, We have heard countless times the expression “the end of the tunnel is near”…. Today, in the Holy Land we are living in a contradictory situation. On the one hand, the pandemic has been defeated, thanks to very strict measures of control, distancing and vaccination of the population. I have to admit…
“HOSPITALITY OF A WOMAN´S HEART” Download the brochure Register Here Magdalena Institute’s 7th annual International Women’s Encounter promises to be an inspiring weekend for women of diverse cultural and religious backgrounds. Men are also welcome. We will combine inspiring talks and engaging workshops with times of rich small group sharing, to facilitate a deep human…
The Virtual Pilgrimage In Faith roused my soul. My contented heart returns to and ponders all we have heard and seen together these past 50 days, glorifying and praising God. (Luke 2: 19, 20) Decades ago, I formed the conviction that pilgrimages can be powerfully transformative when certain essential elements are incorporated: history and culture; architecture, art and natural…
Corinth was an important harbor in Greece. Any ship wanting to cross from the Adriatic Sea to the Aegean used to stop there. To cross the Isthmus of Corinth—that narrow strip of land that connects the Peloponnese to Greece—the ships were taken out of the water, dragged for four miles, and released in the other side…
