It's odd? I found that my youth struggled to sort out the different characters, so you might want to do a quick slide show of the key characters using the character images I've included throughout this post. One challenge that film adaptations of Jesus' life need to overcome is the lack of significant female characters. Jesus heals her evil spirit(s) at the end of Episode 1. Luke notes that Mary had seven spirits exorcised from her, but the other women experienced miraculous healing as well. The creators of The Chosen have published a series of interactive Bible Studies that help viewers explore some of the Scripture and biblical themes that inspired the show. The Gospels never refer to Mary as Lilith. To clarify why the creators would want to add new characters and stories and leave some stories out, you could ask the following questions: What are some other popular adaptations of books into film or television? I hope you enjoy them! Mary Magdalene was a disciple of Jesus. The difference between its depiction of her life as a prostitute, with super-sexualized clothing and a zebra chariot, and The Chosen's depiction of her life is emblematic of changing views of prostitutes between the 1920's and today. This is Tom My 3 month old son is battling an extremely rare and [Free Friday] after an early miscarriage 3 weeks ago, I Our new campus chapel is so close to being ready! When he encounters her again in Season 1 Episode 2, he is surprised to discover that she has been completely healed and is free of the evil spirits. Since I criticized Season 1 of The Chosen for making Mary too perfect, it's only fair that I acknowledge how Season 2 seeks to rectify that issue. This version of Mary - not the one who needs moral reformation but the one who needs sympathy and belonging - fits perfectly with the kinds of stories that The Chosen has focused on. But she was not possessed by one as the movie mentioned but by many. And the parallels don't end there. We need to remember the perspective is of east and west are different East is how it performs, what it does its function West they would describe what it is or made of. The creators make changes in order to adapt the biblical stories to TV. Just like one day Mary Magdalene will be caught up in despair because she can't find Jesus' body, she's caught up in despair at her own situation. Normally I wouldn't care but this is a movie about Jesus, and if the people behind it are trying to do good, but it is a great disservice for me to bad-mouth it until the full plot is revealed. You can find episode one free on YouTube here, although there are lots of ads. And just like one day Mary will initially fail to recognize the risen Jesus, confusing him for a gardener, she initially fails to recognize Jesus when he first comes to her, confusing him for one of the men who's been hassling her. An adaptation like The Chosen isn't meant to replace the Bible; it's meant to drive us deeper into the Bible and spiritual reflection. Anyway, I love the series. Its not perfect, but its a pretty great start. Moreover, her biblical significance has been amplified even more by the attention that she's received from the interpretative and artistic traditions of the West. These experiences cause Mary to flee back to her old life, drinking and gambling. This shift in our societal understanding of the sex trade has changed the significance of Mary's supposed role as a prostitute. In The Chosen, Nicodemus meets Mary Magdalene in Season 1, Episode 1. Can you think of moments when you may need to be reminded that God is with you? For more details, check out my post focused specifically on Lilith, Demons, and Evil Spirits. In the modern vernacular, a "red light district" is a term that refers to an area of the city known for prostitution, strip clubs, and other immoral establishments. The creators of The Chosen have published interactive Bible Studies that are meant to explore some of the Scripture and biblical themes that inspired Season 1 and help viewers apply them to everyday life. The Hebrew word "lilit" only shows up in Isaiah 34:14, where most modern translations render it as something along the lines of "night bird." In Episode 6, Jesus sends Peter and Matthew to find Mary and bring her back. Your contributions mean so much. However, a post by the official Twitter account for The Chosen claims that Mary is not being portrayed as a prostitute. The specific demon is not named in Scripture. The ancient name Lilith derives from a Sumerian word for female demons or wind spirits. Because The Chosen seeks to be kid-friendly, it most likely uses the term "Red Quarter" in order to hint to older viewers that Mary is a prostitute without explicitly mentioning prostitution or sex. When Nicodemus encounters her, we discover that the evil spirit that is possessing her is named Lilith. . He attempts to heal her and exorcise the evil spirit in her, but he is unsuccessful and concludes that she is beyond hope. Im not sure many people caught this, but when Jesus follows Mary outside, he calls to her saying, Mary of Magdala! Mary then turns around, dropping her jar and says to him, How do you know my name? I think one could make sense of the Mary/Lilith name in that scene alone. Episode 8 Guide: The Woman at the Well, Eden, & Zohara, Christmas with The Chosen: The Messengers, The Chosen Season 2 Controversy (Jesus, the Bible, & the Process of Inspiration), Should Nicodemus Kneel? The creators of The Chosen probably chose this name because it is associated with demons in Jewish traditions. Starting around episode three I think is when it finds its groove. Below I'll share an outline describing how to do a Viewing Party for The Chosen Episode 1 (I Have Called You by Name). As COVID drags on and winter sets in, if you're looking for a good activity to do online with your youth group, you might want to consider doing a series of The Chosen Viewing Parties like this. There is however a very clear disclaimer at the beginning of the series saying this isnt word-for-word and its no replacement for reading your Bible, etc. Over time, the label stuck and now many adaptations depict her this way. Initially Mary doesn't recognize Jesus. Jesus is said to have cast seven evil spirits out of her (, As I noted above, in the Bible there is no indication that Mary Magdalene was a prostitute. In The Chosen, when we first Mary Magdalene in Season 1 Episode 1, she has already been possessed by an evil spirit, Lilith, for some time. There you go! As it was, we didn't really get a good sense of why Mary responded the way she did. Just long enough to make this point: Adaptations often add, change, and leave out details, because what works in a book isn't always the same as what works in television or film. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. You can also purchase the DVDs of season 1 on Amazon if you're worried about trying to stream & do Zoom at the same time. There was just a hint of judgment in, Mary Magdalene was a female disciple who traveled with Jesus during his ministry (, All four Gospels suggest Mary was the first witness of the resurrected Jesus (, The Bible includes Mary Magdalene in a list of women who had evil spirits healed by Jesus. Later Jewish tradition described a demonic figure known as Lilith in a variety of ways. Thus, when Jesus first encounters Mary, what he offers her isn't forgiveness for her life of prostitution; it's relief from the oppressive demons that drove her to the type of life that she's lived. Dallas mentioned how some viewers didn't like that Mary fell back into old ways, which seems ridiculous, but just goes to show how out of touch some people are with both real life and how stories work. Mary Magdalene is never called Lili or Lilith in the Bible. I think Mary went by Lilith when she came to Magdala, not scripturally speaking, but for the story line. (the Lord), Who is it that says these words in the show? An adaptation like The Chosen isn't meant to replace the Bible; it's meant to drive us deeper into the Bible and spiritual reflection. One day (hopefully) we viewers will get our first glimpse of the resurrected Jesus as we follow Mary to the empty tomb. I love this series. Why do you think The Chosen depicted Mary as a prostitute? In my opinion it works. EDIT: I still have my concerns, but I believe my rash judgment is sinful, so I'll keep it to myself. **Update: I explore the origin of the name "Lilith" in my recent post **. The Hebrew word "lilit" only shows up in Isaiah 34:14, where most modern translations render it as something along the lines of "night bird." I thought Mary's storyline in Season 2 of The Chosen had a lot of potential but it was unfortunately not given enough room to breathe. Nicodemus was brought in to perform an exorcism on her but failed, making him question the fullness of the Law. Jesus clearly expected his disciples to sin frequently and made it clear that he was committed to pursuing them and offering forgiveness (Matthew 18:10-35). LOTR, Harry Potter), In [adaptation], can you think of some characters or stories that were added by the film? Also the guy who plays Jesus is Catholic, which is kind of cool. According to the Gospel accounts, Jesus cleansed her of seven demons, and she financially aided him in Galilee. You may want to warn students beforehand that this episode contains some demonic activity. Jesus is said to have cast seven evil spirits out of her (Luke 8:1-3). Everything is very true to the Gospels, and theres no dialogue written to score theological points. In The Chosen, when we first meet Mary Magdalene, most of the characters refer to her as Lili. These parallels are more than a neat bit of foreshadowing. Lilith was close to committing suicide by walking off a cliff before a dove (Holy Spirit) caught her interest and she followed it back to town, where she had an emotional moment being healed by Jesus who quoted her trusted childhood Bible verse from Isaiah and exorcised her with a hug. Be that as it may, the Gospel of Luke tells us that there were women who went Jesus and names Mary Magdalene among them (Luke 8:1-3). (ex. It hints at where the show is going: This passage takes place after Jesus' death and resurrection at the end of the Gospels. Thank you! The Chosen introduces a lot of characters and expects us to just keep up. Mary Magdalene is never called Lili or Lilith in the Bible. 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