The Woman who Washes Jesus' Feet.

Yesterday the Roman Church celebrated Mary Magdalene.  Often Mary is confused with the woman who washes Jesus' feet with her tears and dries them with her hair.  The Gospel of Luke does not make that identification.  Here is my poem on the subject:

Luke 7: 36-50

καὶ στᾶσα ὀπίσω παρὰ τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ κλαίουσα,

ἤρξατο βρέχειν τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ τοῖς δάκρυσι

καὶ ταῖς θριξὶ τῆς κεφαλῆς αὐτῆς ἐξέμασσε,

 καὶ κατεφίλει τοὺς πόδας αὐτοῦ καὶ ἤλειφε τῷ μύρῳ. (38)

What a devotion!

What an act of penance!

Self motivated?

To wash the Lord’s feet

with her tears,

and dry them

with her hair!

Who was this woman?

is never said, ‘tho

some say Mary Magdalene.

No matter still,

the greater question is:

Who was the greater sinner;

the whore who was she,

or the hypocrite

who was the Pharisee?

She laid herself bare

in a simple, yet obvious

act of contrition,

a public confession

of her sorrow

for herself, and shed

those tears, through love,

upon the feet

of He who would be

her source of forgiveness.

Which is the greater sin,

to admit our failures;

or to publically assert

our self-righteousness,

and condemn

those who are open

to the truth about themselves?