http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/vinci/

Click on the above and then double click on the Last Supper picture to enlarge. My question is this. Art experts have named the person on Jesus's right side as John. But some people have wondered if this was actually Mary Magdalene. According to my friend, Mary was a person who some believed to be closest to Jesus than anyone. A favorite perhaps. So what do think?

<font color=skyblue>I can see it going either way. I have no idea, but my thoughts tell me that it should be all twelve men...but that is only a guess that is not supported by anything. </font>

<font color=orange>Mary Magdalene has gotten a bum rap over the centuries. She is often protrayed as a fallen woman (read prostitute), but many biblical scholars believe today, that wasn't the case at all. I've heard it said that she was actually an older woman of some influence and that she was one of Jesus's closest confidents. However the early church, chose to protray her as a prostitute, so as to not give any excuses for women to question the church's authority.

Gnostic Teaching goes even further in proclaiming Mary Magdalene as the actual writer of the Fourth Gospel, the Gospel of John in the New Testement. And to take it a step further manu Gnostic writings refer to her as the Most Beloved of Jesus's Disciples.

Whatever the case she was a top leader in the early church before her death in about 90AD.

But to answer your original question, it sure looks like a woman setting next to Jesus in the Last Supper painting!

[ 10-03-2003, 04:33 PM: Message edited by: Sir Taliesin ]

My thoughts too Larry that these were 12 men. But then my friend just told me that some people thought it was Mary that Leonardo painted, not John. Sorry if the picture on that link is not so clear. A better one is at Art.com but I was not able to get the searched link to stick. I merely brought up this topic because it just sounded fascinating to me. I also read that Leonardo drew and painted in some kind of codes. And that he was part of a secret Christian sect dedicated in preserving certain religious documents or teachings. I'm just shrugging my shoulder and scatching my head in fascination.

<font face="Verdana" size="3" color="#00FF00"> There is also some who believe that Mary Magdalene (The Black Madonna) had a child for Jesus, and his desendants still walk the earth.

The person on Jusus right (our left) is either a female or a .... well I don't think they had those back than.</font>

[ 10-03-2003, 04:37 PM: Message edited by: pritchke ]

<font color=orange>It could be that he was a Secret Gnostic. If you want to read more here are a couple of Links.

http://members.tripod.com/~Ramon_K_J...magdalene.html
http://www.magdalene.org/contents.htm
http://gbgm-umc.org/umw/bible/noncanon.stm

<font color=orange>Yeap! They did!!! [img]smile.gif[/img] But I suspect that's not what or who it is!