Special showing of THE WITNESS by Jo Blake 

including her short film about The Gospel, and live Q&A with Jo

10:30am - 1pm California     6:30pm - 9pm UK   check your local time here

His story became History. Her story became Heresy.The sacred and profane collide in a new performance by interdisciplinary artist Jo Blake, inspired by the Gospel of Mary Magdalene. Three copies of the gospel have been found – all of them with missing pages. As the only gospel written in the name of a woman, it reveals Mary Magdalene as a most formidable and courageous spiritual leader, confidante and companion of Christ, a visionary and witness, and radically gender-non-conforming woman of her time.

Moving through humour, bold physicality and intricate storytelling; The Witness reveals how one woman’s 2000 year old testimony comes clattering into the life of a contemporary woman, initiating a reckoning and demanding that the missing pages be written anew.

After the 70-minute performance, there will be a short interval followed by a screening of Jo's 8 minute film about the Gospel, and then the opportunity to ask Jo questions about the making of these pieces, her engagement with the Gospel and person of Mary Magdalene, and developments for touring the performance again next year.

ALSO JOIN US TODAY FOR .......

YOGA NIDRA 8am - 8:30am California / 4pm - 4:30pm UK

"Find contentment at the level of the heart!" A practice for deep relaxation, based on lines from the Gospel of Mary. Find a comfortable place to settle down, preferably horizontal, for half an hour. You might want a blanket for comfort and warmth, a cushion for your head and perhaps a bolster under your knees. Yoga nidra is the yoga of rest. This is an opportunity to settle into stillness, and to explore something of the Gospel as felt experience in the body.

GOSPEL OF MARY FRIENDLY STUDY GROUP 2pm - 3pm California / 10pm - 11pm UK

We use the Quaker Friendly Study method to reflect on a passage of the gospel, using several different translation. We all contemplate the text using five set questions, journal our responses, and then share these insights in small break out groups. This is not an academic or intellectual exercise, but an opportunity to share how the words relate to our own lived experience and understanding. Our different viewpoints combine to give us a wider perspective and fresh understandings. There is no such thing as a wrong answer, and our difficulties or confusion with the text are as welcome as our clarity. All welcome.

MARY MAGDALENE MEDITATION 6:30pm - 7:30pm California / 11:30am - 12:30pm Sydney Australia (next day)

Join Ella Rozett for a guided meditation on Mary Magdalene and Jesus as they appear in the Bible and the Gospel of Mary. Ella leads regular interfaith meditation groups online and in California jails, and her comprehensive website on Mother Mary from an interfaith perspective carries detailed information about her special interest in Black Madonnas. Link to website