“Behold, Satan has asked to sift each of you like wheat!”
— Jesus, Luke 22:31
I don’t know about anyone else, but this moment has felt like a season of sifting. Whether it’s the cries of the earth, the anguish of the poor, the anxiety of polarizing political breakdown, heartache between circles of beloveds, or division within myself, I resonate with the sobering proclamation found in the ancient letter to Jesus’ Hebrew apprentices: “[Everything that can will] be shaken…so that which cannot be shaken may remain.” (From Hebrews 12:27)
But I’m convinced these challenging times are also liminal — they offer the proximity of Divine fortification as well as peril.
“Satan has asked to sift all of you like wheat,” Jesus tells his apprentice Simon Peter. “But I have prayed for you that your own faith may not fail, and you, when once you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
This Letter to the Hebrews continues: “Since we are receiving a Kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be filled with gratitude, so offering God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe; for indeed our God is a consuming fire.”
(And the 1990s youth group kids cue Third Day. IYKYK.)
How do we receive this Kingdom?
How do we kindle this Divine fire — as Love and not destruction?
I’m pleased to announce that I’m joining my beloved Jessica Rosemarie in co-leading an unforgettable foray into just such existential questions: The Magdalene Pilgrimage in Southern France, this September 9-15.
Mary Magdalene, the often-misunderstood companion of Jesus, has aroused much longing, suspicion, and passionate debate. As Usha Hull puts it::
She is the woman of many faces and fascination with her continues more than two thousand years after her birth. Variously labelled saint and sinner, prostitute and preacher, temptress and teacher, disciple and demon-possessed, the woman the world knows as Mary Magdalene continues to be an enigma. Who was she?
…and who are we?
This September in Southern France, we gather as seekers of wisdom, divine image-bearers, and beloved community.
Together we will walk the path adorned with the roses of Mary Magdalene, a journey into the depths of our own being.
This is a sacred pilgrimage of initiation, centered on Mary’s archetypal wisdom and depth.
She embodies many facets of what it means to walk in presence and power:
- Priestess who conducts sacred rites of anointing, exorcism, and healing
- Beloved in devoted love
- Manifestation of the Divine Feminine
- Christ’s counterpart
- Wisdom Keeper of ancient truths
- The Holy Embrace of sacred sensuality
- Teacher of profound mysteries of soul and spirit
- …and Saint honored through the ages.
On this pilgrimage together we’ll not merely venerate Mary Magdalene’s story, but receive her initiations directly into our bodies. As we open to the living transmission of her essence (and the Christ she adored), we breathe more deeply into our own sacred wholeness.
In the legendary sites of Southern France where countless pilgrims have journeyed before us, we will honor her mysteries and initiate ourselves into the depths of what’s arising within.
Our ceremonial space begins the moment we arrive, and we will maintain a container of deep, intentional presence throughout our journey. Every step, every moment, is a sacred part of the whole. We will traverse her caves, engage in ceremonies at her altars, and walk the landscapes that once cradled her.
At each sacred waypoint, we open more profoundly to her teachings. With welcoming of Holy Spirit, bearing the rose and our unique, embodied experiences, we soften into the soul-centric love that was her true anointing.
Our pilgrimage begins with an opening ceremony at the sea, where Magdalene is said to have arrived in France, and continues to unfold through these sacred sites:
- Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer.
- Marseilles Cathedrals, the Black Madonna.
- Sainte-Baume forest,
- Mary Magdalene’s grotto, and MM chapel.
- The Vulva Cave (Egg Grotto).
- Magdalene’s skull relics at Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume Basilica.
We’ll hold each other in ceremonies, circles, and Breathwork Soul Journeys. We’ll enjoy contemplative practices, altar-blessings at sacred sites, and somatic explorations.
I’m especially thrilled to share co-crafted, hands-on ritual journeys through the Seven Healings of Mary, so that they become our own.
Wielding the potential of some of our most rooted mythic and historical understandings, we’ll move through seven powerful ritual-portals mirroring the seven demons cast out of Mary Magdalene by her Beloved Jesus.
We will also share Wisdom Teachings from the Christed Heart, exploring the bond between Magdalene and Jesus, deepening our embodied understanding of their practices, the path of self-emptying love, and sacred union within.
Who is this pilgrimage for? This journey welcomes everyone, regardless of spiritual path, religious background, or lack thereof. Our time together is not about inflexible dogma but instead embodying the multifaceted story of Mary Magdalene through direct, somatic, ceremonial experience.
Whether you resonate with her as Priest/ess, Beloved, Anointed One, Ritual Keeper, Sage, or Sacred Other, you are invited to embrace her mysteries.
Say “Yes” to this path of profound embodiment and self-discovery.
This journey is for those of any gender expression who feel called to fuller integration, pleasure, joy, play, healing, and power in their lives.
It’s for those seeking these activations in the company of like-hearted friends.
This is a season of shifting and shaking. If you long to find refinement and your own unshakable center together, let’s cross these sacred thresholds and receive the anointing of our beloved Magdalene.
The way is ancient, and the initiation is ever-new: yours alone to embody.
When the world is on fire, it’s time to burn with refining intention.
We will meet you in the holy depths and light the flame of remembering within.
Intrigued? You can do this. International travel is of course expensive, but Jessica and I want to make this accessible. We’ve kept the prices as low as possible.
Discover all the details and register here.
Have questions? Feel free to leave a comment below or email me at mike [at] mikemorrell [dot] org. I’m happy to talk to you via email or Zoom to see if this pilgrimage is a resonant fit with you.
Related posts:
Bringing forth what is within you: A nine-day prayer invitation with Michael the Archangel
Changing the World with Faith, Hope & Love: Ecology, Identity, Class & Solidarity in the Way of Jesus with Joerg Rieger!
Opening to Spiritual Adventure with Fred Herron
The Hive: Where Indigenous Wisdom Meets the Way of Jesus | Hillary Raining and Mike Morrell
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