February, my birth month, and the month of love is almost over. I have been posting about the love shown by women of the Bible and today I want to focus on the unselfish love of Mary Magdalene.

I couldn’t let the month end without writing about this well-known woman of the Bible, one who has been so misrepresented and so misjudged. In fact, of all the Marys mentioned in the Bible, Mary Magdalene is the only one who is given a last name. It’s as if the authors wanted us to know exactly which Mary they were writing about. And as if that weren’t enough, she also has the handle, “out of whom went seven devils” (Luke 8: 2).

But after Jesus healed her, Mary Magdalene became one of his most devoted followers. On the day of His crucifixion, she, along with His mother and other women, stood at the foot of the cross, sorrowful and unable to do anything. Since it is the Sabbath, they cannot embalm the body, but bright and early the following day, Mary Magdalene and another Mary return to the tomb where Jesus had been buried.

Here she exemplifies one quality of love according to 1 Corinthians 13: it is not self-seeking. She has nothing to gain by going to the tomb to perform this last rite on her Savior. It is her last act of love, and she gives it without reservation.

But even though Mary Magdalene expects to gain nothing, God has already prepared the greatest reward anyone could ever hope to have. The tomb is empty, Jesus is risen as He said He would, but where is He? She sees a man standing before her, and He calls her name. It is Jesus. How does she know it is Jesus? Because He calls her Mary, not Mary Magdalene, not the one out of whom went seven devils, but simply Mary. She is the first to see the risen Lord.

Want to learn more about this fascinating woman of the Bible? Please go to Women For All Seasons at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TM6TWX4  

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Still in the month of love, this series would not be complete without including the love story of Ruth and Boaz. It is one of the best-loved stories in the Bible.

Ruth, a Moabite woman leaves her home country to accompany her Jewish mother-in-law to Judah after their husbands died.

Ruth has no idea where she is going, and being a foreigner, she faces persecution from the Jewish people. Naomi tries to persuade her to stay with her people, but she says: “Intreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee; for whither thou goest, I will go, and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people and thy God my God:”

So they arrive in Judah, and Ruth sets out to find work gleaning in the barley fields. As fate would have it, the wealthy owner of the field sees her and falls in love with her.

Ruth and Boaz marry, and she later gives birth to a son who is the ancestor of Jesus Christ.

Like Esther in the previous post, Ruth acts out of loyalty and devotion to her mother-in-law. We also see that God’s love does not discriminate. Ruth was a Moabitess, outside of God’s covenant, and Boaz was an Israelite, of the chosen race, but not only did God bring them together, he caused His Son Jesus Christ to be descended from David who was a direct descendant of Ruth and Boaz.

What are your thoughts about Ruth? Would you be as devoted to your mother-in-law if your husband passed away? Share your thoughts in the comment box below.

To learn more about Ruth and other women of the Bible, please go to Women For All Seasons at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TM6TWX4  

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February is the month of love. In this month, we celebrate Valentine’s Day through the giving of gifts and expressions of romantic love. But there are others in our lives with whom we share deep feelings of love, and we can use this opportunity to express our love for them as well. But we don’t have to wait on Valentine’s Day. We can demonstrate love on any day of the year.

In these posts, I use the Scripture passage from 1 Corinthians 13, popularly known as the love chapter, to show how some people in the Bible expressed their love for others in accordance with this scripture.

Esther was a young orphan girl who became queen almost by accident. She was chosen from among a bevy of young ladies after the former queen fell out of the king’s graces. Not long after Esther became queen, Esther’s uncle Mordecai discovered that Haman, one of the king’s officials, was plotting to annihilate all the Jews because Mordecai refused to bow to him. Mordecai sent word to Esther asking her to use her influence as queen to save the Jews. But Esther has a problem. She cannot go in to the king unless he invites her to do so, and he does not know she is a Jew.

Her response? “If I perish, I perish.” She and her servants fast for three days before she approaches the king. When she reveals the plot to him, he orders Haman to be hanged, and the lives of the Jews are spared.

Which of these qualities of love from the Biblical love chapter does Esther display? Please leave a comment in the box below. To learn more about Esther and her courageous act, please go to Women For All Seasons at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TM6TWX4   

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Langston Hughes photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1936.

We are already in February, the second month of the year, which means it’s  Black History Month, a time when we celebrate the achievements of black folk here in America. Every year, I take the opportunity to feature a few famous African American authors, and as I was about to make my pick, I came across a list of famous Black authors born in February.

One of them is Langston Hughes, famous playwright, novelist, poet, and social activist with whom I share the same birth date – Feb. 1. This illustrious scribe was born of mixed heritage – his paternal great-grandfathers were of European descent, while his maternal great-grandmothers were African American – Hughes took pride in his African-American identity and stressed this in his work.

Langston’s early years

While in high school in Cleveland, Ohio, Hughes wrote for the school newspaper, edited the yearbook, and began to write short stories, poetry, and dramatic plays. He wrote his first piece of jazz poetry — a literary art form in which the poet responds and writes about jazz — “When Sue Wears Red” while still in high school.

Hughes’ first book of poetry “The Weary Blues” (1926) features the poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” which became a signature poem. In 1930, he won the Harmon Gold Medal for Literature for his first novel, Not Without Laughter. Hughes went on to write many short stories, novels, essays, works for children, autobiographies, and plays, and later formed a theater troupe in Los Angeles.

Langston’s influence on young black writers

Although a major influence during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s, Hughes was highly critical of other Renaissance men such as W.E.B Du Bois and others who, he felt, were too accommodating of Eurocentric values and culture. In addition to his literary prowess, Hughes’s racial consciousness inspired and united black writers not only in America but around the globe.  He had a major influence on writers  such as Jacques Roumain, Nicolás Guillén, Léopold Sédar Senghor, and Aimé Césaire.  Hughes was greatly admired by young black writers whom he discovered and introduced to the publishing world. One such example is Alice Walker author of The Color Purple, who was also born in February.

Of course, I don’t believe in astrology, but I’ve heard it said that people born in February are creative, and this list certainly seems to bear this out. So, let’s take a look at some of the better-known Black authors and some of my favorites born in February :

Black authors born in February

• Feb. 1 – Langston Hughes, Angela Joseph
• Feb, 2 – Joseph S Cotter – one of the earliest African-American playwrights to be published.
• Feb. 6 – Bob Marley
• Feb. 9 – Alice Walker
• Feb. 12 – Jacqueline Woodson
• Feb. 14 – Frederick Douglass
• Feb. 15 – Beverly Jenkins, Elizabeth Acevedo
• Feb. 18 – Audre Lorde, Bebe Moore Campbell, Elizabeth Nunez, and Toni Morrison
• Feb. 20 – Trevor Noah
• Feb- 23 – W.E.B. Dubois

It would not be fitting for me to end this article without leaving you with a few lines from The Negro Mother, a poem by Langston Hughes, which I find very touching and which, I believe, is so pertinent to these times.

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