July 22, 2026

Of the many techniques an artist might use in painting, among the most alluring is Sfumato.

Sfumato refers to a painting technique that blends one tone into another rather than using a clear outline. The word derives from the Italian sfumare, meaning “to evaporate,” and is related to the Italian word for smoke (fumo). Like smoke, a form rendered in sfumato tends to evaporate or disappear into the air surrounding it. Leonardo da Vinci used the term to describe how the edges of the Mona Lisa seem to blend into the surrounding shadows.
(from merriam-webster.com)

Today is the Feast of St. Mary Magdalen, a woman painted in sfumato across salvation history’s canvas. 

She is mentioned by name fourteen times in the New Testament across all four Gospels. She is explicitly identified as a key follower of Jesus who supported his ministry, witnessed his crucifixion, visited the empty tomb, was the first to see the risen Christ, and to proclaim the Resurrection. 

Nevertheless, other than her hometown of Magdala, the outlines of Mary’s life remain mysterious. Who were her parents, her siblings? Was she married? Who were her friends?

We know about Peter. He was married, had a mother-in-law, and was a fisherman from a family of fishermen.

We know about the feisty brothers, John and James. Their father was Zebedee, their mother Salome. They were “the Sons of Thunder”.

We know that Andrew, Philip, and Nathaniel were neighborhood friends.

But we have no such scriptural colors to paint our picture of Mary Magdalen.

What we know about Mary is her passion for God, a passion that allowed her to be released from seven devils and to radically bond her heart to the heart of Jesus.

Yes, the “seven devils”, those undefined spiritual hindrances that caused Pope Gregory to mistakenly connect Mary to the sinful woman of Luke, chapter 7.

The number seven is interesting, and might lead one to consider the seven deadly sins against which we all struggle in our lives: pride, envy, wrath, gluttony, lust, sloth, and greed. Might it be that Mary, so captured by the sacred magnetism of Jesus, was freed of these inclinations and sanctified in a unique way for the Gospel mission? Might it be that this “ultra-Baptism” prepared her to be the Apostle to the Apostles, first witness and proclaimer of the Resurrection?

As I pray with Mary Magdalen today, I remember a quote once shared with me. It is the response of an octogenarian nun when asked about her spiritual life:

I am in Love now. 
I have entered the Fire. 
I am one with the Flame.

She seems to have perfectly described the “spiritual Sfumato” for which Mary Magdalen is an inspiring icon.

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Poem: The Magdalen, a Garden and This by Kathleen O’Toole

She who is known by myth and association 

as sinful, penitent, voluptuous perhaps…

but faithful to the last and then beyond.

A disciple for sure, confused often with Mary,

sister of Lazarus, or the woman caught

in adultery, or she who angered the men

by anointing Jesus with expensive oils.

She was the one from whom he cast out seven

demons—she’s named in that account.

Strip all else away and we know only

that she was grateful, that she found her way

to the cross, and that she returned

to the tomb, to the garden nearby, and there,

weeping at her loss, was recognized,

became known in the tender invocation

of her name. Mary: breathed by one

whom she mistook for the gardener, he

who in an instant brought her back to herself—

gave her in two syllables a life beloved,

gave me the only sure thing I’ll believe

of heaven, that if it be, it will consist

in this: the one unmistakable

rendering of your name.

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Music: You Know My Name – by The Holy Studio (lyrics below)

I sit in rooms
Where no one asks
How long I’ve stayed
Behind the glass
My hands grow tired
My voice grows thin
I wonder if
You’ve noticed me

I don’t have to be loud
To be known
I don’t have to prove
I’m here

You know my name
You know my name
Before I speak
Before I break
You know my name
I don’t have to earn
Your gaze
You see me whole
You know my name

The world moves fast
It doesn’t wait
For tired bones
Or quiet faith
I scroll through faces
None are mine
I set the table
Just for one

I am not invisible
To You
I am not strange
For feeling small

You know my name
You know my name
Not for the things
That I have done
But for the way
You chose to stay
You see my face
You know my name

And every night
I wasn’t seen
You were the one
Still watching me
Every word
I didn’t say
You heard them all
You know my name
You know my name
You know my name

You know my name
You know my name
I don’t have to be
Interesting to be kept
I don’t have to shine
To be held
You called me Yours
Before I knew
You know my name
That is enough

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Suggested Scripture: John 20:11-16

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For Your Reflection:

• What feelings or reactions do I have after reading this reflection?
• Do my feelings or reactions remind me of any passage or event in scripture, especially in the life of Christ? 
• What actions might I take today because of my response to these readings?