Editing Mary Magdalene (section)

===Portrayal as a prostitute===
The portrayal of Mary Magdalene as a [[prostitute]] began in 591, when [[Pope Gregory I]] identified Mary Magdalene, who was introduced in Luke 8:2, with [[Mary of Bethany]] (Luke 10:39) and the unnamed "sinful woman" who [[Anointing of Jesus|anointed Jesus's feet]] in Luke 7:36–50.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Schenk |first=Christine |title=Crispina and her sisters: women and authority in early Christianity |date=2017 |publisher=Fortress press |isbn=978-1-5064-1188-0 |location=Minneapolis (Minn.) |pages=11}}</ref> Pope Gregory's Easter sermon resulted in a widespread belief that Mary Magdalene was a repentant prostitute or promiscuous woman.<ref name="BBC"/>{{sfn|Meyers|2000|p=122|loc=Named Women: Mary 3 (Magdalene)}}

Her reputation in [[Western Christianity]] as being a repentant prostitute or loose woman are not supported by the canonical gospels, which at no point imply that she had ever been a prostitute or in any way notable for a sinful way of life.<ref name="BBC" />{{sfn|Doyle|2011}}{{sfn|Ehrman|2006|pages=189–190}} The misconception probably arose due to a conflation between Mary Magdalene, [[Mary of Bethany]] (who [[Anointing of Jesus|anoints Jesus's feet]] in {{bibleverse||John|11:1–12|9}}), and the unnamed "sinful woman" who anoints Jesus's feet in {{bibleverse||Luke|7:36–50|9}}.<ref name="BBC" />{{sfn|Doyle|2011}}{{sfn|Morrow|1999}} As early as the third century, the Church Father [[Tertullian]] ({{circa}} 160 – 225) references the touch of "the woman which was a sinner" in effort to prove that Jesus "was not a phantom, but really a solid body".{{sfn|Schaberg|2004|page=85}} This may indicate that Mary Magdalene was already being conflated with the "sinful woman" in {{bibleverse||Luke|7:36–50|9}}, though Tertullian never clearly identifies the woman of whom he speaks as Mary Magdalene.{{sfn|Schaberg|2004|page=85}}
 
Elaborate medieval legends from Western Europe then emerged, which told exaggerated tales of Mary Magdalene's wealth and beauty, as well as of her alleged journey to southern [[Gaul]] (modern-day [[France]]). The identification of Mary Magdalene with Mary of Bethany and the unnamed "sinful woman" was still a major controversy in the years leading up to the [[Reformation]], and some Protestant leaders rejected it. During the [[Counter-Reformation]], the [[Catholic Church]] emphasized Mary Magdalene as a symbol of [[penance]]. In 1969, [[Pope Paul VI]] removed the identification of Mary Magdalene with Mary of Bethany and the "sinful woman" from the [[General Roman Calendar]], but the view of her as a former prostitute has persisted in popular culture.