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Adoration: Mary of Bethany- The Untold Story
Mary of Bethany stands alone in the Gospels. She was the friend of Jesus, sharer of His secrets. She abides, uninhibited and limitless, an eternal emblem of adoration of Jesus.
Mary received from Jesus what no other player in the Redemption Story His never-ending command that where the gospel is preached, the story of her alabaster jar is to be told. This book proclaims her memorial place with extraordinary insight and reverence, laced with the goal of following this quiet one who was the delight of Jesus into our own . . . ADORATION.
Here is a profound gaze at the very human story of two sisters and the stark contrast between what gains God and what loses Him. Martha Kilpatrick quietly and lovingly dispels the hype and reveals the secret of true worship. Now available in both print and digital formats.
Mary received from Jesus what no other player in the Redemption Story His never-ending command that where the gospel is preached, the story of her alabaster jar is to be told. This book proclaims her memorial place with extraordinary insight and reverence, laced with the goal of following this quiet one who was the delight of Jesus into our own . . . ADORATION.
Here is a profound gaze at the very human story of two sisters and the stark contrast between what gains God and what loses Him. Martha Kilpatrick quietly and lovingly dispels the hype and reveals the secret of true worship. Now available in both print and digital formats.
131 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1999
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46 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
February 27, 2016
I've been fascinated by Mary of Bethany for a while now and grabbed this book on Kindle not being sure what I would find. This is a rare jewel as one cannot read it without gazing upon the Lord.
Kilpatrick covers each of the three situations where we meet Mary in the NT and she explores both Mary's posture and by contrast the others who are nearby. Each chapter is short, one to two pages, many shorter, and Kilpatrick allows us to be a silent bystander watching proceedings.
This is such a delightful read as Kilpatrick reveals the essence of Mary's heart posture, her complete devotion to the Lord.
It could easily be read in one short sitting but there is so much to chew on that I found I read only a few pages at a time. But each time I walked away wanting more and more of Jesus.
I'll dive in again tomorrow.
Kilpatrick covers each of the three situations where we meet Mary in the NT and she explores both Mary's posture and by contrast the others who are nearby. Each chapter is short, one to two pages, many shorter, and Kilpatrick allows us to be a silent bystander watching proceedings.
This is such a delightful read as Kilpatrick reveals the essence of Mary's heart posture, her complete devotion to the Lord.
It could easily be read in one short sitting but there is so much to chew on that I found I read only a few pages at a time. But each time I walked away wanting more and more of Jesus.
I'll dive in again tomorrow.
January 17, 2015
Practically everyone has heard of Mary of Magdala or “Mary Magdalene,” whose reputation has grown from popular books like The Da Vinci Code and from recent speculation about the contents of the Valentinian gnostic text known as the Gospel of Philip. But Mary of Bethany, associated with “the other Mary” (Matthew 27:61, 28:1; c.f. Luke 24:10), has not enjoyed much time in the limelight, save maybe the recent (and not terribly well-received) The Gospel According to the Other Mary (2013) by composer John Adams. Her relative unpopularity should be a surprise to those of us who grew up attending Sunday School because the stories of Mary versus Martha (Luke 10:38-42), Lazarus being raised from the dead (John 11), and Mary anointing Jesus (John 12:1-11) are considered core curriculum for any age.
Well, as it turns out, Mary of Bethany has a fan, and a mega-one at that. Author Martha Kilpatrick, a blogger for Get Along with God and founder of Shulamite Ministries, believes that “Biblical characters are to be our intimate mentors.” She puts action behind her words with a poetic reinterpretation of Mary’s life in Adoration: Mary of Bethany – The Untold Story (SeedSowers, 1999). I wish I could tell you great things about this book, but while I agree that biographies of the early saints can make inspiring reading material for Christians, I was truly disappointed with Kilpatrick’s sub-par work.
The first indication of bad things to come was the author’s “Statement of Faith” that took the place of a proper book dedication. In it, she claims to be Jesus Christ’s “Shulamite” (referencing the standard translation for the feminine version of Solomon, which the female character in the Song of Songs is called). In other words, she identifies herself as the Messiah’s personal lover – either literally or figuratively – and this belief is fundamental to her faith. (Even more so than the resurrection, apparently, since that’s not even specifically mentioned!)
As I guessed, further reading reveals how this sort of bridal mysticism plays into her retelling of Mary’s story, where the sister of Martha and Lazarus has a special, intimate (although not sexual) relationship with the Savior. In the Bible, Martha complains that Mary is listening to Jesus’ teaching instead of helping her in the kitchen, but Jesus verbally corrects her. In Adoration, what is one short line of praise for Mary from Jesus is embellished into a dramatic story of two sisters in perpetual conflict. Mary becomes the angelic virgin and Martha the evil whore (although not literally, of course) in this classic but tiresome dichotomy.
Mary is reserved, patient, obedient, and spiritually in tune with Jesus. Martha is brash, jealous, confrontational, and controlling. They’re like the hero and villain in a child’s book. And because Kilpatrick is blinded by her own brand of Mariology, she can only see the sisters in this way. Every opportunity is taken to tarnish Martha’s reputation and criticize her for being demanding and trusting in her own knowledge. The author is especially cruel when she gets to Lazarus’ death. Because Martha’s every motive, word, and deed are suspect, her daring proclamation that Jesus was the Messiah and the Son of God, which should serve as proof of her own profound understanding and faith, is ridiculed. Even in that glorious moment, Kilpatrick wants Martha to be shamed. Instead, I think the author should be ashamed for going to such great lengths to demonize a saint.
Now, maybe you don’t mind a little “artistic license” when it comes to retelling Bible stories. I would agree within limits, and I believe Kilpatrick went far beyond those limits. To worsen the reading experience, her poetry is unimpressive. It’s poorly-written prose, broken up in imitation-poetic fashion, making it difficult to read. And I am being nice.
Also, the author was rather sloppy about her research, relying too much on her own imagination. Even though minor references to ancient Jewish burial customs appear all over the Bible, she prefers to believe that the hired mourners were really disciples of Mary, eagerly following their religious guru everywhere. From just Martha’s complaint, Kilpatrick concludes that the family was poor, since obviously rich people would have servants to tend to kitchen duties. Really? A poor family can’t afford to feed so many guests. Poor people don’t have family tombs. They can’t afford to hire mourners. And they really can’t afford to save any money, let alone store a year’s wages in the form of inedible perfume.
Speaking of which: I’ll also be contentious over her line about pure spikenard being a “sweet oil.” I don’t think anyone who has actually gotten a good whiff of the stuff could’ve written that line with a straight face. Kilpatrick is just caught up in her imaginative storytelling, writing sensual lines about Jesus and Mary sharing the scent (pun intended). It apparently never occurs to her that Jesus would’ve likely had to wash when entering Jerusalem for the Passover feast. No, He has to be comforted with Mary’s ointment even to His last breath.
Yes, I know Kilpatrick was just trying to be romantic. She wanted a dramatic story and got one by creating a villain and bending the truth behind the details. The result is a childish spoof that makes a beautiful story ridiculous. All I can say is that her carelessness shows that she seriously needs to put more thought into what she writes. I still think Adoration had a lot of potential, but the poor execution earns it a Fail.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author and/or publisher through the Speakeasy blogging book review network. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
#SpeakeasyAdoration
#AdorationMarthaKilpatrick
#SpeakeasyMikeMorrell
Well, as it turns out, Mary of Bethany has a fan, and a mega-one at that. Author Martha Kilpatrick, a blogger for Get Along with God and founder of Shulamite Ministries, believes that “Biblical characters are to be our intimate mentors.” She puts action behind her words with a poetic reinterpretation of Mary’s life in Adoration: Mary of Bethany – The Untold Story (SeedSowers, 1999). I wish I could tell you great things about this book, but while I agree that biographies of the early saints can make inspiring reading material for Christians, I was truly disappointed with Kilpatrick’s sub-par work.
The first indication of bad things to come was the author’s “Statement of Faith” that took the place of a proper book dedication. In it, she claims to be Jesus Christ’s “Shulamite” (referencing the standard translation for the feminine version of Solomon, which the female character in the Song of Songs is called). In other words, she identifies herself as the Messiah’s personal lover – either literally or figuratively – and this belief is fundamental to her faith. (Even more so than the resurrection, apparently, since that’s not even specifically mentioned!)
As I guessed, further reading reveals how this sort of bridal mysticism plays into her retelling of Mary’s story, where the sister of Martha and Lazarus has a special, intimate (although not sexual) relationship with the Savior. In the Bible, Martha complains that Mary is listening to Jesus’ teaching instead of helping her in the kitchen, but Jesus verbally corrects her. In Adoration, what is one short line of praise for Mary from Jesus is embellished into a dramatic story of two sisters in perpetual conflict. Mary becomes the angelic virgin and Martha the evil whore (although not literally, of course) in this classic but tiresome dichotomy.
Mary is reserved, patient, obedient, and spiritually in tune with Jesus. Martha is brash, jealous, confrontational, and controlling. They’re like the hero and villain in a child’s book. And because Kilpatrick is blinded by her own brand of Mariology, she can only see the sisters in this way. Every opportunity is taken to tarnish Martha’s reputation and criticize her for being demanding and trusting in her own knowledge. The author is especially cruel when she gets to Lazarus’ death. Because Martha’s every motive, word, and deed are suspect, her daring proclamation that Jesus was the Messiah and the Son of God, which should serve as proof of her own profound understanding and faith, is ridiculed. Even in that glorious moment, Kilpatrick wants Martha to be shamed. Instead, I think the author should be ashamed for going to such great lengths to demonize a saint.
Now, maybe you don’t mind a little “artistic license” when it comes to retelling Bible stories. I would agree within limits, and I believe Kilpatrick went far beyond those limits. To worsen the reading experience, her poetry is unimpressive. It’s poorly-written prose, broken up in imitation-poetic fashion, making it difficult to read. And I am being nice.
Also, the author was rather sloppy about her research, relying too much on her own imagination. Even though minor references to ancient Jewish burial customs appear all over the Bible, she prefers to believe that the hired mourners were really disciples of Mary, eagerly following their religious guru everywhere. From just Martha’s complaint, Kilpatrick concludes that the family was poor, since obviously rich people would have servants to tend to kitchen duties. Really? A poor family can’t afford to feed so many guests. Poor people don’t have family tombs. They can’t afford to hire mourners. And they really can’t afford to save any money, let alone store a year’s wages in the form of inedible perfume.
Speaking of which: I’ll also be contentious over her line about pure spikenard being a “sweet oil.” I don’t think anyone who has actually gotten a good whiff of the stuff could’ve written that line with a straight face. Kilpatrick is just caught up in her imaginative storytelling, writing sensual lines about Jesus and Mary sharing the scent (pun intended). It apparently never occurs to her that Jesus would’ve likely had to wash when entering Jerusalem for the Passover feast. No, He has to be comforted with Mary’s ointment even to His last breath.
Yes, I know Kilpatrick was just trying to be romantic. She wanted a dramatic story and got one by creating a villain and bending the truth behind the details. The result is a childish spoof that makes a beautiful story ridiculous. All I can say is that her carelessness shows that she seriously needs to put more thought into what she writes. I still think Adoration had a lot of potential, but the poor execution earns it a Fail.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author and/or publisher through the Speakeasy blogging book review network. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
#SpeakeasyAdoration
#AdorationMarthaKilpatrick
#SpeakeasyMikeMorrell
July 2, 2024
Really good. I finished that super quick. Mary of Bethany exemplifies what it means to truly serve God and worship Him, not just to work. I loved reading this- an amazing reminder to keep my eyes on Jesus and love Him before anything else.
May 2, 2024
This book is so powerful. How to live a life fully at the feet of Jesus. Knowing Him and loving Him. Not to be a Martha, a laborer, a striver, but to be a Mary and make Jesus you're one thing.
To poor everything out for Him and to live a life of complete love to our father.
I highly recommend this book. It will shift your perspective and I pray bring conviction where there needs to be because I know there was for me and that you would live a life competly at the feet of Jesus
I will definitely be rereading
To poor everything out for Him and to live a life of complete love to our father.
I highly recommend this book. It will shift your perspective and I pray bring conviction where there needs to be because I know there was for me and that you would live a life competly at the feet of Jesus
I will definitely be rereading
October 8, 2014
I so wanted to say something positive about this book, so here it is: It has a red cover, and red is my favorite color. It also has large print, which is easy on my eyes, and is written in sense lines which means that it's really about fifty pages of very redundant material stretched into one hundred thirty-five. On the other hand, it took less than an hour to read, so not much of my life was wasted.
From the title, I was expecting something very different, perhaps a book about adoration as a spiritual quality or practice. What I got was a rambling, at times tangential, at other times conflated book with heavy but poorly conceived hints of total depravity. That analogies were sometimes mind bending, as in trying to show that work is bad and surrender is good - a concept that runs in direct contradiction to the experience of Paul, to name but one - the author compares Martha to Moses and Mary to Joshua, claiming that Moses didn't get to the Promised Land because he was concerned with working while Joshua did because, presumably because he was concerned with surrender to God. The problem of course is that Joshua's leading people into the promised land doesn't compare well with Mary sitting at Jesus' feet, it's just as much work as Moses leading people around the desert was.
Then, somewhere along the way, the author has decided that Mary of Bethany is the same Mary who anointed Jesus' feet. She displays her ignorance of biblical culture in claiming that it was only this Mary and Jesus who washed feet when in fact it was the duty of any host to wash their guests feet as part of hospitality. The author devotes the last third of her book into her fantasy of the two Marys being one.
In short, if you are given to fictional flights of fancy based on shoddy biblical understandings, this book is for you. If not, I'd avoid it like the plague.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author and/or publisher through the Speakeasy blogging book review network. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR,Part 255.
From the title, I was expecting something very different, perhaps a book about adoration as a spiritual quality or practice. What I got was a rambling, at times tangential, at other times conflated book with heavy but poorly conceived hints of total depravity. That analogies were sometimes mind bending, as in trying to show that work is bad and surrender is good - a concept that runs in direct contradiction to the experience of Paul, to name but one - the author compares Martha to Moses and Mary to Joshua, claiming that Moses didn't get to the Promised Land because he was concerned with working while Joshua did because, presumably because he was concerned with surrender to God. The problem of course is that Joshua's leading people into the promised land doesn't compare well with Mary sitting at Jesus' feet, it's just as much work as Moses leading people around the desert was.
Then, somewhere along the way, the author has decided that Mary of Bethany is the same Mary who anointed Jesus' feet. She displays her ignorance of biblical culture in claiming that it was only this Mary and Jesus who washed feet when in fact it was the duty of any host to wash their guests feet as part of hospitality. The author devotes the last third of her book into her fantasy of the two Marys being one.
In short, if you are given to fictional flights of fancy based on shoddy biblical understandings, this book is for you. If not, I'd avoid it like the plague.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the author and/or publisher through the Speakeasy blogging book review network. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR,Part 255.
June 9, 2015
As I read and poured over this book, I found myself longing for more of the Lord's Presence. If you are a lover of the Lord Jesus Christ this book will stir an even greater desire to come closer and to know Him more.
March 16, 2007
a powerful book written about mary of bethany. i really need to finish reading this book -- it has the potential to be a life-changer. more on this later.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews