We have reached the passion narrative at the end of Mark’s gospel, which

will take us all the way to Easter Sunday. This first event - Jesus’

anointing by the woman - is recorded in all four gospels, and it’s very

easy for us to forget quite how remarkable it is, not only that this woman

was Jesus’ close friend and follower, but that the gospels recorded this

intimate moment at all (women weren’t held in particularly high regard in

these days, to put it mildly).

Yet this scene shows us so much; what we see is Jesus' deep love of his

friend, who was the only one who was actually hearing him. This scene is an

invitation to know Jesus’ humanity in deeply profound ways.

By Hannah Flint