Femme Friday Salome

 It was a special weekend. A weekend that had taken a few months to coordinate. A flurry of compromises and explanations. A weekend without kids or partners or responsibilities. It was a weekend to connect and remember. A time to meet with family. The mom and aunties and grandma that had helped shape me before I was even born. That weekend was a holy time. Set apart so our female family members could come together and celebrate our heritage. 

I had never really thought about Mary, the mother of Jesus, having family members. Her journey is so solitary once she is given the proclamation of carrying the Messiah. But there are glimpses throughout the gospels that Mary had family, close and extended. In both Luke and Matthew Salome is listed as one of the women who first watches Jesus being crucified from afar and then goes to prepare His body for burial. Salome is also listed as one of the women who found the tomb empty. Salome is thought to be the mother of the Sons of Zebbedee, which would make Salome Jesus's aunt as well. This all connects together when we remember that life was very family oriented for Jewish people. It still is. 

This is a nation that was first built on twelve brothers. Each of those brothers led a tribe. Lands were kept in families by intermarriage with each other. Women worked communally to tend to household needs. Fathers trained children as soon as they could walk to take over the family business. The Israeli community was very insular at the time of Jesus's life. They were a secluded group being governed by an outside force. The people relied on each other and God for support. Salome was part of Mary's support system. If she is Mary's sister, and Jesus's Aunt, she would have been an intricate part of His life. 

Extended family is so important. We have that even when we don't have "blood relatives". The beautiful part of being in God's kingdom, is that it also gives us a family to be a part of. We are all adopted into the family of God when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. We go from being slaves to being daughters and sons. We have a family that extends around the globe. We are not left as orphans, bereft and unable to care for ourselves. Instead, we are brought into loving kinship with our Christian brothers and sisters. This  is what we see between Salome and Mary. Sisters who go together to bury a son and nephew. This is what we see when we look at communal family structures. Life groups, small groups, churches and Sunday School are all places where we can find our family. The family that will be with us in eternity. That may be an addition to the earthly family we have, but is no less as close and dear to us.