Rourke, Mary 1949-

views updated

Rourke, Mary 1949-

PERSONAL:

Born 1949. Education: Yale University, M.A.

ADDRESSES:

Office—Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Sq., Los Angeles, CA 90053-3816. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Writer, journalist, editor, and novelist. Los Angeles Times, religion reporter, 1996-2001, fashion editor, 2001—. Worked for Newsweek in the mid-1970s.

WRITINGS:

Two Women of Galilee, Mira (Don Mills, Ontario, Canada), 2006.

SIDELIGHTS:

Journalist and editor Mary Rourke's first novel, Two Women of Galilee, presents an account "of the all-but-accidental relationship between the widowed Mary, mother of Jesus, and her distant cousin Joanna," noted reviewer Pauline Finch in a review posted on Bookreporter.com. In Rourke's account, Joanna is well aware of the reputation of Jesus of Nazareth, but she has all but betrayed Jesus and his family by abandoning her humble origins and placing her allegiance with the Romans. She lives in the luxurious city of Sepphoris, and is the wife of Chuza, the wealthy steward of King Herod. Joanna enjoys her comfortable and protected world, but she changes after contracting a dangerous respiratory disease. As her health grows worse, she decides to seek the help of Jesus and his miraculous healing powers. She contacts her cousin, Mary, and asks to be introduced to Jesus. Her first encounter with him goes poorly; she retreats from him, thinking that he might do something to make her condition worse, or reject her outright. Soon, however, she approaches him again. "As her faith builds, Joanna returns to Jesus and is indeed healed, drawing close to Mary," commented John D. Spalding in a review posted on SoMA Review. Joanna's attachment to Jesus grows, and her newfound faith places her in conflict with her Roman surroundings. She becomes a serious follower of Christ, with her dedication becoming even stronger when her husband is killed by Roman authorities and she is shunned by both Jews and Romans. Rourke carefully portrays the "challenging spiritual and emotional pilgrimage that draws her from the pampered life of a Roman colonial socialite into the uncertain but fulfilling role of female disciple," Finch remarked. Spalding called the novel "deeply pious," while Finch praised it as "movingly thoughtful and perceptive."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, April 15, 2006, John Mort, review of Two Women of Galilee, p. 28; October 1, 2006, John Mort, "Top Ten Christian Fiction," review of Two Women of Galilee, p. 34.

Library Journal, April 1, 2006, Tamara Butler, "Christian Fiction," review of Two Women of Galilee, p. 74.