Was Mary Magdalene misread?

How did Mary Magdalene, who has inspired legions of the faithful, Gnostics and scholars, and even affected pop culture, come to be so popular — and so misunderstood?

Ann Graham Brock, an author with a Harvard doctorate in her pedigree, gets a little exasperated when she hears people malign Mary Magdalene.

"First, we have the prostitute accusation," she says. "Now, thanks to 'The Da Vinci Code,' she's a wife."

Brock's book, "Mary Magdalene, the First Apostle: The Struggle for Authority" (Harvard University Press, $25), is in its second printing.

Mary Magdalene is a symbol of women's changing role in Christianity and an inspiration to women who see her as a strong and faithful figure. Her story was twisted by the mistake of an early pope. Now, new research done by a largely female contingent of scholars, who are finding biblical support for women's place in the clergy, is bringing her again to the forefront of theological studies.

Many are taking up Mary Magdalene's cause. The saint was identified as an "it girl" on college campuses recently by one national newsweekly, and scholars now have waded into waters even muddier than the River Jordan.

Why is she so popular?

Long before "Da Vinci Code," a bulwark of research into women's roles in the early church was inspiring a legion of scholars. Among them was Brock, whose book has been described as "brilliant" by Magdalene.org curator Lesa Bellevie of Redmond, Wash.

Bellevie created a Web site devoted to Mary Magdalene six years ago, before the saint was gracing magazine covers and showing up as a character in best-selling books. Today, she has a mailing list of hundreds, and hears from people all over the globe.

Don't underestimate the power of a best-selling novel, even if it purports that it's Mary Magdalene, not the apostle John, in Leonardo Da Vinci's fresco "The Last Supper," and that the Holy Grail isn't a cup at all, but . . . well, you'll have to read the book to learn all the details.

The Rev. Frank White, a Religious Science Church of Honolulu preacher, realized many of his congregants were reading Dan Brown's "The Da Vinci Code," a novel that sat atop best-seller lists for 54 consecutive weeks. So the Rev. White held a class this spring that was so well received that he's thinking of making it a two-class series next time.

The 16 participants listened intently for several hours as they sifted facts from fallacies.