Since
the four gospels were canonized in the fourth century, there has been
an on-going debate among Christians about the identity and character of
Mary Magdalene. Was she a prostitute, was she the woman caught in
adultery in John 8, or was she the woman with "a sinful past" who washed
Jesus’ feet in Luke 7?
In A.D. 591, Pope Gregory I attempted to settle the debate. He announced that Mary Magdalene was in fact the woman caught in adultery in John 8, the sinful woman who washed Jesus’ feet in Luke 7 and was the sister of Martha and Lazarus. Seventeen centuries later, the debate has resurfaced. Certain Catholics say that on April 3, 1969, Pope Paul VI quietly reversed Pope Gregory’s decision by creating three separate versions of Mary in a papal Missale Romanum.
https://www.wake-up.org/newsletter-archive/day-star-newsletter/the-mystery-of-mary-magdalene-july-2007.html
In A.D. 591, Pope Gregory I attempted to settle the debate. He announced that Mary Magdalene was in fact the woman caught in adultery in John 8, the sinful woman who washed Jesus’ feet in Luke 7 and was the sister of Martha and Lazarus. Seventeen centuries later, the debate has resurfaced. Certain Catholics say that on April 3, 1969, Pope Paul VI quietly reversed Pope Gregory’s decision by creating three separate versions of Mary in a papal Missale Romanum.
https://www.wake-up.org/newsletter-archive/day-star-newsletter/the-mystery-of-mary-magdalene-july-2007.html