The New Testament identifies a number of women followers of Jesus. The four gospels differ in the number, names, and roles of such female disciples. Even greater variation is found in the noncanonical (apocryphal) gospels.
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A disciple (not to be confused with an apostle) is widely held to refer to "one who follows a person's moral teachings", more commonly called a "student".
Women feature prominently in accounts of Jesus' crucifixion and in reports of his resurrection and at Pentecost. In all four gospel accounts, women were the first to receive a sign of Jesus' resurrection and to report it to others (the "Good news").
Authorship of one of the apocryphal gospels, the Gospel of Mary, is attributed to this most famous of Jesus' female apostles. In chapter 96 of the Gnostic text Pistis Sophia, Christ says: "Where I shall be, there will be also my twelve ministers. But Mary Magdalene and John, the virgin, will tower over all my disciples and over all men who shall receive the mysteries in the Ineffable. And they will be on my right and on my left. And I am they, and they are I."
Female disciples identified in the New Testament
Probable New Testament female disciples
The following New Testament women, though not called "disciples" in scripture, were closely identified with either Jesus or his apostles.