From Mother of Mysteries to Mother of the Church: The Institutionalization of the Dormition Apocrypha
The earliest Dormition apocrypha appear to have developed initially within communities either outside of or on the margins of the proto-orthodox “mainstream” of early Christianity, most likely during the third and fourth centuries, if not possibly even earlier. Such provenance is particularly eviden...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Brepols
2011
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| In: |
Apocrypha
Year: 2011, Volume: 22, Pages: 11-47 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Electronic
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| Summary: | The earliest Dormition apocrypha appear to have developed initially within communities either outside of or on the margins of the proto-orthodox “mainstream” of early Christianity, most likely during the third and fourth centuries, if not possibly even earlier. Such provenance is particularly evident in the oldest narratives from the Palm of the Tree of Life tradition. These contain numerous heterodox theologoumena and esoteric traditions that presumably derive from such a setting. For instance, the earliest versions of these apocrypha understand Christ as the manifestation of a Great Angel and look to salvation through esoteric knowledge. Accordingly, the narratives present Mary as a learned teacher of the hidden cosmic mysteries, a rather different portrait from what would become the “orthodox” memory of Christ’s mother. Yet as Marian devotion was increasingly embraced by the imperial church, beginning in the fifth century, it was necessary to rehabilitate her image in these narratives, particularly so that they could be used for readings on the feast of the Dormition. In this regard, John of Thessalonica’s early seventh-century Homily on the Dormition presents one of the most successful and widely utilized rewritings of the early Dormition apocrypha. By introducing subtle changes to the narrative throughout the text, John produced a tamed account that was suitable for orthodox liturgical usage. |
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| Contains: | Enthalten in: Apocrypha
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1484/J.APOCRA.1.102650 |