Peter’s Paradoxical Cross
This article examines two ways in which the cross on which Peter hangs in various apocryphal accounts of his death is actually paradoxical. First, the earliest account, the second-century Martyrdom of the Holy Apostle Peter (the final section of the Acts of Peter), recounts that Peter returns to fac...
| Published in: | Journal of early Christian history |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Taylor & Francis Group
2021
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| In: |
Journal of early Christian history
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| IxTheo Classification: | HC New Testament KAB Church history 30-500; early Christianity KCD Hagiography; saints RC Liturgy |
| Further subjects: | B
Pseudo-Linus
B cult of the saints B Acts of Peter B Pseudo-Abdias B martyrdom of Peter B crucifixion of Jesus B Apostle Peter B Relics |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | This article examines two ways in which the cross on which Peter hangs in various apocryphal accounts of his death is actually paradoxical. First, the earliest account, the second-century Martyrdom of the Holy Apostle Peter (the final section of the Acts of Peter), recounts that Peter returns to face his fate after meeting Christ in the famous Quo vadis? scene. However, the author presents a death that is ultimately not very Christlike at all, for the narrative effectively denies the physicality of the event. Two later authors, Pseudo-Linus and Pseudo-Abdias, reshape the story in order to correct this tension. Second, Pseudo-Linus’s accounts suggests that this first-century story can be understood properly only by looking back through the lens of fourth-century practices and imagery. The article ends by considering a final irony: although the story of Peter’s crucifixion was so critical to the Petrine tradition and Roman claims to ecclesiastical authority, alleged fragments of that cross never became part of the Petrine cult. |
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| ISSN: | 2471-4054 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of early Christian history
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/2222582X.2021.1969976 |