The Independence of the “Martyrdom” of the Acts of Thomas

Chapters 159–70 of the Acts of Thomas (ATh) – the so-called “Martyrdom” – are broadly agreed to have originally been independent, and only later appended to the end of the ATh to provide the story with a proper martyr’s ending. However, this article suggests that previous scholarship only establishe...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor principal: Oliver, George (Autor)
Tipo de documento: Electrónico Artículo
Lenguaje:Inglés
Verificar disponibilidad: HBZ Gateway
Interlibrary Loan:Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany)
Publicado: 2025
En: Vigiliae Christianae
Año: 2025, Volumen: 79, Número: 4, Páginas: 418-439
Otras palabras clave:B Authorship
B Thomas the Apostle
B Apocryphal Acts
B Judas Thomas
B Greek novel
B Martyrdom
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Sumario:Chapters 159–70 of the Acts of Thomas (ATh) – the so-called “Martyrdom” – are broadly agreed to have originally been independent, and only later appended to the end of the ATh to provide the story with a proper martyr’s ending. However, this article suggests that previous scholarship only establishes that the “Martyrdom” had a separate author to the rest of the ATh. An argument has yet to be made demonstrating that the author of the “Martyrdom” did not intend it to be immediately attached to the ATh. I argue that the “Martyrdom” contains a subplot that completely contradicts the ATh through a comparative analysis of the respective narratives of the “Martyrdom” and the preceding chapters of the ATh. This article thus demonstrates that the “Martyrdom” was not simply separately authored, but also was not intended to be read with the ATh and originally circulated as an independent tradition.
ISSN:1570-0720
Obras secundarias:Enthalten in: Vigiliae Christianae
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1163/15700720-bja10108