Blessed Among Women?

Mothers and Motherhood in the New Testament

AvAlicia D. Myers

Häftad, Engelska, 2020

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Beskrivning

Mothers appear throughout the New Testament. Called "blessed among women" by Elizabeth in the Gospel of Luke, Mary, the mother of Jesus, is the most obvious example. But she is far from the only mother in this canon. She is joined by Elizabeth, a chorus of unnamed mothers seeking healing or promotions for their children, as well as male mothers, including Paul (Gal 4:19-20) and Jesus. Although interpreters of the New Testament have explored these maternal characters and metaphors, many have only recently begun to take seriously their theological aspects. This book builds on previous studies by arguing maternal language is not only theological, but also indebted to ancient gender constructions and their reshaping by early Christians. Especially significant are the physiological, anatomical, and social constructions of female bodies that permeate the ancient world where ancient Christianity was birthed. This book examines ancient generative theories, physiological understandings of breast milk and breastfeeding, and presentations of prominent mothers in literature and art to analyze the use of these themes in the New Testament and several, additional early Christian writings. In a context that aligned perfection with "masculinity," motherhood was the ideal goal for women-a justification for deficient, female existence. Proclaiming a new age ushered in by God's Christ, however, ancient Christians debated the place of women, mothers, and motherhood as a part of their reframing of gender expectations. Rather than a homogenous approval of literal motherhood, ancient Christian writings depict a spectrum of ideals for women disciples even as they retain the assumption of masculine superiority. Identifying themselves as members of God's household, ancient Christians utilized motherhood as a theological category and a contested ideal for women disciples.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum:2020-02-26
Mått:155 x 231 x 17 mm
Vikt:363 g
Format:Häftad
Språk:Engelska
Antal sidor:242
Förlag:OUP USA
ISBN:9780190097011

Utforska kategorier

Religion: allmänt inom Filosofi och religion
Biblar inom Filosofi och religion

Mer om författaren

Alicia D. Myers is Assistant Professor of New Testament and Greek at Campbell University Divinity School. Her previous publications include Characterizing Jesus: A Rhetorical Analysis on the Fourth Gospel's Use of Scripture in Its Presentation of Jesus (2012) and Abiding Words: The Use of Scripture in the Gospel of John (co-editor, 2015).

Recensioner i media

Myers's particular contribution is the extensive, albeit some-what repetitive, investigation of how maternal bodies were constructed and interpreted in ancient Mediterranean contexts. Although this takes up considerably more than half of the book, it is not reflected in the title or subtitle. Nor is the fact that early Christian extra-canonical texts are also included. This fascinating background information adds considerable depth to her reading of Christian texts containing images and tropes of motherhood.