Paradox in Partu: Verifying Virginity in the Protevangelium of James

• Autores: Julia Kelto Lillis
• Localización: Journal of early Christian studies: Journal of the North American Patristic Society, ISSN 1067-6341, Nº. 1, 2016, págs. 1-28
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • In place of hymen-centered interpretations of Mary's virginity in Protev., I identify a focal shift in the text from a sexual dimension of virginity (which is indeed a part of Mary's characterization) to "puerperal" or childbirth-related dimensions of virginity, the features of which only Mary has had the privilege to retain while giving birth. .59 Typically translators understand the neuter plural pronoun ? to refer to the event of giving birth, while rendering ... as "nature" or "condition" and taking ... to mean "permit" or "allow." [...]most translations use or closely resemble the reading, "A virgin has given birth, something her nature does not allow!" I propose a more specific, if less elegant (and more graphic) translation, drawn from a fundamental meaning of ... and the contextual meaning of .. According to Cyprian, if these virgins have been corrupted by men with whom they have been sharing a bed, both are guilty of adultery against Christ.85 As spouses exclusively of Christ, to lose their virginity is to commit adultery.86 Tertullian himself paves the way for this marital model of virginity; he eventually calls virgins Christ's brides and even couples Christ and Mary as quasi-husband and -wife by making the infant the deflowerer of his mother, as we saw above.87 Male authority over female bodies-in both familial and clerical forms-is reinforced by the notion that even female virginity lies in the control of men, who permanently change women's status by deflowering their bodies and whose rights over female bodies are protected via genital intactness, or violated by hymenal rupture.88 While many Christian texts of the fourth century cast the virgin-Christ relationship as one of (faithful or adulterous) betrothal/ marriage without invoking ideas about hymens,89 hymenal virginity becomes a powerful tool in efforts to promote consecrated virginity and regulate the behaviors of Christ's virginal brides.90 In the final decades of the fourth century, features stemming from distinct configurations of virginity frequently merge. According to de Strycker's text and analysis (114-17), an earlier reading of Mary's question in 11.2 runs: ...; Here the emphasis on birth is less pronounced, but still legible.