Submission Date

7-19-2019

Document Type

Paper

Department

Religious Studies

Faculty Mentor

Christian Rice

Second Faculty Mentor

Angela Upright

Comments

This project was supported by the Harold C. Smith Foundation in Christian Studies.

Project Description

"The Master Narrative of Christianity" as outlined by Karen King states that Jesus Christ passed down the one true gospel to his apostles who then spread it throughout the world among a sea of dissension. But exactly which texts contained the true gospel, and even who counted as an apostle, is far less cut and dried than the early church fathers would have you believe. In fact, many narratives involving powerful women preaching, baptizing, and facing down execution had been lost or purposely neglected from most canons. I looked at just a few of these works; The Gospel of Mary, The Acts of Paul and Thecla, and The Passion of Saint Perpetua, Saint Felicitas, and their Companions to analyze why these texts were left out and what they can tell us about Christian women in the first few centuries, as well as how they can inspire us today.

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