Women in Early Christianity
- "Women and the Conversion of an Empire" in Women in Christian Traditions byCall Number: EBSCO eBookISBN: 9781479821754Publication Date: 2015
- The Cappadocian Mothers: Deification Exemplified in the Writings of Basil, Gregory and Gregory by The Cappadocian Fathers had great influence on the church of the fourth century, having brought their passion for Christ and theological expertise to life in their ministry. Their work was not devoid of influence, including that of their immediate family members. Within their writings we uncover the lives of seven women, the Cappadocian Mothers, who may have had more influence on the theology of the church than previously believed. As the Cappadocians wrestle with the Christianization of the concept of deification, we find the women in their lives becoming models for their theological understanding. The lives of the women become points of intersection in the kenosis-theosis parabola. Not only are the Cappadocian Mothers uncovered in the texts, but they become models of an optimistic theology of restoration for all of humanity without constraint of gender.Publication Date: 2017
- Christian Women in the Patristic World: Their Influence, Authority, and Legacy in the Second through Fifth Centuries by From facing wild beasts in the arena to governing the Roman Empire, Christian women--as preachers and philosophers, martyrs and empresses, virgins and mothers--influenced the shape of the church in its formative centuries. This book provides in a single volume a nearly complete compendium of extant evidence about Christian women in the second through fifth centuries. It highlights the social and theological contributions they made to shaping early Christian beliefs and practices, integrating their influence into the history of the patristic church and showing how their achievements can be edifying for contemporary Christians.Call Number: BR195.W6 C625 2017
- Early Christian Families in Context by Typical studies of marriage and family in the early Christian period focus on very limited evidence found in Scripture. This interdisciplinary book offers a broader, richer picture of the first Christian families by drawing together research by experts ranging from archaeologists to ancient historians.By exploring the nature of households in the ancient Greco-Roman world, the contributors assemble a new understanding of ancient Christian families that is both compelling and instructive. Divided into six parts, the book covers key aspects of ancient family life, from meals and child-rearing to women's roles and the lives of slaves. Three concluding chapters explore the implications of all this information for theological education today. Contributors: David L. BalchSuzanne DixonJ. Albert HarrillRoss S. KraemerChristian LaesPeter LampeAmy-Jill LevineMargaret Y. MacDonaldDale MartinEric M. MeyersMargaret M. MitchellCarolyn OsiekBeryl RawsonRichard SallerTimothy F. SedgwickMonika TrumperAndrew Wallace-HadrillCall Number: BR195.F35 E27 2003ISBN: 080283986XPublication Date: 2004
- Macrina the Younger, Philosopher of God by This book presents St Macrin a the Younger (c. 327-379), eldest sister of Ss Basil the Great and Gregory of Nyssa. All the sources of Macrin a's life are gathered together, translated afresh into English, and provided with up-to-date introductions and notes. Documents include: Testimonies of St Basil, St Gregory Nazianzen's epigrams on Macrin a and her siblings; Gregory of Nyssa's letter 19 which appears in English for the first time; The Life of Macrin a, a jewel of fourth-century Christian biography; and the dialogue On the Soul and Resurrection in which Macrin a appears as the Teacher expounding Christian doctrine with reasoned argument. The introductory shows how Macrin a gradually changed the family household of Annisa into the proto-monastic community that became model of the monasticism that has come down under Basil's name. A specially commissioned icon, a map of Central Anatolia, and a report of the author's expeditions to ancient Pontus are included.Call Number: BR1720.M25 S55 2008
- Matrology: A Bibliography of Writings by Christian Women from the First to the Fifteenth Centuries by In contrast with the major reference works of male theologians (patrologies), this bibliography of the words of the mothers lists every Christian woman who wrote before 1500 CE and her writings that have appeared in print since 1800. Each entry begins with a brief description of the writer and iCall Number: BR117 .K33 1995Publication Date: 1994
- Perpetua's Passion:The Death and Memory of a Young Roman Woman by Perpetua's Passion studies the third-century martyrdom of a young woman and places it in the intellectual and social context of her age. Conflicting ideas of religion, family and gender are explored as Salisbury follows Perpetua from her youth in a wealthy Roman household to her imprisonment and death in the arena.Call Number: ProQuest Ebook CentralPublication Date: 1997
- Women and Christian Origins by This new collection of fourteen integrated, original essays by prominent scholars and experienced teachers provides a comprehensive and accessible entree to current research on women and the origins of Christianity. Engaging for both the interested reader and the specia list in religion, Women and Christian Origins is sensitive to feminist theory and attentive to distinctions between the (re)construction of women's history in early Christian churches and ancient constructions of gender differenceCall Number: EBSCO eBookPublication Date: 1999
- Women in Early Christianity: Translations from Greek Texts by From the fictional Thecla in the second century to the very real Olympias in the early fifth century, the history of women in early Christianity was as complex and rich as the religion itself. This comprehensive sourcebook brings together translations of a variety of ancient Christian texts that elucidate how women were perceived and portrayed in the Greek literature written in the second to the sixth centuries. The texts included in the volume have been generously excerpted, providing the modern reader with an in-depth view of the historical reality of early Christian women's lives as well as a nuanced perspective on the many ways in which women were understood in theological and ecclesiastical frameworks. Few documents written by early Christian women have been preserved; contemporary readers therefore do not have much direct access to these women's own perspectives on their lives and roles as Christians. Nevertheless, there are many kinds of texts that can be used both to reconstruct the history of actual women in early Christianity and to analyze the ancient ideologies and rhetoric that affected how they were perceived. This volume offers many different kinds of texts in order to present as complete a view as possible of early Christian women: documentary sources such as church orders and proceedings, popular narrative sources such as the novelistic apocryphal acts, biographies and lives of saints, and theological treatises on virginity and marriage. What emerges from these texts is a colorful portrayal of the many faces of ancient Christian women in their roles as teachers, prophets, martyrs, widows, deaconesses, ascetics, virgins, wives, and mothers. Whether celebrated as saints or denigrated as harlots, early Christian women were magnets of theological and social thought.Call Number: EBSCO Ebook Religion CollectionPublication Date: 2005
- Women in the Early Church by Elizabeth Clark, a patristic scholar and founder of the Department of Religion at Mary Washington College, has drawn upon her depth of scholarship and linguistic ability to make available to an educated but nonspecialized readership an intriguing mosaic of opinions." - America "Call Number: BR195.W6 C574 1990
Mothers of the Church
- opens new windowPerpetua and Felicityd. 203 (opens new windowabout)
- North African mothers
- thrown to wild animals for being Christians
- Euphemia, d. 303 (opens new windowabout)
- opens new windowJuliana, d. 304
- Macrina the Elder, d. c. 340 (opens new windowabout)
- grandmother of Basil the Great, Gregory of Nyssa, Macrina the Younger, and Peter of Sebaste
- disciple of Gregory Thaumaturgus
- Marcella of Rome, c. 325-410 or 411 (opens new windowabout)
- established religious order in her home on the Aventine hill in Rome
- received instruction from Jerome and corresponded with him after he left Rome
- died shortly after being beaten by Visigothic soldiers during the sack of Rome in 410
- opens new windowMacrina the Younger, c. 327-380
- elder sister of Basil the Great and Gregory of Nyssa
- Gregory called her his teacher
- emphasized her asceticism and her virginity
- mother of Eastern monasticism
- Syncletica, 380-c. 460 (opens new windowabout)
- desert mother (amma)
- Vita Sanctae Syncleticae (PG 28: 1488-1557)
- sayings in A pophthegmata Patrum
- emphasized patience, gentleness, and moderation
- Melania the Elder (opens new windowabout), 342-411
- established monastery on Mount of Olives
- opens new windowEgeria the Pilgrim, active, 4th-5th c.
- went on a pilgrimage, 381-384
- Paula the Elder, of Rome,347–404
- friend of Jerome
- established a monastery and convent in Bethlehem in386
- Jerome extolled her virtues in Ep.108 (MignePL22. 878 ff.).
- Monica, c. 331-387 (opens new windowabout)
- mother of Augustine
- wept and prayed perseveringly for her son's conversion
- extolled by her son for her holiness and wisdom
- Mary of Egypt, 344-c. 421 (opens new windowabout)
- Melania the Younger (opens new windowabout), 383-439
- granddaughter of the earlier Melania
- Sarah, anchoress
- desert mother (amma) in the desert of Scetis near end of the 4th c.
- sayings in Apophthegmata Patrum
- Theodora, anchoress
- desert mother (amma)
- sayings in Apophthegmata Patrum
- Ita, 475-570 or 577
- born in Ireland
- established convent of Killeedy (Limerick County)
- known for healings and the gifts of spiritual discernment and prophecy
- opens new windowVita sanctae Ite
Bibliography
- Melania the Elder & Women in the Early Churchby William Harmless, S.J.
Melania the Elder
Desert Mothers
- The Forgotten Desert Mothers: Sayings, Lives, and Stories of Early Christian Women by An introduction to the Sayings, Lives, stories & spirituality of women in the post-biblical, early Christian movement.Call Number: BR195.M65 S93 2001
- Praying with the Desert Mothers by Fourth- and fifth-century desert mothers in the Mediterranean region, known as ammas (spiritual mothers), were the founders of Christian community in the early church. Praying with the Desert Mothersintroduces the lives, sayings, and stories of these remarkable spiritual elders. It enriches readers' lives and compels them to return in meditation and prayer. For each topic a true story is drawn from a modern persona's experience of seeking God. This tapestry of stories of the desert ammas is woven together with theological insights, discussion of genres of literature, historical views on women, and reflective approaches to the wisdom tradition. Praying with the Desert Mothers combines scholarship and reflection for praying, meditating, and living the wisdom of spiritual practices today. Chapters are Introduction to the Desert Mothers, Ammas as Midwives of Wisdom, Ammas as Scripture Scholars, Heralds in the Desert, Desert as Idyllic Garden, The Peal of Great Price, Humility and the Manifestation of Thoughts, Penthos and Tears, Signs of Conversion, The Hidden Life, Prayer and Hospitality; and concludes with The Visitation and a complete bibliography on the desert ammas. Mary Forman, OSB, PhD, a Benedictine from the Monastery of Saint Gertrude, Cottonwood, Idaho, is assistant professor of theology at the School of Theology, seminary and the College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's University, Collegeville, Minnesota.Call Number: BR195.M65 F67 2005
Online Indices to Women's Literature
- Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender IndexIndexes journal articles, book reviews, and essays in multi-author books about women during the Middle Ages. For books written by a single author, check library catalogs with strong collections in medieval studies such as those of the University of Notre Dame, the University of Toronto, Princeton, and Yale.
- Monastic MatrixA scholarly resource for the study of women's religious communities from 400 to 1600 CE.