Abstract
This essay considers the evolution of Mary’s virginity in the early Church, especially in the fourth and fifth centuries. It argues that for the Western Church, the key problem was the eternality of her virginity (ante, in, and post partum); in the Eastern, it was her status as the Mother of God. The difference of concern and final settlement of Mary’s nature was brought to a head with the ministry of Jovinian in Italy and, with state pressure, led Church Fathers to declare her virginity eternal and herself Theotokos. The settlement also resulted in Mary’s status as a symbol and patron of anti-familial asceticism.
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