The Life of the Virgin Mary According to Middle Byzantine Preachers and Hagiographers : Changing Contexts and Perspectives

Abstract

This article examines the Byzantine homiletic and hagiographical treatment of the Virgin Mary, “Theotokos” or “Birth-giver of God”, seeking to determine why diverse narratives concerning this holy figure began to appear from about the early ninth century onward (assuming, in agreement with Phil Booth’s recent article, that the Greek prototype for the Georgian Life of the Virgin that is attributed to Maximos the Confessor should more probably be dated to the tenth century). The divergences, which may reflect various early apocryphal traditions, follow somewhat generic lines : whereas homilies, which were delivered in the context of liturgical vigils or eucharistic celebrations and incorporated well-known narratives such as the Protevangelium of James and versions of the Transitus Mariae, three Marian hagiographical works reflect a variant version of the Virgin’s legendary biography. The present study seeks not only to identify some of the more important variations in post-ninth-century narrative traditions surrounding the Virgin Mary, but also to examine the didactic purposes of preachers and hagiographers. It is likely both that ongoing Christological discussions played a part in inspiring Byzantine reflection on Mary, as human mother of Christ and intercessor, and that monastic revival caused greater focus on the Virgin’s ascetic and apostolic qualities in this period.