The Medieval Fate of Apocrypha Stories of First Century Women–the Marys

Abstract

The Medieval Fate of Apocrypha Stories of First Century Women–the Marys Prof. Colleen Donnelly Abstract This article discusses evidence of the survival and transmission of non-canonical stories about the Virgin Mary and Mary Magdalene from the first centuries of Christianity (C.E.) to the Late Middle Agesand endeavors to illuminate the writtenoral textual tradition surrounding them, considering their appeal to a contemporary mediveal audience and the heretical challenges their stories presented to canonical Scripture. In looking at the plays available to lay Christian English audiences between 1350-1500, we not only see what materials were passed down through the centuries, we also have a window into the vernacular religion practices and beliefs at that time, as reflected in these texts. Full Text: PDF DOI: 10.15640/ijpt.v2n3a1