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Gospel of Mary
The Gospel of Mary is an early Christian text first discovered in 1896 in a fifth-century papyrus codex written in Sahidic Coptic. This Berlin Codex was purchased in Cairo by German diplomat Carl Reinhardt. Additional Greek fragments of the text were subsequently found amongst the Oxyrhynchus Papyri.
Although the work is popularly known as the Gospel of Mary, it is not classified as a gospel by most scholars, who restrict the term "gospel" to texts "primarily focused on recounting the teachings and/or activities of Jesus during his adult life".
The Berlin Codex, also known as the Akhmim Codex, also contains the Apocryphon of John, the Sophia of Jesus Christ, and a summary of the Act of Peter. All four works contained in the manuscript are written in the Sahidic dialect of Coptic. At least two other fragments of the Gospel of Mary have been discovered since, both written in Greek. Papyrus Oxyrhynchus L 3525 was "found by Grenfell and Hunt some time between 1897 and 1906, but only published in 1983" by P. J. Parsons, while Papyrus Rylands 463) was published in 1938. The Coptic text of Mary was translated in 1955 by Walter Till.
Additionally, some scholars believe that Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 5577 may be an additional fragment of Mary originally located somewhere in the large gap left in the existing manuscripts.
Dating the gospel, as with most ancient literary texts, is problematic. As the earliest extant fragment of the gospel (the Rylands papyrus) dates to the early Third Century, it must predate this. Karen L. King, Hollis Professor of Divinity at Harvard Divinity School, suggested that the gospel was composed early in the Second Century, noting that it evidences familiarity with the Gospel of John, and perhaps the letters of Paul. Christopher Tuckett's discussion in his 2007 volume notes Pasquier's preference for a date in the second half of the century; Tuckett himself ultimately opts for a middle position – he places it in the first half of the Second Century but later than King.
The Gospel of Mary is not present in the list of apocryphal books of section five of the Decretum Gelasianum.
Scholars do not always agree which of the New Testament people named Mary is the central character of the Gospel of Mary. Stephen J. Shoemaker and F. Stanley Jones have suggested that she may be Mary the mother of Jesus. Barbara J. Silvertsen alternatively suggests that she may be a sister of Jesus - an individual who has largely been lost in history. Silvertsen says that while none of the canonical Gospels identifies Jesus's sisters by name (Mark 6:3, Matthew 13:56), one of his sisters is identified as "Mary" in the Gospel of Philip.
Arguments in favor of Mary Magdalene are based on her status as a known follower of Jesus, her appearance in other early Christian writings. She is mentioned as accompanying Jesus on his journeys (Luke 8:2) and is listed in the Gospel of Matthew as being present at his crucifixion (Matthew 27:56) and along with the "other Mary" being the first to see the Risen Lord (Matthew 28:9). In the Gospel of John, she is recorded as the sole first witness of Jesus' resurrection (John 20:14–16); (Mark 16:9 later manuscripts).
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Gospel of Mary
The Gospel of Mary is an early Christian text first discovered in 1896 in a fifth-century papyrus codex written in Sahidic Coptic. This Berlin Codex was purchased in Cairo by German diplomat Carl Reinhardt. Additional Greek fragments of the text were subsequently found amongst the Oxyrhynchus Papyri.
Although the work is popularly known as the Gospel of Mary, it is not classified as a gospel by most scholars, who restrict the term "gospel" to texts "primarily focused on recounting the teachings and/or activities of Jesus during his adult life".
The Berlin Codex, also known as the Akhmim Codex, also contains the Apocryphon of John, the Sophia of Jesus Christ, and a summary of the Act of Peter. All four works contained in the manuscript are written in the Sahidic dialect of Coptic. At least two other fragments of the Gospel of Mary have been discovered since, both written in Greek. Papyrus Oxyrhynchus L 3525 was "found by Grenfell and Hunt some time between 1897 and 1906, but only published in 1983" by P. J. Parsons, while Papyrus Rylands 463) was published in 1938. The Coptic text of Mary was translated in 1955 by Walter Till.
Additionally, some scholars believe that Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 5577 may be an additional fragment of Mary originally located somewhere in the large gap left in the existing manuscripts.
Dating the gospel, as with most ancient literary texts, is problematic. As the earliest extant fragment of the gospel (the Rylands papyrus) dates to the early Third Century, it must predate this. Karen L. King, Hollis Professor of Divinity at Harvard Divinity School, suggested that the gospel was composed early in the Second Century, noting that it evidences familiarity with the Gospel of John, and perhaps the letters of Paul. Christopher Tuckett's discussion in his 2007 volume notes Pasquier's preference for a date in the second half of the century; Tuckett himself ultimately opts for a middle position – he places it in the first half of the Second Century but later than King.
The Gospel of Mary is not present in the list of apocryphal books of section five of the Decretum Gelasianum.
Scholars do not always agree which of the New Testament people named Mary is the central character of the Gospel of Mary. Stephen J. Shoemaker and F. Stanley Jones have suggested that she may be Mary the mother of Jesus. Barbara J. Silvertsen alternatively suggests that she may be a sister of Jesus - an individual who has largely been lost in history. Silvertsen says that while none of the canonical Gospels identifies Jesus's sisters by name (Mark 6:3, Matthew 13:56), one of his sisters is identified as "Mary" in the Gospel of Philip.
Arguments in favor of Mary Magdalene are based on her status as a known follower of Jesus, her appearance in other early Christian writings. She is mentioned as accompanying Jesus on his journeys (Luke 8:2) and is listed in the Gospel of Matthew as being present at his crucifixion (Matthew 27:56) and along with the "other Mary" being the first to see the Risen Lord (Matthew 28:9). In the Gospel of John, she is recorded as the sole first witness of Jesus' resurrection (John 20:14–16); (Mark 16:9 later manuscripts).