The Cult of Saint Thecla A Tradition of Women's Piety in Late Antiquity

by Davis, Stephen J.

• ISBN13: 9780198270195
• ISBN10: 0198270194
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2001-04-05
• Publisher: Clarendon Press

Summary

Thecla, a disciple of the apostle Paul, was perhaps the most celebrated female saint and 'martyr' among Christians in late antiquity. In examining the practices of Thecla's devotees in Asia Minor and Egypt, Stephen Davis shows that Thecla's cult was closely linked with communities of women as a means of empowerment.

Author Biography

Stephen Davis is Professor of New Testament and Early Church History, Evangelical Theological Seminary in Cairo.

Table of Contents

List of Figures	xi
Abbreviations	xiii
PART I. THE CULT OF SAINT THECLA IN ASIA MINOR	1	(80)
Origins of the Thecla Cult	3	(33)
Introduction	3	(5)
Women's Culture in the Acts of Paul and Thecla	8	(10)
Social Practice in the Acts of Paul and Thecla: Asceticism and Itinerancy	18	(8)
Thecla as a Social Type: Charismatics and Communities of Female Support in Second-Century Asia Minor	26	(10)
The Cult of Thecla at Seleucia in Asia Minor	36	(45)
Hagia Thekla: The Physical Setting	37	(2)
Literary Patronage of the Thecla Cult at Seleucia: The Expansion of Her Legend	39	(9)
Women's Piety in Cultural Conflict at Hagia Thekla: Asceticism, Itinerancy, and Martyr Cult	48	(33)
PART II. THE CULT OF SAINT THECLA IN EGYPT	81	(114)
Thecla Devotion Among Ascetic Women in Alexandria	83	(30)
Introduction	83	(4)
Female Monasticism in Alexandria: A Social Context for Thecla Devotion in the Fourth Century	87	(8)
Women's Devotion to Thecla in Political Context: Theological and Ascetic Factionalism in Fourth-Century Alexandria	95	(8)
The Fate of the Virgins: A History of Alexandrian Devotees to Saint Thecla	103	(10)
Pilgrimage and the Cult of Saint Thecla in the Mareotis	113	(36)
Egyptian Pilgrim Flasks with the Image of Saint Thecla	114	(6)
The Pairing of Saints Thecla and Menas: Geography and Gender in the Alexandrian Cult of the Martyrs	120	(6)
Evidence of a Thecla Shrine in the Mareotis	126	(7)
Cultic Competition Between the Shrines of Saints Menas and Thecla: A Study in the Appropriation of Oral Tradition	133	(4)
Women's Itinerancy and Pilgrimage: The Social Practices of Thecla Devotion in the Mareotis	137	(12)
The Spread of Thecla Devotion Outside Alexandria and Its Environs	149	(46)
Devotion to Saint Thecla in the Kharga Oasis: Evidence in Art	150	(22)
The Spread of Thecla Devotion in the Fayum and the Nile Valley	172	(18)
Conclusion	190	(5)
Appendix A. A Catalogue of Published Ampullae with Saint Thecla	195	(6)
Appendix B. Namesakes of Saint Thecla in Late Antique Egypt	201	(8)
Figures	209	(30)
Bibliography	239	(38)
Index	277