Women's Religions in the Greco-Roman World: A Sourcebook

517 Pages·2004·2.89 MB·English

by  Ross Shepard Kraemer (editor)

Women’s Religions
Greco-Roman World
in the
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Women’s Religions
Greco-Roman World
in the
A S
ourcebook
Edited by
ross shepard kraemer
1
2004
1
Oxford NewYork
Auckland Bangkok BuenosAires CapeTown Chennai
DaresSalaam Delhi HongKong Istanbul Karachi Kolkata
KualaLumpur Madrid Melbourne MexicoCity Mumbai Nairobi
Sa˜oPaulo Shanghai Taipei Tokyo Toronto
Copyright(cid:2) 2004 by Ross ShepardKraemer
PublishedbyOxfordUniversityPress,Inc.
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OxfordisaregisteredtrademarkofOxfordUniversityPress
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,
storedinaretrievalsystem,ortransmitted,inanyformorbyanymeans,
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ISBN0-19-517065-2(cloth);0-19-514278-0(pbk.)
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PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica
onacid-freepaper
For Michael
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Acknowledgments
Many people contributed to the production of this new edition, which was orig-
inallypublishedbyFortressPressin1988asMaenads,Martyrs,Matrons,Monastics:
A Sourcebook on Women’s Religions in the Greco-Roman World.CarolynOsiekand
Janet Timbie gave me permission again to include their respective translationsof
selections from Epiphanius and Shenoute’s Letter toTachom.LeighGibson,Lynn
LiDonnici, and others suggested formatting changes based on theirclassroomex-
periences with the original edition. Deb Bucher providedinvaluablebibliographic
assistance.Mary RoseD’AngeloandSusanAshbrookHarveycritiquedtherevised
introductions. Jesse Goodman, Luke Meier, and Heidi Wendt checkedreferences,
read proofs, and prepared the index of female names. Kathleen Pappas and Gail
Tetreaultprovidedcrucialsupportwithcorrespondenceandothertime-consuming
clerical tasks. Cynthia Read and Theo Calderera at Oxford provided encourage-
ment, advice, and assistancefrom the inceptionof this project on.
Theintroductionstothesectionsandselectionsthroughoutthisbookarestud-
ded with insights and ideas gained through my work with the graduate students
at Penn, especially Deb Bucher, Lynn Cohick, Maxine Grossman, Shira Lander,
Susan Marks, Jacqueline Pastis, Beth Pollard, and Sarah Schwarz. They are my
“spiritual children,” and I trust they know it.
One more time, I want to thank my colleaguesintheDepartmentofReligious
Studies at the University of Pennsylvania for their extraordinarysupportandcol-
legialityovertwenty-fiveyears.Equally,Iwanttothankmycolleaguesandstudents
at Brown University, for affording me an opportunity at this stage of my career
beyond anything I might have imagined or wished for.
Finally,asalways,Iwanttothankmyfamily:myhusband,Michael,mydaugh-
ter,Jordan,andmywonderfulparents-in-law,HoneyandJerryKraemer,fortheir
unfailing love and support.
The Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard
Version Bible, copyright (cid:2) 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the
NationalCouncilofChurchesofChristintheU.S.A.,andareusedbypermission.
All rights reserved.
Selections from Tal Ilan, “Matrona and Rabbi Jose,” JSJ 25 (1994) 18–51, are
reprinted with permission of Brill Academic Publishers.
SelectionfromDavidNoy,ed.,JewishInscriptionsofWesternEurope,Vol.2:The
City of Rome (copyright (cid:2) 1995), is reprinted by permission of Cambridge Uni-
versity Press.
Selections from Paul Harkin, John Chrysostom, “Against Judaizing Christians,”
(FC 68, copyright (cid:2) 1977), and Ronald Heine, Montanist Oracles and Testimonia
(NAPS Vol. #14, copyright (cid:2) 1989, The North American Patristics Society), are
reprinted by permission of the Catholic University Press of America.
Selections from A. Veilleux, Pachomian Koinonia, vol. 2, PachomianChronicles
and Rules (copyright (cid:2) 1981), and R. M. Price, Theodoret of Cyrrhus, “A History
of the Monks of Syria” (copyright (cid:2) 1985), are used by permission of Cistercian
Publications.
Selections from James Robinson, The Nag Hammadi Library in English (copy-
right(cid:2)1978,1988,E.J.Brill),areusedbypermissionofHarperCollinsPublishers,
Inc.
Selections from Corpus Papyrorum Judaicarum, eds. Victor A.Tcherikover,Al-
exander Fuks and Menahem Stern (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press,
Copyright (cid:2) 1957, 1960, 1964, by the Magnes Press, the Hebrew University), are
reprinted by permission of the publishers.
Selections from the Loeb Classical Library are reprintedbypermissionofHar-
vard University Press and the Trustees of the Loeb Classical Library. The Loeb
ClassicalLibraryisaregisteredtrademarkofthePresidentandFellowsofHarvard
College.
Selections from Naphtali Lewis, The Documents from the Bar Kochba Periodin
the Cave of the Letters: Greek Papyri (copyright (cid:2) 1989), are used by permission
of the Israel ExplorationSociety.
Selections from Mary R. Lefkowitz and Maureen B. Fant, eds.,Women’sLifein
GreeceandRome(copyright(cid:2)1992),areusedbypermissionoftheJohnsHopkins
University Press.
The selection from Ute Eisen, Women Officeholders in EarlyChristianity(copy-
right (cid:2) 2000), is used by permission of the Liturgical Press.
Selections from New Documents Illustrating Early Christianityareusedpermis-
sion of MacQuarie University.
“The Life of Olympias,” from Elizabeth A. Clark, Jerome, Chrysostom and
Friends (copyright (cid:2) 1979), is used by permission of Edwin Mellen Press.
Selections from Scott Bradbury, Severus of Minorca, “Letter on the Conversion
of the Jews” (copyright (cid:2) 1996); Hannah M. Cotton and Ada Yardeni, Aramaic,
Hebrew and Greek Documentary Texts from Nahal Hever and Other Sites (Discov-
eries in the Judean Desert 27, copyright (cid:2) 1997); J. K. Elliott, Apocryphal New
Testament (copyright (cid:2) 1993); John Gager, Curse Tablets and Binding Spells from
Acknowledgments
viii
the Ancient World (copyright (cid:2) 1992); Ross S. Kraemer andMaryRoseD’Angelo,
Women and Christian Origins (copyright (cid:2) 1999); Herbert Musurillo, Acts of the
Christian Martyrs (copyright (cid:2) 1971); Niall Rudd, Juvenal, “The Satires,” (OWC,
copyright (cid:2) 1991); Joan Taylor, Jewish Women Philosophers of First-CenturyAlex-
andria (copyright (cid:2) 2003); and P. G. Walsh, Apuleius, “Metamorphoses” (OWC,
copyright (cid:2) 1994), are used by permissionof Oxford University Press.
Selections from George E. Gingras, Egeria: Diary of a Pilgrimage (ACW 38,
copyright(cid:2)1970),andLeslieWilliamBarnard,JustinMartyr,“TheFirstandSecond
Apologies”(ACW56,copyright(cid:2)1997),areusedwithpermissionofPaulistPress.
SelectionsfromOvid,“Fasti,”trans.AnthonyJ.BoyleandRogerD.Woodward
(copyright (cid:2) 2000), are used by permission of Penguin Books.
Selections from James Charlesworth, The Odes of Solomon (copyright (cid:2) 1973);
David G. Rice and John E. Stambaugh, Sources for the Study of Greek Religion
(copyright (cid:2) 1979); and Robert A. Kraft and Janet Timbie, The Testament of Job
(copyright (cid:2) 1974), are used by permission of the Society of Biblical Literature.
Selections from B. P. Reardon, ed., Collected Ancient Greek Novels (copyright
(cid:2) 1989, The Regents of the University of California), and Sebastian P.Brockand
Susan Ashbrook Harvey, Holy Women of theSyrianOrient(copyright(cid:2)1987,The
Regents of the University of California), are used by permission of theUniversity
of California Press.
Selections from Hans Dieter Betz, ed., The Greek MagicalPapyriinTranslation
(2nd ed., copyright (cid:2) 1992), and Euripides, “Bacchae,” trans.WilliamArrowsmith
(copyright (cid:2) 1959), are used by permission of University of Chicago Press.
Selections from Jacob Neusner, The Mishnah, A New Translation(copyright(cid:2)
Yale University Press, 1988), are used by permission.
Acknowledgments
ix