Acts of Paul and Thecla - Research Proposal Example

Acts of Paul and Thecla The view of women as depicted in this document by Paul where Thecla is seen as an aristocratic young woman who upon hearing the teachings and message of Paul gives up her fiancé and follows Paul on his missions. This is done against the wishes of her family to the extent that her mother orders her daughter to be burned in order to avoid her following Paul and his faith. Thecla though manages to survive being burnt and finally baptizes herself in a pool of seals and goes on to become a missionary living to a ripe old age and preaching the gospel.

This is just one of the stories in the apocryphal acts where the women are portrayed as sacrificing wherein they give up wealth and marriage for the sake of their faith.The significance of the Thecla story is that young women would be better off not getting married, but incase they are already married to try at the earliest to lead lives of abstinence and sexual renunciation, by this it says that they will be better of fulfilling the will of God. “In the Acts of Thecla for example, Paul gives a speech in which he recasts the part of the bible that we call the beatitudes.

Thats the "blessed are the so and so.." Pauls version of this is all about blessed are the bodies of virgins . blessed are the chaste. Its all about sexual chastity. That those are the people who are blessed in this new recasting of the Christian message”. (Elizabeth Clark. pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/religion/first/roles.html)"The Acts of Paul and Thecla" tell us of how a woman was instrumental in spreading the gospel. It clearly pictures her as being a very string minded and sincere.

This depiction of an independent woman was not very apt during that time period when women were subdued and always in the background. Moreover her life after she meets Paul is seemed to be filled with miracles where she miraculously survives an attempt to burn her alive, or her confrontation with wild beasts where she survives unscathed. Further she escapes from some men through a crack in the rock made by God which was then closed behind her. As for Thecla we see her as a strong willed and faithful disciple of the Lord.

Her celibacy and strong character shows up where she baptizes, preaches and heals and stands up to her faith amidst all hurdles. The path she had chosen is very unlike the women of her period. In a way these story was apparently used by women who wanted to preach the gospel and looked for a legitimate status as ministers of Gods word.This story certainly reads and sounds like a myth due to the various miracles in one person’s life which we do not see or hear in any other even the prophets. The incident where Tryphaena rises from the dead definitely sounds incredulous as there has been only one man in the history of mankind who has risen from the dead and that is Jesus Christ apart from the fact of Jesus bringing Lazarus back to life.

Although it is hard to separate truth from legend we can take the document for its stand of faith and leadership of women who stood for the glory of God.   The Acts of Paul and Thecla is part of a Pauline tradition that provided apostolic stand for womens leadership roles in the church. However the events described in the Acts are legendary, there is a possibility that a real Thecla may have lived in Asia Minor. Like most stories about Jesus his disciples and apostles, originally the tales were related orally.

The book itself reveals a wealth of women characters and was very popular in women’s circles for its portrayal of women evangelists and is now a part of the Christian apocrypha.Works CitedElizabeth Clark. From Jesus to Christ. The first Christians. 1995-2008. The roles for women. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/religion/first/roles.htmlQuaker oats live. 5th March, 2008. Thecla. 22nd May, 2008. http://quakeroatslive.blogspot.com/2008/03/thecla.htmlNancy A. Carter. The Acts of Thecla: A Pauline Tradition Linked to Women.

22nd May, 2008. Women, Paul and Early Christianity.http://gbgm-umc.org/umw/corinthians/theclabackground.stm