The Bible and Beyond Podcast Episode
Has a Missing Fragment of the Gospel of Mary Been Discovered?
An Interview with Dr. Sarah Parkhouse
Dr. Sarah Parkhouse
Dr. Sarah Parkhouse has made a discovery that is quite noteworthy for anyone interested in the Gospel of Mary. One of the hundreds, if not thousands, of small fragments of papyri found in the garbage dump Oxyrhynchus, Egypt, just might be one of the missing parts of the Gospel of Mary. Dr. Parkhouse considers the possibility cautiously, but in this podcast interview, she shares her reasons for thinking this Greek fragment could easily fit within one of the lacunae of the texts now available to the world.
The specific part where it may fit is in the section where Mary is describing to her fellow disciples the ascent of the soul. The most complete text we have so far begins with Mary part way through this discussion. This rather small new fragment does specifically mention that Jesus is talking to Mary about something.
It appears to include elements that would fit the ascent of the soul. When we look at some of Paul’s writings, we recognize that the soul’s journey might refer to some kind of baptismal ritual, and this fragment is talking about baptism.
An English translation of one side of the fragment is something like:
John said, I wash you with water, but a man will come and will wash you with fire and spirit. Therefore, I say to you, Mary, seek to combine water and fire, you will no longer appear as an image of flesh, but as an image of the eternal, incorruptible light, bringing together from two intertwined. . . elements. …. Intellectual … Mary
Of course, if this fragment should prove to be one of the missing parts of the Gospel of Mary, this would add considerably to our understanding of the gospel. But, as Dr. Parkhouse points out, even if it should come to light that it does not belong to the Gospel of Mary, then it is still exciting because that would imply there are even more texts which include discussions between Mary and Jesus on important themes.
Either way, the discovery of this fragment is cause for joy among those interested in this gospel and in the study of early Christian thought.
Dr. Sarah Parkhouse, a British Academy Postdoctoral Fellow in Religion and Theology at the University of Manchester, UK, is a religious historian. She focuses on the ancient Mediterranean and the emergence of Christianity within the Greco-Roman-Egyptian context. She has published work on gospel literature, canonical and extracanonical, gender, papyrology, and martyrdom. Examples include studies on the Gospel of Mary, the Gospel of John, First Apocalypse of James, and the Acts of Paul and Thecla. She is also co-editor of a new book series, Coptic Gospels and Associated Texts.
Sarah’s more general research interests are ancient religion, lived religion, place and landscape, objects, practices, ritual, magic, and comparative religion.
Some Bible and Beyond podcast episodes are made available as video podcasts on our YouTube channel. This month’s episode can be found here.
As a man, God calls us to lead spiritually.
The physical reality of matter is an illusion which takes counterintuitive and sometimes paradoxical actions.
In this way, the mystery of Christ is glorified in that the perfect man or perfect human would have the capacity to submit to the knowledge of woman.
The Gospel of Mary, all of the Marys in the Bible, and both of you are glorious creations of God and are glorifying his Name through your faith and understanding.
As a man, I say you women are equally if not more deserving of life, and I humbly thank you for the wisdom.
What an excellent podcast! I do have a couple of questions.
First, volume 87 of The Oxyrhynchus Papyri cites several resonances with Valentinian texts, including Ptolemaeus’ Letter to Flora, The Gospel of Truth, The Tripartite Tractate, The Gospel of Philip, and the Excerpts of Theodotus. To what degree might these observations possibly mitigate its potential relationship to the Gospel of Mary, which appears to be a Sethian tractate?
Second, what light do you feel the fragments of the Book of Allogenes in CT,4 recovered in 2010 may shed on the missing four pages in the middle of The Gospel of Mary?
Hi Mark,
Thanks so much for your interest and your questions!
First, Juan Chapa is absolutely right that there are all sorts of resonances between 5577 and Valentinian texts – but such resonances exist across all gospel-like literature and beyond. There are plenty of connections throughout all early Christian literature (and beyond) when you look for them. I’m not sure why the Gospel of Mary would be identified as Sethian as opposed to anything else (because of the lawgiver?). In my opinion, it could well be Sethian OR Valentinian OR neither – we simply don’t have enough of it to know for sure. (Libbie Schrader is working on a paper that argues Gos. Mary might be Valentinian based on 5577, I’ve not read it yet but I’m looking forward to doing so!) I think that the really interesting thing about 5577 and the Valentinian connection is how 5577 potentially pushes the Gospel of Mary nearer to the Gospel of Philip, and I hope more will be done with that connection in the future!
Allogenes is also fascinating and again shows more examples of the resonances across the board of EC literature! I’m not sure what it can tell us specifically about the missing pages in the middle of the Gospel of Mary, although there are certainly parallels with the dialogue between the soul and the powers. It might suggest that the soul in Gos Mary is disembodied, but we could likely guess that from the extant text anyway!
Best wishes,
Sarah
This is the most exciting news! Thank you to Dr. Parkhouse for your insight. I have been eagerly awaiting any new insights on possible passages to the Gospel of Mary and wasn’t sure I would ever hear of any in my lifetime. I look forward to your article!