RT Article
T1 The Orthodox Woman: Jerome on the Relation Between Asceticism, Orthodoxy, and Gender
JF Vigiliae Christianae
VO 77
IS 4
SP 424
OP 446
A1 Pålsson, Katarina
LA English
PB Brill
YR 2023
UL https://www.ixtheo.de/Record/185940474X
AB While previous scholarship has shown that the rhetorical figure of the “heretical woman” was important in Jerome’s slandering of male rivals, this article argues that the “orthodox woman” played a just as important role in his self-presentation as an orthodox teacher. The “orthodox woman” is characterized by true asceticism which, according to Jerome’s ascetic theology, implies that she transcends her sex. Rather than being a “woman”, in the ordinary sense of the word, she is an angelic being with a supernatural understanding, which allows her to discern the spiritual meaning of the Scriptures and to distinguish between orthodoxy and heresy. It is argued that the presentation of the “orthodox woman” as very learned, independent and strong-willed makes her the direct opposite of Jerome’s “heretical woman”, and that such a portrayal suited Jerome’s purposes, as his great reliance on women readers called for a defence of female spiritual authority.
K1 Women
K1 heresiology
K1 Heresy
K1 Orthodoxy
K1 Asceticism
K1 Jerome of Stridon
DO 10.1163/15700720-bja10077