Jesus and Other Men

Jesus and Other Men Susanna Asikainen - 978-90-04-36109-6 Downloaded from Brill.com01/07/2020 12:06:03PM via University of Helsinki Biblical Interpretation Series Editors in Chief Paul Anderson (George Fox University) Jennifer Koosed (Albright College, Reading) Editorial Board A.K.M. Adam (University of Oxford) Colleen M. Conway (Seton Hall University) Amy Kalmanofsky (Jewish Theological Seminary) Vernon Robbins (Emory University) Annette Schellenberg (Universität Wien) Carolyn J. Sharp (Yale Divinity School) Johanna Stiebert (University of Leeds) Duane Watson (Malone University) Christine Roy Yoder (Columbia Theological Seminary) Ruben Zimmermann (Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz) VOLUME 159 The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/bins Susanna Asikainen - 978-90-04-36109-6 Downloaded from Brill.com01/07/2020 12:06:03PM via University of Helsinki Jesus and Other Men Ideal Masculinities in the Synoptic Gospels By Susanna Asikainen LEIDEN | BOSTON Susanna Asikainen - 978-90-04-36109-6 Downloaded from Brill.com01/07/2020 12:06:03PM via University of Helsinki Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Asikainen, Susanna, author. Title: Jesus and other men : ideal masculinities in the Synoptic Gospels / by Susanna Asikainen. Description: Boston : Brill, 2018. | Series: Biblical interpretation series, ISSN 0928-0731 ; volume 159 | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2017053617 (print) | LCCN 2017054606 (ebook) | ISBN 9789004361096 (E-book) | ISBN 9789004360983 (hardback : alk. paper) Subjects: LCSH: Bible. Gospels—Criticism, interpretation, etc. | Masculinity—Biblical teaching. | Masculinity in the Bible. | Men (Christian theology)—Biblical teaching. Classification: LCC BS2555.6.M39 (ebook) | LCC BS2555.6.M39 A85 2018 (print) | DDC 226/.08155332—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017053617 Typeface for the Latin, Greek, and Cyrillic scripts: “Brill”. See and download: brill.com/brill-typeface. issn 0928-0731 isbn 978-90-04-36098-3 (hardback) isbn 978-90-04-36109-6 (e-book) Copyright 2018 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands. Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Brill Hes & De Graaf, Brill Nijhoff, Brill Rodopi, Brill Sense and Hotei Publishing. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Koninklijke Brill NV provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, MA 01923, USA. Fees are subject to change. This book is printed on acid-free paper and produced in a sustainable manner. Susanna Asikainen - 978-90-04-36109-6 Downloaded from Brill.com01/07/2020 12:06:03PM via University of Helsinki Contents Acknowledgements ix 1 Introduction 1 Of Masculinities and Men 3 A Reassessment of Connell’s Theory 8 Theorizing Marginalized Masculinities 13 Outline of the Study 17 2 Masculinities in the Ancient Greco-Roman World 19 Introduction 19 Biological Sex in the Ancient Greco-Roman World 20 Ancient Greco-Roman Gender Stereotypes 23 Who is a Real, Hegemonically Masculine Man? 25 Ideal Characteristics of Masculine Men 29 Effeminacy and Lack of Self-Control 32 Marginalized Masculinities in the Ancient Greco-Roman World 35 Philo 37 Josephus 40 4 Maccabees 41 Rabbinic Judaism 43 Conclusions 44 3 Jesus and His Opponents 46 Introduction 46 The Authority of Jesus 47 The Opponents as Negative Examples of Unmasculine Behavior 49 Jesus’ Disputes with His Opponents 55 Challenges to the Masculinity of Jesus 59 Herod 63 The Death of John the Baptist 63 Other Mentions of Herod 67 Pilate 70 Pilate in Mark (15:1–15) 70 Pilate in Matthew (27:11–26) 71 Pilate in Luke (23:1–25) 72 Conclusions 73 Susanna Asikainen - 978-90-04-36109-6 Downloaded from Brill.com01/07/2020 12:06:03PM via University of Helsinki vi Contents 4 Jesus and His Male Followers 75 Introduction 75 The Portrayal of the Disciples in the Synoptic Gospels 75 Peter in the Synoptic Gospels 78 The Messiah Confession 79 Peter in the Passion Narratives 81 Jesus’ Teaching on Ideal Behavior in the Sermon on the Mount 83 Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3–12) 84 Antitheses (Matthew 5:21–48) 86 Piety (Matthew 6:1–18) 88 Jesus and Family in the Synoptic Gospels 89 Service and Slavery as the Ideal Masculinity 92 Children as Examples for the Disciples 95 Matthew, Eunuchs, and Subordinated Masculinities 99 Conclusions 104 5 Jesus and Women 106 Introduction 106 Ideal Women in the Ancient Greco-Roman World 107 The Women Followers of Jesus 109 The Syrophoenician or Canaanite Woman 111 Mark’s Account of the Story (Mark 7:24–30) 112 Matthew’s Account of the Story (Matthew 15:21–28) 115 The Syrophoenician Woman’s Challenge to Jesus’ Masculinity 118 The Women Jesus Heals: The Hemorrhaging Woman 121 The Anointing Woman 127 The Ideal Woman in Luke 130 Feminine Jesus 131 Conclusions 133 6 Jesus and Emotions 134 Introduction 134 Emotions in Greco-Roman Antiquity 134 Grief and Tears in Greco-Roman Antiquity 137 Anger in Greco-Roman Antiquity 139 The Emotions of Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels 142 The Tears of Jesus in the Gospel of Luke 145 The Incident at the Temple 147 The Emotions of the Other Characters 153 Conclusions 155 Susanna Asikainen - 978-90-04-36109-6 Downloaded from Brill.com01/07/2020 12:06:03PM via University of Helsinki Contents vii 7 Jesus and Suffering 156 Introduction 156 Death and Suffering in the Ancient Greco-Roman World 157 Jesus’ Teaching on Suffering 158 Jesus in Gethsemane 160 Mark 14:32–42 161 Matthew 26:36–46 163 Luke 22:39–46 164 The Masculinity of Jesus in Gethsemane 166 The Arrest of Jesus 167 The Jewish and the Roman Trials: The Silence of Jesus 169 The Mocking and Scourging of Jesus 170 The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus 173 The Death of Jesus in Mark and Matthew 174 The Death of Jesus in Luke 177 Conclusions 181 8 Conclusions 184 Bibliography 189 Primary Sources 189 Secondary Literature 194 Index of Modern Authors 223 Index of Ancient Sources 228 Susanna Asikainen - 978-90-04-36109-6 Downloaded from Brill.com01/07/2020 12:06:03PM via University of Helsinki Susanna Asikainen - 978-90-04-36109-6 Downloaded from Brill.com01/07/2020 12:06:03PM via University of Helsinki Acknowledgements This book started out as a doctoral dissertation at the University of Helsinki. It is with great pleasure that I thank the people whose friendship, support, and wisdom contributed to the work. First and foremost I want to thank my su- pervisors, Prof. Antti Marjanen and Doc. Risto Uro. They have offered me support and encouragement while at the same time challenging me to sharpen my argumentation. I am very grateful to the pre-examiners of my dissertation, Prof. Jennifer Glancy and Dr. Petri Merenlahti, for their insightful feedback and comments. Prof. Glancy was also my opponent in the public examination of my thesis. Her incisive comments and the thought-provoking conversation we had helped me to clarify my argumentation. I had the privilege of being part of the research project “Gender, Social Roles, and Occupations in Early Christianity.” I want to thank Doc. Niko Huttunen, Dr. Kaisa-Maria Pihlava, and Kirsi Siitonen, who offered numerous helpful comments to my work along the way. I am also grateful to the international part- ners of the research project, Professors John S. Kloppenborg, Halvor Moxnes, and Carolyn Osiek, who offered valuable comments to my work. The Department of Biblical Studies in the University of Helsinki has been a wonderful place for research. I have had the pleasure of working with a num- ber of intelligent and inspiring people. Thank you all! During the years I worked on my dissertation, I received funding from the Research Foundation of the University of Helsinki, the Finnish Graduate School of Theology, the Emil Aaltonen Foundation, and the Finnish Cultural Foundation. Dr. Albion M. Butters revised my English. Needless to say, all remaining mis- takes are due to my own negligence. Finally, I want to thank my family; my parents Tuula and Hannu Asikainen, my sister-in-law Anniina Asikainen, and my brother Tomi Asikainen, who shares my interest in Classical texts and has always been interested in reading and commenting on my work. Susanna Asikainen - 978-90-04-36109-6 Downloaded from Brill.com01/07/2020 12:06:03PM via University of Helsinki Susanna Asikainen - 978-90-04-36109-6 Downloaded from Brill.com01/07/2020 12:06:03PM via University of Helsinki Chapter 1 Introduction In her song Muhammad My Friend, singer-songwriter Tori Amos toys with the idea that the child whose birth in Bethlehem is described in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke was in fact a girl. The gender of the child is not the only dif- ference between the Jesus of the Gospels and the messiah envisioned by Tori Amos. Whereas the Jesus of the Gospels is crucified naked, alone, and aban- doned by his followers, Tori Amos’ crucified messiah wears Shiseido luxury- brand lipstick while her friends have gathered by her side to drink tea.1 Tori Amos’ vision of a girl messiah certainly goes against the grain of the Christian tradition. After all, Luke mentions that the baby Jesus was circum- cised. That Jesus was a man has been taken for granted in much of the study. But what kind of a man was Jesus? What did it mean to be a man in the ancient Greco-Roman world? In this study, I seek to answer these questions by examin- ing the ideal masculinities in the Synoptic Gospels.

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