Acts of Timothy
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The Acts of Timothy (''Acta Timothei'') are a work of
New Testament apocrypha The New Testament apocrypha (singular apocryphon) are a number of writings by early Christians that give accounts of Jesus and his teachings, the nature of God, or the teachings of his apostles and of their lives. Some of these writings were cit ...
, most likely from the 5th century, which are primarily concerned with portraying the apostle Timothy as the first
bishop of Ephesus The Metropolis of Ephesus ( el, Μητρόπολις Εφέσου) was an ecclesiastical territory (metropolis) of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople in western Asia Minor, modern Turkey. Christianity was introduced already in the city o ...
and describing his death during a violent
pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...
festival in the same town.


History

For many years these Acts were known only through a
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
translation ( BHL 8294) included in the second volume of the
Acta Sanctorum ''Acta Sanctorum'' (''Acts of the Saints'') is an encyclopedic text in 68 folio volumes of documents examining the lives of Christian saints, in essence a critical hagiography, which is organised according to each saint's feast day. The project w ...
in 1643.
Photius Photios I ( el, Φώτιος, ''Phōtios''; c. 810/820 – 6 February 893), also spelled PhotiusFr. Justin Taylor, essay "Canon Law in the Age of the Fathers" (published in Jordan Hite, T.O.R., & Daniel J. Ward, O.S.B., "Readings, Cases, Materia ...
, the learned patriarch of
Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...
, had read the
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
original and had given an account in his Bibliotheca (Codex 254). Then in 1877
Hermann Usener Hermann Karl Usener (23 October 1834 – 21 October 1905) was a German scholar in the fields of philology and comparative religion. Life Hermann Usener was born at Weilburg and educated at its Gymnasium. From 1853 he studied at Heidelberg, ...
edited the
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
original ( BHG 1847), which had been located in Paris Codex Gr. 1219 (from the 11th or 12th century). The
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
version attributes the Acts to
Polycrates of Ephesus Polycrates of Ephesus (; el, Πολυκράτης; fl. c. 130 – 196) was an Early Christian bishop at Ephesus. Polycrates convened a synod to establish Quartodecimanism as the official position on Easter. His letter was written between 186-19 ...
(c. 130–196); however, the
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
original has no such attestation, thus indicating that such an ascription of authorship was a later addition. Usener dated the Acts before 356, probably between 320 and 340, and thought they were based on a veritable history of the Ephesian church. Shortly after its publication
Theodor Zahn Theodor Zahn or Theodor von Zahn (10 October 1838 in Moers – 5 March 1933 in Erlangen) was a German Protestant theologian, a biblical scholar. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature three times. Career Zahn was born in Moers of t ...
raised several issues concerning Usener's dating. One problem was the statement in the Acts that
Lystra Lystra ( grc, Λύστρα) was a city in central Anatolia, now part of present-day Turkey. It is mentioned six times in the New Testament. Lystra was visited several times by Paul the Apostle, along with Barnabas or Silas. There Paul met a young ...
was in the province (
eparchy Eparchy ( gr, ἐπαρχία, la, eparchía / ''overlordship'') is an ecclesiastical unit in Eastern Christianity, that is equivalent to a diocese in Western Christianity. Eparchy is governed by an ''eparch'', who is a bishop. Depending on th ...
) of
Lycaonia Lycaonia (; el, Λυκαονία, ''Lykaonia''; tr, Likaonya) was a large region in the interior of Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey), north of the Taurus Mountains. It was bounded on the east by Cappadocia, on the north by Galatia, on the west by ...
. Zahn pointed out that
Lycaonia Lycaonia (; el, Λυκαονία, ''Lykaonia''; tr, Likaonya) was a large region in the interior of Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey), north of the Taurus Mountains. It was bounded on the east by Cappadocia, on the north by Galatia, on the west by ...
was not a separate province until after c. 370. Accordingly, most scholars put the time of composition no earlier than the fifth century. Another more recently observed problem is the two named
proconsul A proconsul was an official of ancient Rome who acted on behalf of a consul. A proconsul was typically a former consul. The term is also used in recent history for officials with delegated authority. In the Roman Republic, military command, or ' ...
s of Asia, Maximus and Peregrinus. Barnes has demonstrated that both these individuals are fictitious. Thus, the trustworthiness of the Acts as a source for historical information is somewhat impaired. Nevertheless, the author does display local knowledge of the topography and culture of
Ephesus Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἔφεσος, Éphesos; tr, Efes; may ultimately derive from hit, 𒀀𒉺𒊭, Apaša) was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in t ...
.


Content

The Acts tell how Paul had consecrated Timothy as bishop during
Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...
's reign on the occasion of a visit to
Ephesus Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἔφεσος, Éphesos; tr, Efes; may ultimately derive from hit, 𒀀𒉺𒊭, Apaša) was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in t ...
which they made together. Then, under
Nerva Nerva (; originally Marcus Cocceius Nerva; 8 November 30 – 27 January 98) was Roman emperor from 96 to 98. Nerva became emperor when aged almost 66, after a lifetime of imperial service under Nero and the succeeding rulers of the Flavian dy ...
, Timothy suffers a martyr's death during a
pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. ...
festival. In this "devilish and abominable festival," as
Photius Photios I ( el, Φώτιος, ''Phōtios''; c. 810/820 – 6 February 893), also spelled PhotiusFr. Justin Taylor, essay "Canon Law in the Age of the Fathers" (published in Jordan Hite, T.O.R., & Daniel J. Ward, O.S.B., "Readings, Cases, Materia ...
calls it men with masks on their faces and with clubs in their hands went about "assaulting without restraint free men and respectable women, perpetrating murders of no common sort and shedding endless blood in the best parts of the city, as if they were performing a religious duty." Scholars have identified this festival, called ' (roughly, "the bringing down"), with the cult of
Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Romans ...
. As Klauck describes it, Timothy "attempts to put an end to the wild and violent goings-on but himself falls victim to the orgies." In addition to the activities of Timothy, there is almost as much material about
John the Evangelist John the Evangelist ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης, Iōánnēs; Aramaic: ܝܘܚܢܢ; Ge'ez: ዮሐንስ; ar, يوحنا الإنجيلي, la, Ioannes, he, יוחנן cop, ⲓⲱⲁⲛⲛⲏⲥ or ⲓⲱ̅ⲁ) is the name traditionally given t ...
, who was also a resident of
Ephesus Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἔφεσος, Éphesos; tr, Efes; may ultimately derive from hit, 𒀀𒉺𒊭, Apaša) was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in t ...
. Usener explains this odd situation as being due perhaps to the material having come originally from an earlier history of the Ephesian church. The Acts also contain an interesting passage on the formation of the fourfold gospel. Whereas Lipsius had seen this account as a dressing-up of what was in
Eusebius Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Christian ...

''hist. eccl. III 24, 7''
, Crehan views it as evidence for an earlier date for the Acts. He argues that Lipsius "does not attach due importance to the circumstantial account in the ''Acta'' of the
papyri Papyrus ( ) is a material similar to thick paper that was used in ancient times as a writing surface. It was made from the pith of the papyrus plant, ''Cyperus papyrus'', a wetland sedge. ''Papyrus'' (plural: ''papyri'') can also refer to a d ...
and of their titling by John, an account which it would have been difficult for a forger in the days of the big
vellum Vellum is prepared animal skin or membrane, typically used as writing material. Parchment is another term for this material, from which vellum is sometimes distinguished, when it is made from calfskin, as opposed to that made from other anima ...
codices The codex (plural codices ) was the historical ancestor of the modern book. Instead of being composed of sheets of paper, it used sheets of vellum, papyrus, or other materials. The term ''codex'' is often used for ancient manuscript books, with ...
(after 320) to make up for himself."Crehan 1959, 39.


Notes


References


Primary sources

* Henry, R., ed. (1959–1991). Photius, ''Bibliothèque,'' 9 vols. Paris: Les Belles lettres. nd printing 2003 (Greek with French trans.). * Migne, J.-P., ed. (1891).
''Patrologiae cursus completus. Series Graeca, 5:1363–66''
Paris: apud fratres Garnier editores. (Latin) * Usener, H., ed. (1877).
''Acta S. Timothei''
Bonn: typis Caroli Georgi vniv. typogr. (Greek and Latin).


Secondary sources

* Barnes, T. D. (2010)
''Early Christian Hagiography and Roman History, 300–303''
Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck. *
Bollandist The Bollandist Society ( la, Societas Bollandistarum french: Société des Bollandistes) are an association of scholars, philologists, and historians (originally all Jesuits, but now including non-Jesuits) who since the early seventeenth century h ...
s (1901).
''Bibliotheca hagiographica latina antiquae et mediae aetatis, vol. 2, p. 1200.''
Subsidia Hagiographica 6. Bruxelles: Société des Bollandistes. * Crehan, J. H. (1959). "The Fourfold Character of the Gospel," in Kurt Åland, F. L. Cross, et al., eds., ''Studia Evangelica'' 1 (= Texte und Untersuchungen 73), pp. 3–13. Berlin: Akademie Verlag. * Delehaye, H. (1939). "Les actes de Saint Timothée," in W. M. Calder and J. Keil, eds.
''Anatolian Studies Presented to William Hepburn Buckler, 77–84''
Manchester: Manchester University Press. * Keil, J. (1935). "Zum Martyrium des heiligen Timotheus in Ephesos." ''Jahreshefte des Österreichischen Archäologischen Institutes'' 29: 82–92. * Klauck, H.-J. (2008). ''The Apocryphal Acts of the Apostles: An Introduction,'' 248–49. Waco, TX: Baylor University Press. * Lawson, J. C. (1910).
''Modern Greek Folklore and Ancient Greek Religion: A Study in Survivals, 222''
Cambridge: University Press. * Lipsius, R. A. (1884).
''Die Apokryphen Apostelgeschichten und Apostellegenden, 2/2: 372–400''
Braunschweig: C. A. Schwetschke und Sohn. * Schürer, E. (1877). Review of Usener 1877
''Theologische Literaturzeitung 2:363–64''
* Strelan, R. (1996).
''Paul, Artemis, and the Jews in Ephesus, 122–24''
Berlin: W. de Gruyter. * Usener, H. (1914). "Beiträge der Geschichte der Legendenliteratur," in
''Kleine Schriften, 3:83–89''
Leipzig: B. G. Teubner. * Zahn, T. (1878). Review of Usener 1877
''Göttingischen gelehrte Anzeigen, 97–114''
* Zahn, T. (1909).
''Introduction to the New Testament, vol. 2, p. 41''
New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. {{DEFAULTSORT:Acts Of Timothy 5th-century Christian texts Timothy