Cambridge University Press Thecla and Medieval Sainthood: The Acts of Paul and Thecla in Eastern and Western Hagiography

Saint Thecla was one of the most prominent figures of early Christianity who provided a model of virginity and a role-model for women in the early Church. She was the object of cult and of pilgrimage and her tale in the Acts of Paul and Thecla made a tremendous impact on later hagiographies of both female and male saints. This volume explores this impact on medieval hagiographical texts composed in Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopic, Greek, Irish, Latin, Persian, and Syriac. It investigates how they evoked and/or invoked Thecla and her tale in constructing the lives and story worlds of their chosen saints and offers detailed original readings of the lives of various heroines and heroes. The book adds further depth and nuance to our understanding of Thecla's popularity and the spread of her legend and cult. Book Description Explores Saint Thecla and her story as preeminent models for medieval hagiographers across Eurasia and North Africa. About the Author Ghazzal Dabiri is an Iranist who specializes in narratives of kingship, kinship, and sainthood. She received her PhD from UCLA and has held positions at various institutions including Columbia University and currently the University of Maryland. A Fulbright Scholar, she also held a European Research Council postdoctoral fellowship at Ghent University. Flavia Ruani is a researcher at the Institut de recherche et d'histoire des textes, CNRS, Paris. She specializes in late antique and medieval Syriac Christianity, focussing on religious controversies, manuscript studies, hagiography, and the history of Manichaeism. She has translated into French the Hymns against Heresies by Ephrem the Syrian (2018).