Abstract:
This article will explore the role and junction of the women in the empty
tomb narratives of the Gospel tradition. What purpose do they play in
the resurrection kerygma of the early church? Why is the story of their
first arrival at the tomb so persistent that it continues into the later
apocryphal gospels? The discussion of· this question will be in three
parts: part one will summarize some of the work on these passages that
has been done by scholars using the tools of redaction criticism. Part
two will examine some of the surrounding issues from the perspective of
social history and social construction of meaning, especially with regard
to women's subcultures, roles in burial customs, and public testimony.
Part three will apply to these findings a feminist analysis using both a
hermeneutic of suspicion and of remembrance.
