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The Protoevangelium of James connects Mary to Temple traditions described in Exodus 26, perhaps in an effort to intentionally construct a background for her that would associate her with Jewish traditions about temple requirements.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Exodus 26:31
Hebrew Bible
30 You are to set up the tabernacle according to the plan that you were shown on the mountain. 31 “You are to make a special curtain of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn and fine twisted linen; it is to be made with cherubim, the work of an artistic designer. 32 You are to hang it with gold hooks on four posts of acacia wood overlaid with gold, set in four silver bases. 33 You are to hang this curtain under the clasps and bring the ark of the testimony in there behind the curtain. The curtain will make a division for you between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place.
Protoevangelium of James 10
Gospel of James
Pseudepigrapha
10 The priests gathered and said, “Let’s make a new veil for the temple of the Lord.” The priest instructed, “Bring me the pure, undefiled virgins from the family of David.” The officers went out, found seven virgins, and the priest remembered the child Mary, knowing she was from the family of David and pure before God. The officers went and brought her too. They all entered the temple of the Lord. The priest said, “Let’s draw lots to decide who will spin the gold, the white, the fine linen, the silk, the blue, the scarlet, and the true purple”. The lot for the true purple and scarlet fell to Mary, and she took them and returned to her house. At that time, Zacharias was mute, and Samuel was filling in for him until Zacharias could speak again. Mary took the scarlet and began spinning it.
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Notes and References
"... Some scholars, such as S. Lieberman and F. Manns maintain that this detail is influenced by halakhic formulations, stressing that Mary is remembered and chosen to weave the veil because of her virginity and state of purity. By contrast, Mach argues that the emphasis on virginity and ritual purity required of those working in the Temple was not limited to the Jerusalem Temple alone; these requirements also held for the creation of the peplos for the Greek goddesses Athena and Hera in their temples in Athens and thus cannot be read as a Jewish characteristic. Therefore, in Mach's view, no connections can be made to Judaism on the basis of the purity required for Temple weavers in Protoevangelium of James 10:1-4 ..."
Vuong, Lily
Accessing the Virgin: Gender and Purity in the Protoevangelium of James
(p. 63) McMaster University, 2010
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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