The Education of Jesus in The Infancy Gospel of Thomas

I was recently gifted Simon Gathercole's new translation of "The Apocryphal Gospels" published by Penguin Classics (2021). I have been very pleased with the book overall, the introduction was brief, but surprisingly informative, the same with the introductions for each gospel work. The translations by Gathercole are very readable and the presentation of the translation text is free from versification and other marginal or interlinear distractions common with translations, further encouraging the reader to take in large portions of the text. 

One apocryphal gospel grabbed my attention in particular as I had not paid it too much attention when I had first read it years before; The Infancy Gospel of Thomas. The (attempted) education of the boy Jesus is a central theme of the apocryphal text, with three separate education events depicted. Paul Foster provides an excellent analysis of these accounts in the J. K. Elliott feschrift, "The Education of Jesus in the Infancy Gospel of Thomas," (pg. 327-347). The three accounts are located in chapters 6-7, 13, and 14, of Gathercole's translation.

Zacchaeus is given as the names of Jesus's first teacher,

"Now a teacher named Zacchaeus was standing by and heard Jesus saying this to his father Joseph. Dumbfounded, he said to Joseph, 'Look here, brother--entrust him to me so he can be taught to read and write, and study all fields of knowledge" (Inf. Gos. Thom. 6) 

Later in the chapter, Jesus is forcibly taken to "school" by his father Joseph so that he can be taught how to read and write.

"Zaccheaus wrote down the alphabet for him and started him on his elementary education. He said the same letter a number of times, but Jesus would not give any response. The teacher was peeved and clipped him around the ear. The boy was irritated at this. 'I should be teaching you, rather than being taught by you! After all, I know the letters you're teaching much better than you do. What you are giving me is like sounding brass and a clanging cymbal, producing neither sound nor thought nor any possible understanding!' When the child's anger abated, he spoke by himself all the letters, from alpha to omega, perfectly." (Inf. Gos. Thom. 6)

Jesus is only five years old in this setting and the recitation of all of his letters would be considered miraculous considering his youthful age. Augustine (ca. 400 CE) gives a similar account of receiving physical punishment while attempting to learn Greek language and literature

"But what was the cause of my dislike of Greek literature, which I studied from my boyhood, I cannot even now understand. For the Latin I loved exceedingly — not what our first masters, but what the grammarians teach; for those primary lessons of reading, writing, and ciphering, I considered no less of a burden and a punishment than Greek. . . . The difficulty, in truth, the difficulty of learning a foreign language mingled as it were with gall all the sweetness of those fabulous Grecian stories. For not a single word of it did I understand, and to make me do so, they vehemently urged me with cruel threatenings and punishments." (Confessions 1:13-14)

Later, in this same first education account in the Infancy Gospel of Thomas 6, the boy Jesus addresses the teacher Zacchaeus.

"'If you don't know the essence of the alpha, Jesus said, 'how can you teach beta after it? You hypocrite! If you're so clever, first teach me alpha, and then I'll believe you when you talk about beta.' Then he started questioning his teacher about the letter alpha, but the man did not know what to say in reply. A number of people were there listening in. 'Pay attention, sir,' Jesus explained to the teacher, 'and understand the arrangement of the first letter. Notice here how it has diagonal lines and a stroke in the middle, and then you can see the alpha's lines pointing and straddling, joining together and parting, leading off and going up, circling and darting, tripartite and double-edged, of similar shape and thickness and kind, rectilinear, equilibrious, isometric and isomeric.'" (Inf. Gos. Thom. 6)

This account is interesting in that it is similar to comments made by Irenaeus (ca. 180 CE) the "apocryphal and spurious Scriptures of the Marcosians." This indicates that these stories in The Infancy Gospel of Thomas likely date into the second century.

"Besides the above [misrepresentations], they adduce an unspeakable number of apocryphal and spurious writings, which they themselves have forged, to bewilder the minds of foolish men, and of such as are ignorant of the Scriptures of truth. Among other things, they bring forward that false and wicked story which relates that our Lord, when He was a boy learning His letters, on the teacher saying to Him, as is usual, Pronounce Alpha, replied [as He was bid], Alpha. But when, again, the teacher bade Him say, Beta, the Lord replied, First tell me what Alpha is, and then I will tell you what Beta is. This they expound as meaning that He alone knew the Unknown, which He revealed under its type Alpha." (Haer. 1.20.1)

The second education account in The Infancy Gospel of Thomas is brief and repeats Jesus's words concerning the alpha and omega. The third account is more interesting in that it describes an eight year old Jesus interacting with a book in a classroom setting.

"When he came into the classroom, he found a scroll resting on the reading desk. He took it but did not read what was written in it because it was not from the Law of God. Instead, he opened his mouth and made such awe-inspiring statements that the teacher sitting opposite him listened to him with pure delight, and urged him on to say more, while the crowd standing by was staggered by the holy matters of which Jesus spoke." (Inf. Gos. Thom. 14)

The parallels with the account in Luke 4:16-22 where Jesus enters the synagogue at Nazareth and read from an Isaiah scroll, are obvious. Though the Infancy Gospel of Thomas makes a point to emphasize that it was not a book of the Law and that Jesus did not actually read it. Though it is implied that he could have if he wished to. 

Collectively these three instances of Jesus's education are a fascinating snapshot of Greco-Roman education at the time. It appears that the author of The Infancy Gospel of Thomas was writing in a context where tutors, schools, and educational resources were abundant and affordable (Foster, "The Education of Jesus," pg. 339). Though these educational settings are likely idealized and exaggerated to some degree, they likely reflected realistic expectations of the author(s)'s context. This indicates that education was abundantly available in the region where The Infancy Gospel of Thomas was initially written in the second century and reflects at least an expectation of widespread basic literacy in the region.

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Foster, Paul "The Education of Jesus in the Infancy Gospel of Thomas," pages 327–347 in P. Doble and J. Kloha (eds), Texts and Traditions. Essays in Honour of J. Keith Elliott.
Leiden and Boston: Brill ( 2014).

Roman Bookrolls and Tablets in Kansas City Missouri

Roman Muse Sarcophagus (Nelson Atkins Museum of Art)

Last year I had the opportunity to visit the beautiful Nelson Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City Missouri. If you ever get a chance, it is well worth the visit. Besides displaying famous artists like Monet, they have a modest collection of ancient artifacts, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman. One item in particular is a third century (ca. 240-260 C.E.) Roman marble sarcophagus that is quite striking for its detailed frescos. It is described as a “Muse Sarcophagus.” The museum description reads.

“The deceased, who stands in the center of this high relief, is flanked by five Muses to her right and Minerva with four Muses to her left. The Muses with their customary attributes appear in the following order (from viewer's left to right): Clio, Muse of history, with a scroll; Euterpe, Muse of music, with two flutes; Thalia, Muse of comedy, with shepherd's crook and mask of comedy; Melpomene, Muse of tragedy, with a club and mask of tragedy; Terpsichore, Muse of choral dance, with a lyre; Polyhymnia, Muse of hymns and religious dance; Erato, Muse of lyric and erotic poetry, with a cithara; Urania, Muse of astronomy, with a globe and staff; Calliope, Muse of heroic and epic poetry, with a stylus and tablet. The deceased holds a scroll, and Minerva, a spear. All the figures are standing. A striding griffin appears on each end of the sarcophagus and the back is plain.”

The provenance is given as “Excavated in the Vigna Casali, Rome, 1872.”

When I entered the room where the item was poised, I immediately noticed the stylus and tablet of the figure on the far right corner of the sarcophagus. In the close up images, the edges of the wax tablet are clearly seen. The flat spoon used for smoothing out the wax can be seen opposite the sharp pointed writing edge of the stylus. There also appears to be an ear extending out on the top edge of the tablet that has what looks to be a hole in the center, giving the appearance of a modern clip-board. Perhaps this was used for a lanyard that either allowed the user to carry the tablet, or to tie the boards closed (or perhaps to hang on the wall, see Herculaneum fresco below).

The far left corner represents the muse of history and she is shown holding an open bookroll. The hand clutches the rolled up portion of the volume that would have contained the text already read while the opposite portion of the book would have contained the unread text. What was intriguing about this particular fresco is that it depicts the unread portion of the roll curving back behind the book rather than curving inside towards the user (for example, as shown in the famous Herculaneum painted fresco of a boy holding an open bookroll below). It appears that the book is open to the final portion and the last bit of the roll is folded behind the roll and clasped with the fingers behind the rolled up portion of the volume (see my crudely drawn reconstruction below). The right arm of the history muse is broken off but it may be that the orginal figure had a pen in this hand. The strange way that the roll is being help open would allow for the freedom of the right hand for writing. Just as the poetry muse is writing in the wax tablet in the opposite corner, it may be that the history muse is being portrayed as writing in an open bookroll.

The other aspect of these two figures is the representation of a book and a tablet. It is fascinating that the poetry muse holds the wax tablet, a device that is easily edited and rewritten, while the history muse is holding a roll, an object that carries its own image of refinement, permanence, and legacy (see Pliny's comments here).

The roman woman herself is depicted in the center of the sarcophagus holding a bookroll in her left hand. I noticed that next to her right foot, what looks to be a bookcase with the muse of choral dance (holding a lyre) resting her left foot on the lid. Though the diameter is small, it matches other depictions of book boxes from the roman period (see Herculaneum fresco below).

The Nelson Atkins Museum of Art is definitely worth a visit, be sure to give this fascinating sarcophagus a look! 

Close up detail of muse with wax tablet

Muse with wax tablet on right corner of sarcophagus

The muse of history holding an open bookroll

Close-up detail of muse of history bookroll

Muse of history holding a bookroll

 

 

 

Muse of choral dance with foot on book case (?)

Fresco from Herculaneum showing a youth holding an open bookroll

Fresco from Herculaneum portraying an open book case

Fresco from Herculaneum depicting an ink pot, pen, bookroll with name tag, open wax tablet and stylus, and tablet hanging from nail. Notice the far right tablet that has an ear with hole in the top edge similar to that portrayed on the muse sarcophagus.

Aurelius of Carthage: The Illiterate Church Lector and Confessor

 

Add. 40165 A 
4th century fragments of Cyprians letters  
used as flyleaves for a 12th-century Latin manuscript

At around 250 CE Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, wrote to his Church to inform them of the appointment of a young man named Aurelius to the office of lector. That is someone who read out the scriptures to the congregation at the time they were gathering for worship.

"In the ordinations of clerics, dearly beloved Brethren, we are accustomed to consult you in advance and in common council to weigh the characters and merits of each one." (Ep. 38)

Cyprian goes on to share in the letter that Aurelius was "twice confessed and twice glorious in the victory of his confession" (Ep. 38). It was during this time that Christians were under extreme pressure to make sacrifices to the God's or face repercussions. This was due to an imperial edict given by Emperor Decius in order to gain favor from the God's towards the troubled Roman Empire (see posts here and here). Apparently Aurelius had suffered under this edict but had remained firm in the faith and had not recanted belief; a confessor. Cyprian greatly admired Aurelius for his courage and because of this wanted to go ahead and ordain him to the office before he had consulted with the other leaders as was the custom.

"Such a one was deserving of the higher steps of clerical ordination and a greater promotion, not so considered for his years, but for his merits. But, in the meantime, it seemed right for him to start with the office of reading since nothing was more becoming also to the voice which confessed God with glorious praise than to sound Him forth through the celebrating of the divine readings, after the sublime words which bespoke martyrdom for Christ: to read the Gospel of Christ whence martyrs are made, to come to the pulpit after the scaffold; . . . Know, therefore, dearly beloved that he has been ordained by me and by colleagues who were present. . . . And since joy is always hastening, and rejoicing cannot brook delays, in the meantime, he reads for us on Sunday, that is, he is auspicious for peace while he dedicates the reading." (Ep. 38)

It is obvious that Aurelius is capable of reading out a text (presumably in Latin) because Cyprian is fully expecting him to do so the next Sunday after he sent this letter. What is strange however is that in a letter to the Church in Rome, Cyprian mentions that a certain Lucian (another confessor) had written many petitions in behalf of others who were imprisoned.

"Many petitions, written in the handwriting of this same Lucian, have also been given in the name of Aurelius, a youth who suffered tortures, because the latter did not know how to write." (Ep. 27).

This same Aurelius, who was perfectly capable at reading, did not know his letters and had to have a certain Lucian write a petition on his behalf. This does seem strange to us in the twenty-first century, accustomed to learning to read and write together. This was not the case in the ancient world. These two skills were often acquired separately and with varying degrees of competency (Cribiore, 9-10). Cyprian presents this information normally and does not indicate that this circumstance is exceptional. This might also help explain the kinds of features that we see in our earliest copies of the New Testament writings. These often exhibit reading aids, spaces between words, and other kinds of limited punctuation (see here). These may have been present to assist those who had limit education, who could read at a basic level, but had not received schooling in the ability to write, just like we see in the case of Aurelius of Carthage.

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St. Cyprian, Letters 1-81, The Fathers of the Church: A New Translation (Sister Rose Bernard Donna, trans. New York: Catholic University of America Press, 1964).

Cribiore, Rafaella. Writing, Teachers, and Students in Graeco-Roman Egypt (Atlanta: Scholar's Press, 1996).

Quintilian on The Critical Skills Grammarians Teach (ca. 95 CE)

While reading through Eric W. Scherbenske's "Canonizing Paul: Ancient Editorial Practice and the Corpus Paulinum," I came across a reference from Quintilian. He was sketching the critical skills taught as part of the standard literary education given by the Greek and Latin Grammarians (teachers); 

"As soon as the boy has learned to read and write without difficulty, it is the turn for the teacher of literature (grammatici). My words apply equally to Greek and Latin masters, though I prefer that a start should be made with a Greek: in either case the method is the same. This profession may be most briefly considered under two heads, the art of speaking correctly and the interpretation of poets; but there is more beneath the surface than meets the eye. For the art of writing is combined with that of speaking, and correct reading precedes interpretation, while in each of these criticism has work to perform. The old school of teachers (veteras grammatici) carried their criticism so far that they were not content with obelizing lines [marking for deletion] or rejecting books whose titles they regarded as spurious, as though they were expelling a supposititious child from the family circle, but also drew up a canon of authors, from which some were omitted altogether." (Inst. or. 1.4.1-3)

Quintilian notes here that it was customary for Grammarians to teach the art of analyzing a piece of literature for a correct textual reading as well as determining its authenticity in relation to an author's other writings. Of course, Quintilian is describing the ideal Greco-Roman education. It may have been uncommon for literates (of lesser or greater ability) to acquire this level of analytical skill. Nevertheless, the teaching of these critical skills appears to occur early in a child's literary education (soon after acquiring an adequate level of reading and writing ability). Thus, most literates may have had at least a rudimentary understanding of recognizing textual/transmission issues as well as the problems associated with authorship.  

Apostles, disciples, and other early Christian leaders who were literate, may have had at least some ability in analyzing and evaluating a particular writing's textual character or authorship claims.  This can be seen in Peter's assessment of those who have miss-interpreted and possibly textually altered Paul's epistles in 2 Peter 3:16, and Luke's evaluation of previous Gospel writings in 1:1-4. Similar parallels could be made with regard to the collecting of Ignatius's letters in Poly. Phil. 13.1-2.

Mosaic of Plato's academy (Pompeii)

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Quintilian, Institutio Oratoria (trans. H. E. Butler; LCL; London: William Heinman, 1920), 61-63.

Scherbenske, Eric W. Canonizing Paul: Ancient Editorial Practice and the Corpus Paulinum (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013), 16.

Lucian on Education: Illiteracy in the Roman World

A boy recites a lession to a tutor, 2nd cen. AD

A previous post brought attention to the low literacy levels of the Roman world and the effect this had on the reading practices of the early Christians. William Harris argued that literacy levels in the Roman world were somewhere around 15 to as high as 20% in some regions like Pompeii (p. 264). Overall, the literacy level in Rome likely would have never been above 15% (p. 267) and for any region to reach the levels of 20 to 30% literacy among males would have been remarkable (p. 141). When discussing precise percentages of literacy, it is important to remember William Harris's own caution,

"We shall obviously never know in a clear-cut numerical way how many people were literate, semi-literate, or illiterate in the Graeco-Roman world in general, or even in any particular milieu within it." (p. 7)

I thought about the levels of literacy in the Roman world and the education that may or may not have been available to the early Christians. A dialogue of Lucian of Samosata (125-180 CE) came to mind that illustrates well the path to education available in his day. In his satire Hermotimus, one character, Hermotimus, a philosopher steeped in study for the past 20 years, is engaged in dialogue (in the Socratic method) by Lycinus, an interlocutor who values the simple and average life. At one point Hermotimus described the path of education as climbing a steep mountain slope;

"Many would climb it, if it could. As it is, a fair number make a very strong beginning and travel part of the way, some very little, some more; but when they get half-way and meet plenty of difficulties and snags, they lose heart and turn back, gasping for breath and dripping with sweat; the hardships are too much for them. But all who endure to the end arrive at the top, from then on are happy having wonderful time for the rest of their life, from their heights seeing the rest of mankind as ants." (Hermot. 5)

Hermotimus described that there were many who began the path of education in philosophy, that is, education, but few completed the journey. This gives and excellent picture of education during the Roman empire. There was probably a large number of the population who began the journey of education and literacy, many who could scrawl their names on a document, scratch some crude graffiti onto an alley wall, or read signs and laundry lists. The reality was that few attained any reasonable level of education. Listen to Lycinus as he responded to Hermotimus's description of his path to educated enlightenment,

"Goodness, Hermotimus! How small you shall make us, not as big as pygmies! Utter groundlings crawling over the earth's surface. It's not surprising--your mind is already away up above; and we, the whole trashy lot of us ground-crawlers, will pray to you along with the gods, when you get above the clouds and reach the heights to which you have been hastening for so long." (Hermot. 5)

 Lycinus identified himself with the "whole trashy lot of us ground-crawlers," namely, the uneducated masses. When a person reached a high level of education, it was as if that person reached divine status.

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Bibliography.

Harris, William V. Ancient Literacy. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1989.

Lucian,  Translated by K. Kilburn et al. 7 vols. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1913-1961.