In Search of Mary: The Woman and the Symbol
Cunneen's search for Mary is in the spirit of the best of the various historical Jesus quests. She is concerned with a contemporary, living symbol; a history of interpretation that reaches beyond the boundaries of Christianity; and a particular woman whose particular life in Roman-occupied Palestine is poorly documented. The paradox of intense memory and meager documentation fuels Cunneen's careful sifting of historical evidence. Maintaining a lively, conversational tone, the narrative is chronological, moving from Miriam of Nazareth--the Mary of the New Testament--through her transformation in the Greco-Roman church; her emergence astheotokos("god bearer" ); her enshrinement in an extended, then broken, family; and finally to "icon of human possibility." This engaging study, accessible to general as well as scholarly audiences, provides a much-needed context for the growing body of material on Mary.Steve Schroeder