The Ancient Martyrdom Accounts of Peter and Paul by David L. Eastman (review)

David L. Eastman has filled a gap in scholarship by collecting many of the ancient martyrdom accounts of Ss. Peter and Paul into a single sourcebook. The sourcebook includes fifteen martyrdom accounts from the second to seventh centuries, plus thirty references from patristic authors of the first six centuries. Each martyrdom account is presented with an historical introduction, an edition of its text in Greek, Latin, or Syriac, and an annotated English translation. As part of the Society of Biblical Literature series on writings from the Greco-Roman world, The Ancient Martyrdom Accounts of Peter and Paul makes these primary sources accessible to a broad readership, with the most recent and sometimes only-available English translations of its selections.

After the volume’s list of “Abbreviations for Primary Sources” (pp. xi–xiii), most of the volume is the presentation of fifteen martyrdom accounts (pp. 1–385): Part 1 includes four accounts that are about Peter (chapters 1–4), part 2 has five about Paul (chapters 5–9), and part 3 collects accounts that refer to both apostles (chapters 10–14, including two texts in chapter 10). Part 4 is “a broad selection of the most significant examples” (p. 389) of patristic references to the martyrdoms of one or both apostles (chapter 15, pp. 387–443). Parts 1, 2, and 4 are organized chronologically; part 3 is not. The volume’s back matter includes a bibliography (pp. 445–55), scripture index (pp. 457–62), and general index (pp. 463–69).

These sources attest to the traditions of Peter’s crucifixion upside-down and Paul’s decapitation, both of which are normally celebrated on June 29. But variants and competing traditions are also preserved in this volume. For example, some traditions claim that Peter was killed on the same day a couple of years before Paul; others claim that both were killed on the same day of the same year (e.g., 57 or 67); and yet others imply that both were killed on different days of the same year. One Syriac account even claims that “Shimeon Petra” (Simon Peter) was killed “with the sword” (p. 379). Moreover, there are differing accounts for the preparation and burial of Peter, the exhuming and translation of Peter’s remains, the location of Paul’s execution, Paul’s burial(s), and the rediscovery of Paul’s head, as well as other interesting details, such as what each apostle may have proclaimed as his last words and whether he appeared to others after his death.

Eastman’s introductions and annotations guide readers to consider how some of these traditions may have reflected developments in church politics, creedal terminology, canonization, and other matters of historical and theological interest. So readers have the pleasure of thinking through various issues and options, as they anticipate the completion of Eastman’s book-length study (Killing Peter and Paul: Traditions of the Apostolic Martyrdoms [Oxford, forthcoming]).

Once Eastman’s study has been completed, it would be useful to publish a second, revised edition of Ancient Martyrdom Accounts. Desiderata would be references to the most important manuscript variants for texts and translations, increase in the Syriac font size, the addition of “patristic” sources from other languages (e.g., Syriac), and development of a comprehensive index of references to primary sources (including the martyrdom accounts, patristic references, and other texts). Perhaps the chapters could also be resequenced by chronology, language, and location so as to help readers to situate the martyrdom accounts by time and place, enabling further consideration of possible developments within and between accounts. (Based on the current chapter numbers, a more useful sequence might have been: 5, 1, 2, 6, 9, 10A, 10B, 11, 12, 3, 7, 14, 13, 4, 8.)