Hypomnema on Peter and Paul

Commentarius Petri et Pauli

Standard abbreviation: Hypom. Pet. Paul

Other titles: Hypomnema (Commentary) treating separately the contendings and struggles and journeys and perfections of the holy and chief apostles Peter and Paul (incipit)

Clavis numbers: ECCA 526; CANT 196

Category: Apocryphal Acts

Compiled by: Tony Burke, York University ([email protected])

Citing this resource (using Chicago Manual of Style): Burke, Tony. “Hypomnema on Peter and Paul.” e-Clavis: Christian Apocrypha. Accessed DAY MONTH YEAR. https://www.nasscal.com/e-clavis-christian-apocrypha/commentary-on-peter-and-paul.

Created September 2023.

1. SUMMARY

Hypom. Pet. Paul is attributed to Symeon Metaphrastes by early editors of the text but Symeon’s name does not appear in the manuscripts. The text was composed for the feast of the two apostles, which takes place 29 June. The first section of the text focuses on Peter, beginning with some details about his early life: he was born in Bethsaida to Jonah, who was descended from the tribe of Simeon. Peter married the daughter of Aristobulus, the brother of Barnabas, and had a daughter and a son; he remained in Bethsaida, caring for his elderly father. Andrew, his brother, did not marry and became a follower first of John the Baptist and then Jesus.

As in the Gospel of John 1:40–42, Andrew introduces Peter to Jesus. Several of Peter’s activities in the Gospels are mentioned, including his presence at the Transfiguration. After the ascension of Jesus, Peter becomes the leader of the apostles. Various tales from Acts are recounted (the healing of the lame man, Pentecost, Ananias and Sapphira, Cornelius, etc.). Then Symeon introduces the conflict with Simon Magus, whom Peter pursues from Palestine, through Asia Minor, and finally to Rome (some of this itinerary is based on Ps.-Clem.). Along the way, Peter travels to a great number of cities (over 100 are named in the text), ordaining bishops and presbyters and conversing with wise men; some of these ordinations match information found in Apostolic Lists.

Meanwhile, Simon Magus has been captured and brought to Rome. There he deceives many with his sorcery (the description of his acts here draws upon Ps.-Clem. Rec. 2.9//Hom. 2.32; 4.4) and is considered a god. According to Justin Martyr and Irenaeus, Symeon reports, his followers set up a statue of him between the two bridges of the Tiber River with the inscription “To Simon, the Holy God.” After being refuted by Peter, Simon tries to regain his honor by flying over Rome. At first Simon is carried upwards by wicked demons. But Peter commands Satan to carry him no longer and he falls to the ground; he dies of his injuries a day later.

After Simon’s death, Peter preaches and heals many people. He establishes a church and appoints Linus as bishop. Then Peter departs Rome for Spain, Britain, Egypt, and northern Africa. From there he returns to Jerusalem for the passing of Mary (as in the various Dormition accounts), and after some further travelling, a voice tells him to go back to Rome to be crucified. When he gets to Rome he discovers that Linus has died as a martyr, so he appoints Clement in his place. Nero declares capital punishment on all Christians after two noble women convert and wish to live chastely. Clement is spared because he is related to the emperor but Peter is crucified, head downward. His body is buried by Clement.

The text then moves on to Paul, who was born of the tribe of Benjamin in Tarsus and raised a Pharisee. Much of what follows draws from the canonical Acts, with the death of Stephen, the Road to Damascus story, and Paul’s missionary itinerary (though brief mention is made of Thecla when Paul reaches Iconium). Eventually, Paul comes to Rome as a prisoner.

Up to this point, the author says, all that has been told about Paul is drawn from Acts but Acts does not say what happened after. So the author adds to the story traditions about Paul’s martyrdom (from the Acts of Paul and derivative accounts). Paul is acquitted by Nero and travels west, ending up in Spain. There he meets Xanthippe, the wife of a nobleman named Probus (this account is adapted from the Life and Conduct of the Holy Women Xanthippe, Polyxena, and Rebecca). They receive Paul as a guest in their home. Xanthippe’s spiritual eyes are opened and she sees “Paul, preacher of Christ” in golden letters upon Paul’s head. The couple become believers and others in the region embrace the faith.

Paul returns to Rome, where Nero has descended into madness, killing his mother, his wife, and others in his family. He initiates a general persecution of Christians. Paul is arrested as a corrupter and seducer for encouraging Xanthippe to adopt a life of asceticism; his execution by decapitation is mentioned only in passing. The text concludes with some discussion of the timing of the two apostles’ deaths, drawing on the opinions of several church historians, and concluding that Peter died a year before Paul.

Named Historical Figures and Characters: Aeneas, Agrippina, Ananias, Ananias (husband of Sapphira), Andrew (apostle), Apelles (brother of Polycarp), Aquila, Aristobulus (father of Barnabas), Barnabas, Benjamin (patriarch), Claudius (emperor), Clement (pope), Cornelius the Centurion, Crescens , Damaris, Dionysius (bishop), Dionysius the Areopagite, Dorcas (Tabitha), Elymas, Epaenetus, Epaphroditus, Eutychus, Festus (governor), Gaius (patristic writer), Gamaliel, Herod Agrippa, Herodion, Holy Spirit, Hyrcanus II, Jason, Jesus Christ, John (apostle), John Mark, John (the Baptist), Jonah (father of Peter and Andrew), Judas Iscariot, Julius (centurion), Linus (bishop), Luke (evangelist), Lysias (tribune), Mark (evangelist), Maroon (bishop), Martianus (bishop), Mary (Virgin), Matthias (apostle), Maximus (bishop), Moses (patriarch), Nero, Olympas, Orthosia, Peter (apostle), Philip (deacon), Philotheus, Phygellus, Polycarp (bishop), Priscilla, Probus, Prochorus (disciple of John), Rufus (son of Simon), Sapphira, Satan, Silas, Simeon (patriarch), Simon (Magus), Stephen (martyr), Thecla, Timothy, Urbanus, Xanthippe, Zephyrinus (bishop).

Geographical Locations: Adrumetina, Africa, Amasia, Amphipolis, Ancyra, Andriake, Antarados, Antioch, Apollonias, Arados, Asia, Assos , Athens, Attalia, Balanaea, Beautiful Gate, Beirut, Beroea, Bethsaida, Bithynia, Boethia, Brittany, Caesarea, Caesarea Stratonis, Cappadocia, Carthage/Carthagene, Cauda, Cilicia, Coele-Syria, Corinth, Coum, Crete, Cyprus, Damascus, Derbe, Egypt, Ephesus, Gabala, Galatia, Galilee, Gangra, Gaul, Gnidus, Greece, Hellespont, Iconium, Ilios, Italy, Jerusalem, Joppa, Laodicea, Lycaonia, Lycia, Lydda, Lystra, Macedonia, Meletine, Milan , Myra, Mysia, Mytilene, Naples, Nicaea, Nicomedia, Orthosia, Palestine, Paltus, Pamphylia, Pancratius, Pataram, Perga, Philippi, Photicum, Pisidian Antioch, Pisinuntum, Pontus, Port of Fair, Probus, Ptolemais, Puteoli, Rhegium, Rhodes, Rome, Salamis, Salmon, Samaria, Samos, Samothrace, Seleucia, Sicily, Sidon, Sinope, Sirmium, Smyrna, Spain, Strongila, Synada, Syracuse, Tarracina, Tarsus, Taormina, temple (of Jerusalem), Thebes, Thessalonica, Tiber River, Troas, Tyana, Tyre.

2. RESOURCES

3. BIBLIOGRAPHY

3.1 Manuscripts and Editions

3.1.1 Church Slavic

Bucharest, Biblioteci Academiei R.P.R., 156, fols. 434^v–444^r (15th cent.) (=de Santos Otero 1)

Bucharest, Biblioteci Academiei R.P.R., 153, fols. 343^r–362^v (15th cent.) (=de Santos Otero 2)

St. Petersburg, Library of the Russian Academy of Sciences, 32.I.6 (Nov. 110), fols. 1^r–21^v (16th cent.) (=de Santos Otero 5b)

Moscow, Russian State Library (F. 152), Lukaševič and Markevič 89 (1073), fols. 341^r–352^r (17th cent.) (=de Santos Otero 32)

Otero, Aurelio de Santos. Die handschriftliche Überlieferung der altslavischen Apokryphen. 2 vols. PTS 20 and 23. Berlin: De Gruyter, 1978–1981 (manuscripts listed, vol. 1 pp. 60–66).

Thomson, Francis J. Review of Aurelio de Santos Otero, Die handscriftliche Überlieferung der altslavischen Apokryphen, vol. 1. Slavonic and East European Review 58 (1980): 256–68 at 258 (with corrections to de Santos Otero).

3.1.1 Greek (BHG 1493; Pinakes)

Milan, Biblioteca Ambrosiana, F 144 sup., fols. 1^r–9^r(10th/11th cent.)

Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, gr. 1474, fols. 62^v–75^v (11th cent.)

Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, gr. 1528, fols. 47^v–62^v (12th cent.)

Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, gr. 1608, fols. 137^r–156^r(14th cent.)

Bolland, Jean et al., eds. Acta Sanctorum, Iunii. Vol. 5. Antwerp: P. Jacobs, 1709 (pp. 411–24); 3rd ed. vol. 7. Paris: V. Palmé, 1867 (Greek text from an unidentified manuscript from the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana in parallel with an incomplete Latin translation by Jacob Sirletus from a Vatican manuscript completed with a portion from Lippomano/Surius, pp. 374–86).

Lippomano, Luigi (Aloisius Lipomanus). Sanctorum priscorum patrum vitae numero centum sexagintatres, per gravissimos et probatissimos auctores conscripta. 8 vols. Rome: ex Officina Salviana and Venice: ad Signum Spei, 1551–1560 (Latin translation from an unidentified source, vol. 6, pp. 78^r–83^r).

Surius, Laurentius. De probatis Sanctorum historiis partim ex tomis Aloysii Lipomani. 6 vols. Cologne: Calenius and Quentel, 1570–1575 (reprint of Lippomano’s Latin translation in vol. 3, pp. 859–67; attributed here to Symeon Metaphrastes).

3.2 Modern Translations

3.3 General Works

Backus, Irena, and Benoît Gain. “Le cardinal Guglielmo Sirletto (1514–1585), sa bibliothèque et ses traductions de saint Basile.” Mélanges de lécole française de Rome 98.2 (1986): 889–955 (at 909–10; the text is here erroneously [?] identified as the Commentary on Peter and Paul by Sophronius of Jerusalem [=BHG 1495]).

Lipsius, Richard Adelbert. Die apokryphen Apostelgeschichten und Apostellegenden. 2 vols. Braunschweig: Schwetschke und Sohn, 1883–1887 (vol. 2.1, pp. 217–27).

Vouaux, Leon. Les actes de Pierre: Introduction, textes, traduction et commentaire. Les apocryphes du Nouveau Testament; Documents pour servir a l’étude des origines chretiennes. Paris: Letouzey et Ane, 1922 (pp. 194–95).