Friday Veneration in the Sixth- and Seventh-Century Christianity and the Christian Legends on Conversion of Nağrān

CONTENTS

Introduction: a Lost Epistle on Friday 2
Part One: The Calendars of the “Twelve Fridays” 5
1.1. The Twelve Fridays Texts: an Introduction 5
1.2. The Clement Recension of the Twelve Fridays 6
1.3. Eleutherius Recension of the Twelve Fridays: an Introduction 9
1.4. The Twelve Fridays Calendar of the Eleutherius Recension 10
1.5. Eleutherius Recension as a Seventh-Century Apocalyptic Writing 11
1.6. A Jewish Tradition Shared with the Early Islam 14
1.7. Twelve-Friday Tradition in Palestine: John Zosimos 16
1.8. 12-Friday Calendar: a Preliminary Conclusion 17
1.9. A Syriac Legend on the Secret Bishop John and Personified Friday 17
Part Two: St Eleutherius and the Legends on Nağrān 18
2.1. The Text of the Slavonic Story of Eleutherius 18
2.2. Syriac as the Original Language 20
2.2.1. A Friday which is временная (“temporary”) 20
2.2.2. внидоста въ глубокою повѣсть 21
2.2.3. Како ми ся дана сила 21
2.2.4. “Laura” means “Illyria” 22
Note 1: “Šeptail” and a Possibility of Slavonic Translation from Syriac 23
2.3. Hagiographical Dossier of Eleutherius of Illyricum: an Introduction 24
2.3.1. The Byzantine Tradition and Constantinople 24
2.3.2. Hierapolis 26
2.4. “Wolf of Arabia” and Arabian Connexions of Eleutherius 29
2.5. Hierapolis and Arabia in a Peculiar Tradition on Apostle Philippe 30
2.6. The Legends on Conversion of Nağrān: an Introduction 32
2.6.1. A Legend with an East Syrian Background 33
2.6.2. Two Legends with a West Syrian Background and Their Common Source 34
2.7. The *Fymywn Legend, Eleutherius’ Dossier, and the Legend on John and Friday 36
2.8. Eleutherius and the Gädlä Azqir 37
2.9. The Personal Names in Eleutherius’ Dossier 39
2.9.1. Eleutherius’ Companion 40
2.9.2. Eleutherius’ Mother 41
2.9.3. Eleutherius 41
Part Three: Eleutherius and Friday 42
3.1. Friday Veneration in Bostra: St Parasceve and Baḥīrā 42
3.1.1. St Parasceve’s Dossier: Introduction 42
3.1.2. St Parasceve’s Dossier: Arabic Connexions 44
3.1.3. Bostra, the Teaching of Baḥīrā, and the Lost Revelation on Friday 45
3.1.4. Sitz im Leben of the Parasceve Legend 46
Note 2: The Baḥīrā legend, Its Sources, and the Hagiographical Substrate 47
3.2. The Anti-Jewish Polemics in Parasceve’s Dossier and in Eleutherius 48
3.3. Concluding Remarks on the Cult of Eleutherius 48
3.3.1. Commemoration Dates of Eleutherius 48