"Maria mater Domini": What is the history of the three-word phrase?

[gryan]

The three-word Latin phrase "Maria mater Domini" was not common before its appearance in Pseudo-Papias Fragment X, but I have found one additional usage and it is significantly different.

Two lists of Marys headed by the phrase "Maria mater Domini":
One that allows for the possibility that "Mary mother of the Lord" was also mother of "James brother of the Lord"
and one that explicitly eliminates that possibility.

From Pseudo-Papias Fragment X
Attributed to Papias of Lombardy (1040s–1060s) by JB Lightfoot.

Mary the mother of the Lord.
Mary the wife of Cleophas or Alphaeus,
who was the mother of James the bishop and apostle, and of Simon and Thaddeus, and of one Joseph.
Mary Salome, wife of Zebedee, mother of John the evangelist and James.

‘Maria mater Domini:
Maria Cleophae, sive Alphei uxor,
quae fuit mater Jacobi episcopi et apostolic et Symonis et Thadei et cujusdam Joseph:
Maria Salome uxor Zebedei mater Joannis evangelistae et Jacobi:
http://www.textexcavation.com/papias.html

From Homilies of Aelfric c. 955 – c. 1010
Maria mater Domini ,
et Maria mater Jacobi , fratris Domini ,
et Maria [ mater Jacobi ] fratris Joannis evangelistä ,
https://www.google.com/search?safe=acti ... nt=gws-wiz

Unlike the Pseudo-Papias list, the list from Homilies of Aelfric distinguishes Mary "mother of the Lord" from "Mary mother of James, brother of the Lord" (Jacobum fratrem Domini Vulgate Galatians 1:12).

Although recorded later, I think Fragment X preserved a more ancient list--A list that fails to eliminate the possibility that James, "brother of the Lord" might have been another uterine son of Mary, "mother of the Lord."

Thoughts?

[Kunigunde Kreuzerin]

From Pseudo-Papias Fragment X
Attributed to Papias of Lombardy (1040s–1060s) by JB Lightfoot.

Mary the mother of the Lord.
Mary the wife of Cleophas or Alphaeus,
who was the mother of James the bishop and apostle, and of Simon and Thaddeus, and of one Joseph.
Mary Salome, wife of Zebedee, mother of John the evangelist and James.

Although recorded later, I think Fragment X preserved a more ancient list--A list that fails to eliminate the possibility that James, "brother of the Lord" might have been another uterine son of Mary, "mother of the Lord."

Thoughts?

Agreed. I would guess that the list has the following origins

Mark 16:1	John 19:25	Matthew 27:56	Matthew 10:3
When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him.	by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.	56 among whom were Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.	The names of the twelve apostles are these: … 3 ... James the son of Alphaeus,

[gryan]

From Pseudo-Papias Fragment X
Attributed to Papias of Lombardy (1040s–1060s) by JB Lightfoot.

Mary the mother of the Lord.
Mary the wife of Cleophas or Alphaeus,
who was the mother of James the bishop and apostle, and of Simon and Thaddeus, and of one Joseph.
Mary Salome, wife of Zebedee, mother of John the evangelist and James.

Although recorded later, I think Fragment X preserved a more ancient list--A list that fails to eliminate the possibility that James, "brother of the Lord" might have been another uterine son of Mary, "mother of the Lord."

Agreed. I would guess that the list has the following origins

Mark 16:1	John 19:25	Matthew 27:56	Matthew 10:3
When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him.	by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.	56 among whom were Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Joseph and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.	The names of the twelve apostles are these: … 3 ... James the son of Alphaeus,

Yes!

And, the phrase "Mary, mother of the Lord" has an affinity with Luke's Gospel.

The following note on the etymology of "Mary, mother of the Lord" is quoted directly from brianpck of Latin Stack Exchange:

"Surely you can go no further back than the New Testament. After learning the news that she is to be the mother of Jesus, Mary goes to minister to her cousin Elizabeth, who is expecting John the Baptist. Here are the words of Elizabeth's greeting to Mary from Luke 1:42-43:

Εὐλογημένη σὺ ἐν γυναιξίν, καὶ εὐλογημένος ὁ καρπὸς τῆς κοιλίας σου. καὶ πόθεν μοι τοῦτο ἵνα ἔλθῃ ἡ μήτηρ τοῦ κυρίου μου πρὸς ἐμέ;

Jerome's Vulgate translation is as follows:

Benedicta tu inter mulieres, et benedictus fructus ventris tui. Et unde hoc mihi ut veniat mater Domini mei ad me?

...the exact three-word phrase in Latin... is a bit tough because (as far as I'm aware) this wasn't ever a common Marian formula. You would have much more luck finding references to the 'Θεοτόκος' (God-bearer), 'Mater Dei,' or 'Dei Genitrix.'"

https://latin.stackexchange.com/questio ... ter-domini