The Circle Dance of the Cross in the Acts of John: An Early Christian Ritual

Abstract

This study will discuss the original form, function, and meaning of the circle dance of the cross found in AJohn and determine whether it represents an early Christian ritual practice. This study will assess the evidence concerning the circle dance ritual within AJohn. Furthermore, a comparative examination of other relevant sources will shed further light on the circle in AJohn. This paper will offer a hypothetical reconstruction of the circle dance ritual. Ultimately this study will show that the early Christian ritual recorded in AJohn was in fact an actual ritual and is representative of early Christian plurality. Furthermore, it will illustrate that the ritual draws heavily on Greek philosophical understandings of circle dances representing order and disorder. The study will conclude that this ritual was ecstatic in character, and that it was individually transformative.