01 — Foundations

The source problem that governs everything written about St. Thecla, and the setting of Iconium in which the tradition places her. This section is the indispensable frame for the rest of the collection: Thecla is known essentially only from one second-century apocryphal text, whose earliest external notice is a report of its own composition by an Asian presbyter.

Files

File	Description
the-source-problem.md	FLAGSHIP. Thecla is known essentially only from the apocryphal Acts of Paul and Thecla (a portion of the Acts of Paul, c. 150–190); Tertullian’s notice in De baptismo 17 that an Asian presbyter composed it “out of love for Paul”; what this means for what can be affirmed.
iconium-and-the-tradition.md	Iconium and the Pauline mission-world the Acts presupposes; how the Thecla tradition relates to the canonical record of Paul; the shape of the legend as it entered the Church’s memory.

See Also

• The Narrative — the story whose source is examined here
• What Can Be Known — the historicity question developed in full
• METHODOLOGY.md — the repository’s source-critical standard, esp. §3.5