Book of Mary: A Commentary on the Protevangelium of James

This commentary provides a new paradigm for understanding the Protevangelium of James. It is not an early Christian text but a late Jewish text with prophetic implications for the canonical works of the New Testament. The commentary begins with a study of selected portions of the Gospel of Mark. This indicates that Mark knew of the Protevangelium and encoded it within his gospel. As a result, it can be shown that the Protevangelium dates before any of the canonical works of the New Testament. With this perspective, the author provides a new analysis of the text of the Protevangelium without drawing on any canonical Christian texts. In the process, additional evidence is found that links it to works in the Old Testament. In conclusion, the Protevangelium draws on the Old Testament and has prophetic implications for the New Testament. The Protevangelium belongs to neither the New Testament nor the Old Testament but stands between them. The present analysis yields new information on how Christianity developed from its Jewish roots. It is 'The Book of Mary' that is the first link in the chain of development.