ABSTRACT This study examines ideal masculinities in the Synoptic Gospels, focusing especially on the masculinity of Jesus. In addition, since masculinity is defined in relation to other masculinities and femininities, other male and female characters in the Synoptic Gospels are studied as well. The focus of this study is not the historical Jesus, but instead it attempts to determine how the Synoptic Gospels portray Jesus and the other characters as masculine and what kind of masculinity the Synoptic Gospels present as the ideal. As a theoretical framework for the study of masculinities, I employ a revised version of R. W. Connell s concepts of hegemonic and non-hegemonic masculinities. I suggest that the most fruitful approach is to see the masculinities of early Christianity as marginalized. Marginalized masculinities may have several strategies in relation to hegemonic masculinities, ranging from acceptance or complicity to resistance and voluntary marginality. In this study, my intention is to see whether these different strategies can be found in the Synoptic Gospels. This approach confirms that the Synoptic Gospels indeed had several potential strategies vis-à-vis hegemonic masculinities. In the ancient Greco-Roman world, there appears to have been at least two ideals of masculinity competing for the hegemonic position. One advocated self-assertive behavior, whereas the other emphasized the importance of self-control. Both of these ideals are found in a wide variety of sources, although the self-controlled ideal is more widespread in philosophical writings, especially Stoic texts. In contrast to the opponents of Jesus, who are presented as unmasculine, the Synoptic Gospels argue that Jesus and the disciples offer superior methods of fulfilling the ideals of masculinity. The ideal masculinity of the Synoptic Gospels presented in Jesus teaching is close to the self-controlled ideal of masculinity. Nevertheless, there are also occasions where Jesus teaching goes further than the self-controlled ideal of masculinity into what seems like voluntary acceptance of the marginal position of the early Christians. The disciples are instructed to adopt the social position of marginal groups, such as children, slaves, and eunuchs. This idea of voluntary marginalization is advocated especially in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, with Matthew occasionally advocating an even more voluntarily marginal ideal than Mark. Luke, on the other hand, seems to be closer to the hegemonic ideals. In this study, I show that the Gospel of Luke is closest and most complicit with the ancient Greco-Roman ideal of self-controlled masculinity. This can be seen throughout Luke s Gospel, but it is most evident in the way that Luke changes the passion narrative and Mark s depictions of Jesus emotions. The Gospel of Mark, on the other hand, portrays both Jesus and the disciples as examples of voluntarily marginalized masculinity. Matthew enhances the depiction of Jesus by moving it closer to the ancient Greco-Roman ideal of self-controlled masculinity, but at the same time he maintains that the disciples should voluntarily accept the marginalized position of the early Christians.
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