„Remember …!“ (Luke 24:6). On the Role of Women and the Weight of Remembering in Luke’s Easter Narrative

Abstract

Against the background of the special attention given to women in Luke as a whole, the fact that no explicit appearances of the Risen Lord to women are narrated in Luke 24 raises questions about the role of women and the intention of their representation in Luke. In three steps, the article searches for the hidden presence of women in Luke 24, for the characterisation and specific function of the women explicitly mentioned in Luke 24:1–12 in the context of conveying the message of the resurrection, as well as for the significance of the renewed description of these events in Luke 24:22–24. In this context, the article addresses the aspect of remembrance inscribed on three different levels of the narrative. The act of remembering the resurrection message proves to be the primary task of the women, who are depicted in an unreservedly positive manner as disciples. This must be fully remembered, if necessary also against a Lucan representation that latently relegates the women to the background.