- Source: Joanna, wife of Chuza
Joanna (Koinē Greek: Ἰωάννα, romanized: Iōanna, also Greek: Ἰωάνα), the wife of Chuza (γυνὴ Χουζᾶ), is a woman mentioned in the gospels who was healed by Jesus and later supported him and his disciples in their travels. She is one of the women recorded in the Gospel of Luke as accompanying Jesus and the twelve apostles and as a witness to Jesus' resurrection. Her husband was Chuza, who managed the household of Herod Antipas, the ruler of Galilee; this is the origin of the distinguishing epithet commonly attached to her name, differentiating her from other figures named Joanna or Joanne.
Her name is from Hebrew: יוֹחָנָה, romanized: Yôḥānāh (transl. 'Yahweh has been gracious').: 143–145
She is recognised as a saint in the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions and among other Christians, such as the Anglicans.
Joanna in the Gospels
Joanna is identified as "the wife of Chuza", steward to Herod Antipas, when she is listed as one of the women "cured of evil spirits and infirmities" who accompanied Jesus and the Apostles, and "provided for Him from their substance" in Luke 8:2–3.
In Luke 24:10, Joanna is mentioned by name, along with Mary Magdalene and Mary of Clopas, as among the women who took spices to Jesus' tomb and found the stone rolled away and the tomb empty. The accounts in the other synoptic gospels do not mention Joanna as one of the group of women who observe Jesus' burial and testify to his Resurrection.
Holy Myrrhbearer traditions
In Orthodox tradition, she is honored as "Saint Joanna the Myrrhbearer" (Greek: Αγία Ιωάννα η Μυροφόρος) and is commemorated among the eight women who carried myrrh on the "Sunday of the Myrrhbearers", two Sundays after Pascha (Orthodox Easter). From this commemoration, in the revised Calendar of Saints of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod she is commemorated as one of the Holy Myrrhbearers on August 3, together with other women present at the tomb of Jesus in New Testament accounts. These include Mary of Clopas (also called Mary, the mother of James the Less and Joses) and Salome. Likewise, she is commemorated in The Episcopal Church on August 3, as listed in Lesser Feasts and Fasts 2022 as: "Joanna, Mary, and Salome, Myrrh-Bearing Women."
Although not mentioned by name, Joanna is seen as one of the women who joined the disciples and Mary, mother of Jesus, in the upper room in prayer. She was believed to be among the group of 120 who chose Matthias the Apostle to fill the vacancy that was left by Judas, as well as being present on the Day of Pentecost.
Identification with Junia
Richard Bauckham argues for identifying Joanna, the wife of Chuza, with the Junia mentioned in Paul's letter to the Romans 16:7, "Joanna" being her Jewish name, and "Junia" her Roman. Joanna is mentioned as one of the members of the ministry of Jesus in the Gospel of Luke, travelling with him among the other twelve and some other women, city to city.
After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; Joanna the wife of Chuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.
Joanna is also mentioned alongside Mary Magdalene and other women as those who first visited the tomb and found it to be empty, and it is to this group of women, including Joanna, that Jesus first appears and instructs to tell the disciples to meet him in Galilee in Matthew 28:8-10. Bauckham notes that Paul describes Junia as having been a member of the Christian community prior to him, and given that Paul himself converted within three years of the death of Jesus, that would require Junia to have been a member of the community from a very early period.
Whereas Joanna is a Hellenized, Grecian, adaptation of a Hebrew name, Junia is a Latin name. Jews often adopted a second, Latin name that were nearly sound equivalents to their original name. Joanna and Junia act as near sound equivalents in the native languages, which Bauckham says is indicative of the identification between the two. Finally, Paul describes Junia as being "prominent among the apostles". Given that Junia is described as an earliest member of the community, and as one of the most prominent members, that she is not named elsewhere is indicative, as Bauckham argues, that she and Joanna are the same individual, given Joanna's high prominence during the ministry of Jesus.: 172–80
In popular culture
Joanna, wife of Chuza (Йоганна, жінка Хусова) is a verse drama by Ukrainian writer Lesya Ukrainka, first published in 1909.
In the 2015 television miniseries Killing Jesus Rotem Zissman-Cohen plays Joanna.
In the 2015 television miniseries A.D. The Bible Continues, Joanna is portrayed by Farzana Dua Elahe.
Joanna is a fictional character in The Lost Wisdom of the Magi
In the third season of the 2017 television series The Chosen Joanna is portrayed by Amy Bailey. She is deeply moved by the Sermon on the Mount and helps Andrew meet the imprisoned John the Baptizer. In the fourth season she announces John's execution to the other disciples.
See also
Women in the Bible
List of Christian women of the patristic age
Notes
References
= Sources
=
Bauckham, Richard (2002). "Joanna the Apostle". Gospel Women: Studies of the named women in the gospels. London; Grand Rapids, MI, USA: T & T Clark; Eerdmans. pp. 109–202. ISBN 978-0567088703.
Further reading
Lockyer, Herbert (1988). All the women of the Bible: The life and times of all the women of the Bible (Revised ed.). Grand Rapids: Zondervan Pub. House. ISBN 978-0310281511.
Maloney, Robert P. (March 28, 2024). "Remembering Joanna, the forgotten witness to Christ’s resurrection." America. Accessed March 31, 2024.
Ng, Esther Yue L. (September 2022). "Did Joanna become Junia?". Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society. 65 (3). The Evangelical Theological Society: 523–534. Archived PDF
Witherington, Ben III (Spring 2005). "Joanna. Apostle of the Lord - or jailbait?". Bible Review. 21 (2): 12–14. ISSN 8755-6316.
External links
Character Study of Joanna
Icon of St. Joanna the Myrrh-Bearer
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