OXFORD, Miss. – The roles of the Virgin Mary and Fatima in
medieval Christianity and Shiite Islam, respectively, are
explored in a new book written by a University of
Mississippi assistant professor of religion.
“Chosen Among Women: Mary and Fatima in Medieval
Christianity and Shiite Islam” (University of Notre Dame
Press, 2008) is the culmination of several years’ work,
said Mary F. Thurlkill, whose teaching and research
interests focus on comparisons between the two religions.
“Thurlkill has produced a remarkable study, a model for
comparative work in the history of religions,” said Brannon
Wheeler, visiting distinguished professor of history and
politics at the U.S. Naval Academy. “The book is original,
well researched and shows great erudition. Thurlkill’s
original acumen is brought to bear on a rich and variegated
topic that has for too long been ignored by specialists not
willing to move beyond the confines of overly determined
areas of research.”
The book addresses the proliferation of Marian imagery from
late antiquity through the writings of church fathers and
popular hagiography. It also focuses on the importance of
Fatima in the evolution of Shiite identity throughout the
Middle East. The author examines the way scholar Muhammad
Baqir al-Majlisi addresses Fatima as a representation of
the Shiite holy family and compares the significance of
feminine ideals found in Shiite Islam and medieval
Christianity and its relevance in the modern world.
“I think it offers scholars of Christianity new insight
into the earliest signs of Marian veneration in the West;
and, to scholars of Islam in general and Shiism in
particular, it offers a new way of understanding Fatima,
the prophet Muhammad’s daughter,” Thrulkill said.
For more information, contact Thurlkill at 662-915-1400 or
maryt@olemiss.edu. To learn more about programs in
philosophy and religion at UM, go to