Ancient World Seminar: Keith Elliott (Leeds) – “The New Testament Apocryphal Acts and Ancient Novels”

Abstract of the lecture

Professor Elliott will present a paper on the apocryphal Acts of various apostles arising in the 2nd. century A.D. in order to analyse the sources and literary influences on the original texts before moving on to assess the reception history of these popular but non-canonical Christian books. No previous knowledge of the subject matter will be expected but those planning to attend are encouraged to read some of the "Big Five" books of acts i.e. the apocryphal Acts of Andrew, of John, of Paul, of Peter, and of Thomas. Among the questions raised will be the likely readership of these apocrypha, the possible parallels to secular fiction in the ancient world and the aims and purpose of these writings.

About this month’s speaker

James Keith Elliott is Honorary Professor of New Testament Textual Criticism at the University of Leeds, UK. During his long career he has written and edited dozens of books, and has contributed to the field with hundreds of book chapters, articles, and reviews, and he has supervised over thirty PhD projects to completion. He is an authority in the field of apocryphal studies, well known for his monograph The Apocryphal New Testament (1993, rev. ed. in 2005). His most recent book is the second edition of A Synopsis of the Apocryphal Nativity and Infancy Narratives, published in 2016 (originally published in 2006). For his outstanding and influential work, he has had an entry in the annually appearing Who’s Who of Britain since 2008 and in 2014, Texts and Traditions: Essays in honours of J. Keith Elliott was published.