 | The Narrative Self in Early Christianity: Essays in Honor of Judith Perkins Subjects: Apocryphal Acts of the Apostles -- Criticism interpretation etc.; Church history -- Primitive and early church ca. 30-600; Perkins Judith 1944–; Essays that explore early Christian texts and the broader world in which they were written This volume of twelve essays celebrates the contributions of classicist Judith Perkins to the study of early Christianity. Drawing on Perkins's insights related to apocryphal texts, representations of pain and suffering, and the creation of meaning, contributors explore the function of Christian narratives that depict pain and suffering, the motivations of the early Christians who composed these stories, and their continuing value to contemporary people. Contributors also examine how narratives work to create meaning in a religious context. These contributions address these issues from a variety of angles through a wide range of texts. Features: Introductions to and treatments of several largely unknown early Christian texts Essays by ten women and two men influenced or mentored by Judith Perkins Essays on the Deuterocanon, the New Testament, and early Christian relicsJanet Spittler is an associate professor in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Virginia. She is the author of Animals in the Apocryphal Acts of the Apostles: The Wild Kingdom of Early Christian Literature (2008). |
