Christian Apocrypha Sessions for the 2018 SBL Annual Meeting

The 2018 SBL Annual Meeting will have four sessions from the Christian Apocrypha Section. Dates, times, and locations will be announced later.

Session 1 (in conjunction with the Religious Competition in Late Antiquity)
Religious Competition in the Christian Apocrypha
Arthur Urbano, Providence College (Rhode Island), Presiding
Jacob A. Lollar, Florida State University: “What Has Ephesus to do with Edessa?: The Syriac History of John, the Cult of the Dea Syria, and Religious Competition in Fourth-Century Syria”
Jung Choi, North Carolina Wesleyan College: “Two Bodily Practices in the Acts of Peter
Shaily Shashikant Patel, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University: “Magic and Polysemy: The Case of the Pseudo-Clementines
Christopher A. Frilingos, Michigan State University: “Blood Into Stone: Violence, Sanctuary, and ‘Jewish Christianity’ in the Protevangelium Jacobi
Lily Vuong, Central Washington University, Respondent

Session 2
New and Neglected Christian Apocryphal Texts
Tobias Nicklas, Universität Regensburg, Presiding
Chance Bonar, Harvard University: “An Introduction to 3 Apocryphal Apocalypse of John
Florentina Badalanova Geller, Freie Universität Berlin: “Apocryphal Gospels and the Folk Bible”
Tony Burke, York University: “Opera Evangelica: The Discovery of a Lost Collection of Christian Apocrypha”
Bradley Rice, McGill University: “The Suspension of Time in the Book of the Nativity of the Savior
James E. Walters, Rochester College: “The (Syriac) Exhortation of Peter: A New Addition to the Petrine Apocryphal Tradition” (20 min)

Session 3
Sex and Violence in the Christian Apocrypha
Janet Spittler, University of Virginia, Presiding
Catherine Playoust, University of Divinity:
“‘And still he won’t leave me alone’ (Acts Thom. 43.11): A Toxic Masculine Demon in the Acts of Thomas
Jonathan Henry, Princeton University: “Victimization, Authority, and the Holy Mansplainer”
Michael Whitenton, Baylor University: “A Medical Perspective on Paul’s Baldness in Acts of Thecla
Andrew R. Guffey, McCormick Theological Seminary:
“Toxic Femininity? Enkrateia and Gender in Christian Apocryphal Literature”
Jennifer Hunter, Northern Arizona University: “Perfection and the Ritual Reunification of Male and Female in the Gospel of Philip

Session 4
Comparing Gospels
Brent Landau, University of Texas at Austin, Presiding
Tobias Nicklas, Universität Regensburg: “Water into Beer! Transformations of Biblical Miracles in late antique and early medieval Traditions ”
Janet Spittler, University of Virginia: “The Minor Acts of Thomas and John 20:24-29”
Francis Watson, University of Durham: “‘Inasmuch as Many have Attempted…’: The Apocryphon of James and the Problem of Gospel Plurality”
J.R.C. (Rob) Cousland, University of British Columbia: “Rereading the Christology of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas: The Rewriting of Luke 2:41-52 in Paidika 17 ”
Julia Snyder, Universität Regensburg, Respondent