Christian Apocrypha at the 2012 SBL

The 2012 Annual Meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature is only days away; so, it is about time that I got around to posting the schedule for the Christian Apocrypha sessions. I will be attending all of the sessions and will post a summary when I return.

Saturday Nov. 17

(S17-108) 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM

Room: N138 – McCormick Place

Theme: New Manuscripts, Texts, and Translations

Brent Landau, University of Oklahoma, Presiding

Richard I. Pervo, St. Paul, MN : “Thecla Wove This Web Or Some Things I Learned from Attempting to Write a Commentary on the Acts of Paul” (20 min) Discussion (10 min)

Susan E. Hylen, Vanderbilt University: "The Orthodox Thecla: Characterization of Thecla in the LIfe and Miracles of Saint Thecla" (20 min) Discussion (10 min)

Antti Marjanen, University of Helsinki: "Two New Coptic Fragments of the Apocalypse of Paul (Visio Pauli)" (20 min) Discussion (10 min)

Gesine Schenke Robinson, Episcopal Theological School at Claremont: "The Coptic Testament of Job and its Reception in the Early Christian Period" (20 min) Discussion (10 min)”

(S17-211) 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM

Room: E261 – McCormick Place

Theme: The infancy roots of Mary's first biographies

Pierluigi Piovanelli, Université d'Ottawa – University of Ottawa, Presiding

M. David Litwa, University of Virginia: "Jesus, Hermes and Dionysus: The Divine Child in the Infancy Gospel of Thomas" (20 min) Discussion (10 min)

James Waddell, University of Toledo: "Recontextualizing the Infancy Gospel of Thomas – A Proposal" (20 min) Discussion (10 min)

Stephen J. Shoemaker, University of Oregon: "Mary’s So-Called Life: A New Translation of the Earliest Life of the Virgin" (20 min) Discussion (10 min)

Tony Burke, York University: "The Childhood of Jesus in the East Syriac Life of Mary" (20 min) Discussion (10 min)

Stephen J. Davis, Yale University: "Swiss Jesus: Art, Landscape, Ritual, and the Localization of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas in a Medieval Alpine Church" (20 min) Discussion (10 min)

Sunday, November 18

Joint Session With: Christian Apocrypha, Jewish Christianity / Christian Judaism

(S18-112) 9:00 AM to 11:15 AM

Room: N427d – McCormick Place

Theme: The first volume of the Antike christliche Apokryphen in deutscher Übersetzung

F. Stanley Jones, California State University – Long Beach, Presiding

Jens Schroeter, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin: "The Apocryphal Gospels and the Development of the Four Gospel-Collection in the Early Church" (25 min)

Christoph Markschies, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin: "How Medieval Is Our Image of Ancient Judeo-Christian Gospels? With Some Remarks on the New Apocryphal-Gospel-Volume of the 'Ancient Christian Apocrypha'" (25 min)

Joerg Frey, Universität Zürich: "The Presentation of the Jewish Christian Gospel Fragments in the New Hennecke: Major Decisions, Continuity and Changes" (25 min)

Petri Luomanen, Helsingin Yliopisto – Helsingfors Universitet, Respondent (25 min)

Discussion (30 min)

(S18-212) 1:00 PM to 3:30 PM

Room: N133 – McCormick Place

Theme: More explorations of the apocryphal continent

Pierluigi Piovanelli, Université d'Ottawa – University of Ottawa, Presiding

Lorne Zelyck, University of Cambridge: "P.Oxy. 840 and Israelite Synagogues" (20 min) Discussion (5 min)

Travis W. Proctor, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: "A Rhetorical Absurdity and the Demonic Jesus: The Function of an Apocryphal Resurrection Appearance in Ignatius’ Letter to the Smyrnaeans" (20 min) Discussion (5 min)

Brent Landau, University of Oklahoma: "Polymorphy, Metamorphosis, or Something Else? The Plasticity of Christ in the Syriac Revelation of the Magi and the Apocryphal Acts of John" (20 min) Discussion (5 min)

Bernadette J. Brooten, Brandeis University: "Sexual Surrogacy Enables Holy Celibacy: Euklia, Iphidama, and Maximilla in the Passion of Andrew" (20 min) Discussion (5 min)

Midori Hartman, Drew University: "Avian Imagery and Divinanimality in the Acts of Xanthippe" (20 min) Discussion (5 min)

Jörg Röder, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz: "Character Studies in the Acts of Pilate" (20 min) Discussion (5 min)