Apocryphicity

A Tale of Two Conferences

November 2, 2006 by

In September and October I had the pleasure and the privilege of attending two CA-related conferences. The first, a workshop at the University of Ottawa dedicated solely to the CA and attended by prominent North American CA scholars, has been discussed elsewhere (particularly by Jim Davila; see the post here) but deserves mention in this forum. The second, a Patristics conference at Concordia University in Montréal, is also noteworthy for CA studies and, again, deserves mention.

Ottawa, September 30-October 1, 2006: Pierluigi Piovanelli of the University of Ottawa hosted a workshop titled Christian Apocrypha for the New Millennium: Achievements, Prospects and Challenges. Invited were some of North America’s best and brightest, including (among others) François Bovon, F. Stanley Jones, Dennis R. MacDonald, Ann Graham Brock (though Ann was, ultimately, unable to attend), Cornelia Horn, Stephen Shoemaker, Paul-Hubert Poirier, Craig Evans, Annette Reed, and (ahem) me. With the kind permission of the organizer, the complete list of papers is featured below:

Lorenzo DiTommaso (Concordia University), “Jewish Pseudepigrapha and Christian Apocrypha: Definitions, Boundaries, and Points of Contact”
Timothy Beech (St. Paul University), “Unraveling the Complexity of the Oracula Sibyllina: The Value of a Socio-Rhetorical Approach in the Study of the Sibylline Oracles”
Michael Kaler (McMaster University), “Gnostic Irony and the Adaptation of the Apocalyptic Genre”
Robert R. Phenix, Jr. (Saint Louis University), “The Problem of the Source of Balai’s Sermons on Joseph and the Nachleben of Pseudepigraphical Joseph Material”
James R. Davila (University of St. Andrews), “More Christian Apocryphal Texts”
Louis

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Welcome

November 1, 2006 by

Does the world need another blog? Apparently yes, it does, because this is the first and only blog devoted to the study of the Christian apocrypha.

The genesis of Apocryphicity occurred at a conference on the Christian apocrypha in Ottawa back in September (more on this conference later). In a conversation with Jim Davilla of the University of St. Andrews in Scotland (and administrator of the paleo-Judaica blog) about the apocrypha on the internet, I mentioned that there were no blogs focusing on Christian apocrypha. It was suggested at the time that someone should create one. I guess that someone is me.

As the blurb to the left states I see the objectives of this blog as to inform scholars and non-scholars about developments in the study of this literature and to aid those interested in particular texts or projects to share their knowledge with others. The value of the blog depends on how much energy is put into it by participants—that would be you. I will endeavour to post information as I encounter it but the blog will be stronger the more informed I am. So, don’t be shy: e-mail me if you are aware of news on the apocrypha (discoveries, major studies, popular media, etc.) that I have missed, or if you are working on a project and seek input from others.

I look forward to hearing from you.