Out of the Shadows, the Acts of Paul and Thecla
A New Translation and Commentary
- Biblical Studies & Commentaries
- Publisher: Cascade Books (Wipf and Stock)
- Published: 2024
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Publisher's Description
Thecla is one of the strangest characters from Christianity's past. She falls in love with the apostle Paul's teaching on continence, twice faces martyrdom, fights with beasts in the arena, cuts her hair, cross-dresses, baptizes herself, and becomes a preacher. Tertullian tried to silence her story and the Pastoral Epistles warned about women like her. The Acts of Paul and Thecla was widespread and popular but then was hidden away in the Apocrypha. In recent years, Thecla has come out of the shadows. Her story reframes conventional views of second-century Jesus communities. Out of the Shadows offers a vibrant and accessible modern translation and commentary.
Endorsements (2)
“B. Brandon Scott and Perry Kea have indeed drawn Thecla out of the shadows with this highly readable and engaging translation and commentary. Their balance between critical and explanatory tones helps modern readers make sense of a romance novel set in the context of antiquity. Thecla’s attraction to Paul in Part 1 and her fierce authority in Part 2 humanize her as she demonstrates a radical commitment to the divine powers of Christ.”
“B. Brandon Scott and Perry Kea’s new translation and commentary offers a rigorous and balanced reading of the Acts of [Paul and] Thecla. Scott and Kea’s approach to this remarkable story rightfully emphasizes the centrality of the female body to contests for community identities in the Roman Empire, a feat yet to be accomplished in translation. For readers interested in glimpsing the popular imagination of the earliest generations of Jesus communities, this writing—made newly accessible through this translation—is as close as you can get.”
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