The Protevangelium of James: Greek Text, English Translation, Critical Introduction, vol. 1 (Jewish and Christian Texts)

by George Themelis Zervos

Publisher:

T&T Clark

, 2019

Overview

George T. Zervos presents the first in a two-volume critical investigation of one of the earliest and most important of the New Testament Apocrypha, the Protevangelium of James, also known as the Infancy Gospel of James. Zervos challenges the prevailing view that the ProtJac is a 2nd century unitary document; finding it instead to be the product of an ongoing redactional process in which a 1st century CE “heretical” text was progressively conformed to the “orthodox” Christian doctrine of the time.

Zervos tells the story of how an early apocryphal gospel provided the developing church with doctrinal material, which was incorporated into both the theology and the ecclesiastical liturgical cycle of the medieval Church, thus becoming a significant part of the standard catechism for generations of Christians. In this first volume Zervos provides a critical introduction to the text and discusses ProtJac’s publication history, scholarly investigation, compositional problems and evidence of redaction, as well as a in-depth analysis of the narrative. For the first time the readings of the vast majority of the known Greek manuscripts appear together, with a transcription of the original text of the complete copy of the ProtJac found in Papyrus Bodmer V.

Key Features

• Provides a thorough introduction to the The Protevangelium of James
• Highlights the importance of this document as a witness to early Christian teachings
• Illuminates the multilevel compositional process that produced the text of the ProtJac

Contents

Introduction: The General Background

• The Publication History of the Greek Text of the ProtJac
• The History of Scholarly Investigation of the ProtJac
• The Compositional Problem of the ProtJac

Evidence of Redaction of the ProtJac

• The Joseph Council: ProtJac 8:03–9:12
• The Veil Council: ProtJac 10:01–12:11
• The Trial of Joseph and Mary: ProtJac 13:01–16:07
• The Nativity Complex: ProtJac 17–21

Conclusions: The “Authors” of the ProtJac

• The Redactor: The Protevangelium Jacobi
• The Composer: The Composer-enhanced GenMar
• Joseph in the ProtJac
• The Author: The Genesis Marias

Appendices

• Appendix 1: Mary’s Evolving Virginity in Early Christianity
• Appendix 2: The Apologetic Purpose of the ProtJac
• Appendix 3: The ProtJac and the New Testament Gospels
• Appendix 4: The Kathisma Church

Product Details

• Title: The Protevangelium of James: Greek Text, English Translation, Critical Introduction: Volume 1
• Author: George Themelis Zervos
• Editor: James H. Charlesworth
• Series: Jewish and Christian Texts
• Publisher: T&T Clark
• Publication Date: 2019
• Pages: 240
• Resource Type: Introduction
• Topic: New Testament Apocrypha

About George Themelis Zervos

George Themelis Zervos, Ph.D., Duke University 1986, is Associate Professor and Chairman of the Department of Philosophy and Religion at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. He teaches courses in New Testament, Biblical Greek, Greek Biblical Papyrology, and Early Christianity.