ReligionForBreakfast | Star Wars Fan Fiction Explains Early Christian Apocrypha @ReligionForBreakfast | Uploaded 6 years ago | Updated 1 day ago
You probably have heard about the canonical Gospels in the New Testament. They introduce famous characters like the apostles Peter and John. But they also introduce not-so-famous characters that only show up for one chapter or less...guys like Nicodemus or Bartholomew. Despite the obscurity of these characters, early Christians in the 2nd century and onward wrote texts featuring these characters. I argue that this is a form of "fan fiction," and viewed through the lens of modern fandoms, we can see the motivation for why these Christians decided to write apocryphal literature.
www.patreon.com/religionforbreakfast
www.facebook.com/religionforbreakfast
Twitter: @andrewmarkhenry
For religious studies book recommendations visit: http://amazon.com/shop/religionforbreakfast
Bibliography:
Ika Willis: http://journal.transformativeworks.org/index.php/twc/article/view/692/564
Acts of Paul and Thecla text: pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/religion/maps/primary/thecla.html
http://henryjenkins.org/blog/2006/09/fan_fiction_as_critical_commen.html
Photo attributions:
Paul and Thecla Ephesus fresco: http://rmadisonj.blogspot.com/2013/05/acts-of-paul-and-thecla-and-other-people.html
St. Thecla from Barcelona: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Barcelona_Cathedral_Interior_-_St._Thecla_-_1486.jpg
Chapel of St. Thecla, Czech Republic: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chapel_of_Saint_Thecla_2016_-_east_view.jpg
Roman Amphitheater: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Merida_Roman_Amphitheatre_0594.jpg
You probably have heard about the canonical Gospels in the New Testament. They introduce famous characters like the apostles Peter and John. But they also introduce not-so-famous characters that only show up for one chapter or less...guys like Nicodemus or Bartholomew. Despite the obscurity of these characters, early Christians in the 2nd century and onward wrote texts featuring these characters. I argue that this is a form of "fan fiction," and viewed through the lens of modern fandoms, we can see the motivation for why these Christians decided to write apocryphal literature.
www.patreon.com/religionforbreakfast
www.facebook.com/religionforbreakfast
Twitter: @andrewmarkhenry
For religious studies book recommendations visit: http://amazon.com/shop/religionforbreakfast
Bibliography:
Ika Willis: http://journal.transformativeworks.org/index.php/twc/article/view/692/564
Acts of Paul and Thecla text: pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/religion/maps/primary/thecla.html
http://henryjenkins.org/blog/2006/09/fan_fiction_as_critical_commen.html
Photo attributions:
Paul and Thecla Ephesus fresco: http://rmadisonj.blogspot.com/2013/05/acts-of-paul-and-thecla-and-other-people.html
St. Thecla from Barcelona: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Barcelona_Cathedral_Interior_-_St._Thecla_-_1486.jpg
Chapel of St. Thecla, Czech Republic: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chapel_of_Saint_Thecla_2016_-_east_view.jpg
Roman Amphitheater: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Merida_Roman_Amphitheatre_0594.jpg
