The Reformation
Southwestern Journal of Theology
Volume 60, No. 1 – Fall 2017
Managing Editor: W. Madison Grace II
New Testament Apocrypha: More Noncanonical Scriptures. Edited by Tony Burke and Brent Landau, vol. 1. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2016. 585 pages. Hardcover, $75.00.
In this volume, Tony Burke and Brent Landau provide translations and critical introductions of noncanonical texts related to the New Testament. While many such collections exist, this work intends to fill certain gaps in the field. First, it contains works neglected by earlier publications. Many of the works included here have never appeared in translation in modern scholarly languages (such as P. Oxy. 5072). Second, it includes texts of later date than many previous compilations (such as the [Latin] Revelation of John about Antichrist). While previous studies have generally been limited to works up to the third century, the current book roughly spans the beginning of Christianity to the rise of Islam, although not exclusively. Third, it attempts to republish more familiar works when textual scholarship has advanced significantly since the most current publication (such as the Life of John the Baptist).
The introduction to New Testament Apocrypha explains much of the impetus for and background to this publication. It begins by noting the amorphous character of and difficulty in defining “New Testament Apocrypha.” There is no standard list or collection of New Testament Apocrypha nor any generally agreed upon temporal limitations to works the term can designate. Because of these difficulties, the introduction launches into a history of the canon. The first several centuries of Christianity, both before and after Athanasius’s 39th Festal Letter, were characterized by permeability in the boundary between canon and non-canonical. For example, Revelation was slow to gain full acceptance in the Greek East, and the Diatersseron was standard in Syriac Christianity into the fifth century. Beyond this canonical fluidity, the introduction notes that even when a work became regarded almost universally as noncanonical, this did not mean that the book went into oblivion. Many apocryphal works were exceedingly popular and heavily influenced doctrine even into the present (e.g., Protevangelium of James).
After the helpful introduction, the work is divided into four sections—1) Gospels and Related Traditions, 2) Apocryphal Acts and Related Traditions, 3) Epistles, and finally 4) Apocalypses. Each work has a critical introduction and new translation. The introductions contain information on the contents, transmission, editions, date and provenance, literary and theological importance, and other important issues for the work. An example of this latter category is found the introduction of P. Oxy. 210. Due to the fragmentary nature of the work, the introduction contains explanations of papyrological symbols for those less familiar with them. In addition, each introduction includes a short bibliography allowing the reader to research each document further. The translations themselves contain helpful section headings for easy reading and marginal cross-references to canonical and non-canonical texts that aid the reader in understanding the background to the work. Also included is an index of both scripture and other ancient texts.
This book is imminently valuable for both the seasoned scholar and students. Because it offers new texts and updated bibliographies, even the most senior researcher can gain new knowledge within this book’s pages. For the student, it provides a helpful and accessible introduction to canon formation and reception of the New Testament in antiquity. Further, the translations are exceptionally readable and require little to no knowledge of ancient languages to decipher. For the doctoral researcher looking for a dissertation topic or possible publication, the introductions to each document point the reader to the gaps in the field and the most important publications on each work. Because of all of this and more, Burke and Landau’s New Testament Apocrypha promises to become a standard work in the field for many years to come.
