On the Margins of the Bible: Jewish and Christian Non-Canonical Texts

Catalog description

Ancient Jews and Christians produced many texts that were not canonized in the Bible, texts often as interesting, beautiful, or theologically rewarding as those later canonized. Why were they not also included? What was the process of canonization, and who was in charge? What were the contexts that produced the non-canonical texts? Were the texts omitted at odds with the mainstream, or even dangerous? What value did they have in the ancient world, and what value do they hold today for historical understanding? We will study some of the best of these texts, comparing them to biblical texts.