Kingdom Sayings and Parables of Jesus inthe Apocryphon of James: Tradition and Redaction

Abstract

In a recent article Helmut Koester argues against the current practice of distinguishing between canonical Gospels, on the one hand, and apocryphal gospels, on the other, and treating the apocryphal gospels as ‘step children’ of New Testament research. Koester maintains that there are a number of the ‘apocryphal’ gospels which ‘belong to a very early stage in the development of gospel literature — a stage that is comparable to the sources which were used by the gospels of the New Testament.’ One of those texts to which he points is the Nag Hammadi tractate theApocryphon of James. This paper is an attempt to legitimize one ‘step child’ of New Testament scholarship as a valid source for investigating the earliest levels of the Jesus traditions.