Description: The 'Apocalypse of Adam' was discovered among the papyri from the ancient gnostic library at Nag Hammadi, Egypt, in 1946. It is a revelatory discourse that Adam delivers to his son Seth. This discourse is the fifth and final tractate in Nag Hammadi Codex V. The manuscript is now in the Coptic Museum in Old Cairo (codex inv. no. 10548). In Part I of this significant treatment, Hedrick analyzes the sources that lay behind this work, the redaction, and the main theological themes. In Part II, he provides the Coptic text, translation, and notes on the complete text, broken down by Source A, Source B, and the Redactor's additions.
Brief description: Charles W. Hedrick is Professor Emeritus at Southwest Missouri State University. Among his many publications are 'Parables as Poetic Fictions, ' 'Many Things in Parables: Jesus and His Modern Critics, ' and 'When History and Faith Collide: Studying Jesus.' He is the co-editor of 'Gospel of the Savior: A New Ancient Gospel, ' 'Nag Hammadi, Gnosticism, and Early Christianity, ' and 'Ancient Fiction: The Matrix of Early Christian and Jewish Narrative.'
Review Quotes: ""If indeed the 'Apocalypse of Adam' is a composite text, it is essential that its history of redaction be clarified. Not to do so places the interpretation of the text in question since one would be unable to distinguish between the various stages in the transmission of the text, and therefore could not identify the theology of a later redactor from the theology of his sources."" --from the Introduction