The Bible and Beyond

The category of "Gnosticism" has shaped how generations of scholars have understood a remarkably diverse collection of ancient writings. Michael A. Williams, author of the influential Rethinking Gnosticism, joins Shirley Paulson to trace the history of that category, reconsider assumptions about the Nag Hammadi writings, and explore what emerges when we read the texts individually. Their conversation offers a more nuanced picture of ancient readers, diverse interpretations, and the surprisingly hopeful worlds some of these writings reveal.
Michael Williams is Professor Emeritus of Comparative Religion and Near Eastern Languages and Civilization at the University of Washington in Seattle, where he was a faculty member since 1976. His PhD is from Harvard University, and his two highly important and influential books are The Immovable Race: A Gnostic Designation and the Theme of Stability in Late Antiquity and Rethinking Gnosticism: An Argument for Dismantling a Problematic Category. He's the author and coeditor of several other books and articles, including two volumes of essays: Charisma and Sacred Biography and Innovation in Religious Traditions.
His work has led him to an increasing suspicion of many conventional generalizations about "gnosticism." Related research interests have included scribal practices and ancient book manufacture and the cultural significance witnessed in the selection and arrangement of content in codex manuscripts that contain multiple writings.
A complete transcript is available on the shownotes page at https://earlychristiantexts.com/beyond-gnosticism/

An Interview with Dr. David Franfurter 
What did people in the ancient world mean by "magic"? And why might some have viewed Jesus as a magos—a healer who used sacred words, gestures, and ritual power? In this fascinating conversation, Dr. David Frankfurter helps us move beyond modern assumptions about magic and religion. Together we explore healing, exorcism, sacred names, vowel incantations, and the ways ordinary people sought help, hope, and power in the world of early Christianity. 
Dr. David Frankfurter is the William Goodwin Aurelio Chair of the Appreciation of Scripture at Boston University and one of the world's leading scholars of ancient Mediterranean religions. His research focuses on Jewish and Christian apocalyptic literature, ancient magical texts, popular religion, and religious life in Roman and late antique Egypt. Particularly known for his work on the relationship between religion, magic, violence, and cultural change, Frankfurter has helped reshape scholarly understanding of how ordinary people practiced religion in the ancient world. 
He is the author of numerous influential books, including Religion in Roman Egypt, Evil Incarnate, and Christianizing Egypt, as well as editor of the landmark Guide to the Study of Ancient Magic. His award-winning scholarship has been recognized by both the American Academy of Religion and the American Society of Church History.

An Interview with Dr. Karen Winell
Is the Kingdom of God a place, a rule, a future hope—or something more? Dr. Karen Wenell challenges familiar assumptions by exploring the Kingdom as sacred space that is lived, performed, and experienced among people. Through a rich discussion of biblical texts, embodiment, ethics, and community, she offers fresh ways of understanding one of Jesus's central teachings and why it continues to matter in everyday life today.
Dr. Karen Wenell is a Senior Lecturer in New Testament and Theology in the Department of Theology and Religion at the University of Birmingham, UK. Her research centers on biblical texts and their reception, particularly where texts become resources for ethical reflection and action. Of her three books, Locating the Kingdom of God: Performing Sacred Boundaries (The Library of New Testament Studies, Bloomsbury Publishing) is the focus of this Bible and Beyond podcast interview. Her most recent articles have appeared in the Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion and Biblical Interpretation: A Journal of Contemporary Approaches.
A complete transcript is available on the shownotes page, https://earlychristiantexts.com/kingdom-of-god

An Interview with Dr. M. David Litwa
What did ancient Hermetic spirituality have in common with early Christianity? In this conversation, Dr. M. David Litwa introduces the Hermetica—ancient Egyptian spiritual writings centered on Hermes Trismegistus—and explores their influence on concepts such as spiritual rebirth, divine consciousness, salvation through gnosis, and humanity's relationship to the divine. Shirley Paulson and Litwa discuss why early Christians found these writings compelling and how Hermetic ideas still speak to modern seekers interested in spiritual progress, self-knowledge, and transcendence.
David Litwa, PhD, is an American scholar of ancient Mediterranean religions and early Christianity. His research examines deification in early Christian thought, the gospels in Greco-Roman literary contexts, and alternative Christian movements in the second and third centuries. Of the many books, the newest one, Heremetica I, is featured in this podcast interview. He has served as an organizer with the North American Patristics Society and a referee with the Journal of Early Christian Studies.
Find a complete transcript on the show notes page here: https://earlychristiantexts.com/hermetica
David will be presenting a live seminar on Hermetica I, Monday evenings. June 8 - August 10, 2026. Learn more and register here.

An Interview with Dr. Benjamin DeVos
This episode reexamines Simon Magus, a controversial figure from the book of Acts, and his evolving role in early Christian tradition. Moving beyond the familiar story, it explores how later texts—especially the Pseudo-Clementines—transform Simon into a complex philosophical rival to Peter. Along the way, the discussion uncovers themes of truth, rhetoric, power, and moral ambiguity, challenging simple labels of heresy and revealing a far more nuanced picture of early Christianity.
Dr. Benjamin De Vos is a researcher and teacher within the Faculty of Arts and Philosophy at Ghent University in Belgium and is affiliated with the University of Regensburg and the Beyond Canon project. His particular research interest is in the figure of Simon Magus. This involves Neoplatonic philosophy, concepts of truth, and important forms of communication, such as myth and dialogue. He is the author of a volume with Cambridge University Press, as well as several articles and book chapters and edited volumes (with Mohr Siebeck en Groningen University/Barkhuis (on Truth-dynamics in Early Christianity)).