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Richard I. Pervo

The Mystery of Acts: Unraveling Its Story Paperback – December 9, 2008

by Richard I. Pervo (Author)

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The author of Acts unwittingly committed a near-perfect crime: He told his story so well that all rival accounts vanished with but the faintest of traces. And thus future generations were left with no documents that recount the history of the early Christian tradition; because Acts is not history. According to Richard Pervo, 'Acts is a beautiful house that readers may happily admire, but it is not a home in which the historian can responsibly live.' Luke did not even aspire to write history but rather told his story to defend the gentile communities of his day as the legitimate heirs of Israelite religion. In The Mystery of Acts, Pervo explores the problem of history in Acts by asking, and answering, the fundamental questions: Who wrote Acts? Where was Acts written? When was Acts written? Why was Acts written? How was Acts written? The result is a veritable tour-de-force that enlighten, entertains, and brings Acts to life.

Print length

192 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Polebridge Press
Publication date

December 9, 2008
Dimensions

6 x 0.42 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

159815012X
ISBN-13

978-1598150124
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Editorial Reviews

Review

This is Pervo's amazing, clear, and unsullied conclusion to his long and magnificent scholarship on Acts. Pervo's conclusion is stunning because it is won by impeccable scholarship and thorough consideration of the traditional views of Luke as historian. It changes the picture of Christian beginnings, and should change the minds of New Testament scholars. --Burton Mack, Professor of Religion and Early Christianity, emeritus Claremont Graduate University

Pervo writes with verve and has a commanding knowledge of the literature on Acts, and his assessment of the theological intent of Acts is informative. --The Bible Today

Richard Pervo, who has dedicated most of his scholarly life to the study of Acts, is an international authority in this area. His new book is intended specifically to introduce the non-specialist to recent research in the field by focusing on the problems of attempting to derive history from the text; indeed, Pervo appreciates the author of Acts more as a creative catechist than as an historian. Ever the thorough expositor, Pervo takes the whole text of Acts into account and, adopting the guise of a detective searching for clues, presents his conclusions in such a lucid and enjoyable way that any intelligent reader will be both instructed and entertained. The specialist, too, will profit from the book, for it presents complicated data along with insightful observations in a simple and thus convincing way. Pervo s new volume is the best concise analysis of Acts that I know of, and that is to say nothing of its wry wit and stylistic polish. --Gerd Ludemann, Professor of New Testament at the University of Gottingen, Germany

About the Author

Richard I. Pervo is the author of several books on Acts including Profit with Delight: The Literary Genre of the Acts of the Apostles (1987), Luke's Story of Paul (1990), Rethinking the Unity of Luke and Acts (with Mikeal A. Parsons, 1993), Dating Acts: Between the Evangelists and the Apologists (2006), and Acts. A Commentary (Hermeneia, 2008).

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Polebridge Press (December 9, 2008)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 192 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 159815012X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1598150124
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 9.4 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.42 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #757,802 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,434 in New Testament Criticism & Interpretation
- #1,538 in Jesus, the Gospels & Acts (Books)
- #4,503 in History of Christianity (Books)

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Ferenc

A Biblical Block-Buster

Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2016

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This is the most important book I have read in five years. Bravo Pervo! Summarizing the discoveries made during the writing of his magisterial commentary on Acts, this little book makes it wonderfully clear that there is little if anything of historical value in the book of Acts, apart from what it can tell us about the community that wrote it. In one fell swoop, the only basis of support for the traditional model of Christian origins has been eliminated. It is now possible to entertain seriously other models of Christian origins, including the theory that Christianity did not begin at any particular place in space or moment in time, but rather began like the ancient religions of Egypt, India, Greece, and Rome. The fact that as soon as the curtain goes up on the stage of Christian history there is evidence of division and "heresies" such as Docetism--inexplicable on the basis of traditional notions of an historical "Jesus of Nazareth"--now becomes understandable if "Christianity" developed (and continues to develop) as the intertwining of threads of religious tradition into braids of tradition that change as time goes on. The origins of some threads disappear into the mists of prehistory, others enter the braid at known points in time and space. Some threads leave the braid, the braid fragments into various "Christianities," and the color of the various threads may change as a function of time and place.

Altogether, this little book is a biblical block-buster. Expect more wonderful work from Pervo!

4 people found this helpful

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Tacitus

Excellent Book on Acts

Reviewed in the United States on March 30, 2015

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This is quite a good book and well researched. Because Acts is "all there is" it has been mistakenly used as a reliable historical document of the history of the early Christian Church but the author leaves out too many important issues. For example what actually happened when Paul brought the Collection (of alms) to Jerusalem in his last visit? Was the Collection accepted or rejected? Why didn't anyone from the Jerusalem Church (led by James the Just) step forward to help defend him when he was accused by the High Priest and his cronies? I wish the book were available in Kindle format and also that the author expand his two sections on historical problems, especially chronology.

3 people found this helpful

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Historian

Objective and Appreciative Approach

Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2013

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One thing evident in this book is that the author has a very high level of respect for Luke and Acts. In my opinion, the author made a very solid case to back up his premise (I won't spoil it, if you are here you probably already have an idea). I believe that this book should be approached AFTER reading Luke and Acts and having a decent idea about what is going on, or at the very least be willing to check the verses. Mr. Pervo employs a detective style narration of the evidence that he presents to back up his thesis and gives opposing viewpoints. He even illustrates for us where on the scale his interpretation sits. I get the impression that he is genuine in his approach and objective in his analysis.

If you are truly seeking a deeper level of understanding of Acts, this book is surely a valuable reference.

11 people found this helpful

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Kenneth Umbach

Illuminating analysis.

Reviewed in the United States on March 20, 2016

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Thoroughly interesting, fair-minded, illuminating. The Mystery of Acts explained a LOT that can be quite puzzling in Acts. The literary analysis point of view works very well to tease out what is going on in the narrative.

One person found this helpful

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Oliver Eldridge

Though there are some areas where it would be helpful to be familiar with the lexicon that scholars often employ when writing in

Reviewed in the United States on January 1, 2015

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Being the leading scholar on the book of Acts for many years now, it's clear that Dr. Pervo knows how to articulate what he's talking about as clearly as possible for the layperson. Though there are some areas where it would be helpful to be familiar with the lexicon that scholars often employ when writing in areas like scriptural criticism or analysis when reading this book, Pervo clearly makes an effort to make it readable for everyone with at least an undergraduate level understanding of literary technique and historical method.

Pervo's thesis is simple: Acts is beautiful literature, but it is not a historically accurate or reliable book. In the conclusion of the book he states, "...Acts is not a reliable history of Christian origins. One important point is that it does not attempt to be. Another is that the literary techniques are too artistic. The use of cycles, parallels, repetitions, melodramatic characterization, stereotyped scene construction, inventing or presenting stories that replicate biblical narrative, unbalanced narrative with evident symbolic import, and a balanced structure. History cannot be so symmetrical" (Pervo, p. 151).

Pervo makes the point that "Luke," the name given to the anonymous author of the book of Acts and the Gospel of Luke, was not intending to write a history book; he was trying to demonstrate the legitimacy of the Pauline gentile Christianity. Even so, Pervo shows how there are many instances where the Paul of Luke and Acts is different from the Paul of Corinthians or Thessalonians.

Pervo observes, "...Paul is Luke's hero, but the Paul of Acts is often at odds with the Paul revealed in his letters. Historically speaking, there has been a battle over "the real Paul" for more than 150 years" (Pervo, p.143).

Pervo makes it apparent that Luke had bigger motivations than writing for historical accuracy, especially in regards to Paul. "Luke's portrait is clear. Paul is certainly heroic, multi-cultural and omnicompetent, but Luke did not wish simply to paint a larger than life character. his "Renaissance man" is a universal figure, the all-but-perfect representative of an aspiring world religion that would clothe its Jewish message in Greek finery and conquer the Roman world. History would show that Luke was an insightful portrait painter... Acts is replete with historical implausibility, an almost non-existent chronology, and a quite improbable characterization of its leading personality, none of which elements serve history and all of which serve the purposes of the author" (Pervo, p.148-149).

One important point Pervo makes is that just because Acts is not a good history book, this doesn't mean it isn't good literature. Pervo believes that Acts is in fact very good literature, full of rich symbolism, parallels, motifs, allegory, etc. This is a point New Testament scholar Robert M. Price often makes, that whether any book of the New or Old Testament are giving the truth in any sense of the word is irrelevant to appreciating the scriptures as "treasures," as Dr. Price puts it. The entire bible is full of beautiful stories but goes often unappreciated for it's literary charms due to the insistence by Christians that it is the inspired, inerrant word of a deity and should be read as a divinely-inspired history book.

Overall though, The Mystery of Acts is a very insightful, scholarly, short and fairly easy read for those who are interested.

8 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Guy Mannering

Luke: Historian? Historical novelist? Religious novelist? Or spinner of tales?

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 6, 2014

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"Luke is a historian of the first rank...This author should be placed along with the very greatest historians...Luke's history is unsurpassed in respect of its trustworthiness." Thus spoke noted archaeologist and New Testament scholar Sir Willam Ramsey (1851-1939). Not surprisingly Sir William is much beloved by Christian apologists and much quoted by them. But was his verdict on Luke's prowess as a historian just a tad over-enthusiastic?

The author of the gospel of Luke does indeed begin his work by seemingly donning the mantle of a responsible historian and diligent researcher and in an elegantly worded prologue he assures us that having consulted all the best sources he now feels equipped to give us a truthful account of events concerning Jesus Christ. But he then kicks off his account with a beautiful and pious fiction, a nativity story so crammed with supernatural and pseudo-historical events that his credentials as a historian and diligent researcher are immediately suspect. If Luke begins with invention why should you place any confidence in the reliability of anything he has to say thereafter, not only in his gospel but in the companion work he wrote known as the Acts Of The Apostles?

Acts has always been regarded as a crucial document in the New Testament because without it the history of the early Church - what happened in the years immediately following the death of Jesus - would be an almost total blank, with only sketchy material to be derived from the letters of Paul. But with the rise of modern biblical criticism the value of Acts as a historical document has been much debated, especially as the author portrays himself as a sometime companion of Paul and yet seems to demonstrate little or no acquaintance with Paul's letters and often seems to contradict Paul (as well as contradicting himself on the matter of Jesus' ascension.). The general consensus has been that the early church wasn't as harmonious as Luke tries to portray it, that he tries to paper over the cracks, but that Acts nevertheless contains valuable historical material to be "used with caution". But is even this view too kind to Luke? Richard I. Pervo in his fascinating book The Mystery Of Acts adduces a large number of arguments to demonstrate that, in his own words, "deriving history from Acts is an enterprise fraught with difficulty." and that "Acts is a beautiful house that readers may happily admire, but it is not a home in which the historian can responsibly live." In fact, according to Pervo, Acts as a literary genre has more in common with ancient fiction and ancient historical novels. Luke, he concludes, was an admirer and not an acquaintance or follower of Paul and Acts "belongs to a Duetero-Pauline world because Acts is a secondary source that belongs to the history of Pauline thought or, as many today would say, to the history of the reception of Paul." It should be noted that Pervo is always respectful towards Luke and shows considerable admiration for him as a literary artist and for his achievement in establishing so successfully his version of early Christian beginnings. But after reading Pervo you may well conclude that Sir William Ramsey's eulogy of Luke the historian is quite absurd (although in fairness to Sir William he did manage to validate some of Luke's geographical data.)

In addition to the historical problems, Pervo tackles a large number of subjects in this book, such as who wrote Acts, where and when was it written (he favours a 2nd century dating, no earlier than AD110, based on his belief that Luke shows some knowledge of Josephus), why was it written and how was it written. In fact an extraordinary amount of ground is covered in less than 200 pages in a scholarly but accessible and entertaining style that resembles a detective story or forensic investigation into how Luke got away with his audacious fabrications. Although this work is clearly intended for popular consumption it is nevertheless a serious and important contribution to New Testament studies, indeed noted NT scholar Burton Mack even goes as far as saying that "it changes the picture of Christian beginnings."

Another scholarly but highly readable and concise work I purchased at the same time as Pervo's was Randel Helms' Gospel Fictions which turns a similarly sceptical eye on the historicity of the gospels. I recommend you read them both.

9 people found this helpful

H. A. Weedon

Well Researched and Very Readable.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 31, 2015

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I recall being reprimanded for questioning the validity of Acts during religious knowledge classes at grammar school. The miracles recorded within the narrative simply did not ring true for me and some of the punishments meted out in the name of God seemed way out too severe for the crimes committed, like when a husband and wife were struck dead for embezzlement. This kind of thing didn't seem to tally with the spirit of forgiveness, which I had been brought up to believe was an essential part of the Christian ethos. I was unimpressed by the tale about the risen Christ floating away on a cloud into the distance and the one about how the chains were miraculously struck off Paul and his companions and the prison doors opened, allowing them to escape. If God was doing that kind of thing for Paul, why isn't he still doing it like, for instance, releasing all the unjustly imprisoned people, such as political prisoners, all over the world? And where is the heaven Jesus was floating off into? Is it in our solar system, or the Milky Way or somewhere else in the vastness of space?

As it turned out my need to train for a worthwhile profession and make my way in the world took me far away from biblical considerations, which is why I am now so grateful to Richard I Pervo for writing this carefully researched and very readable assessment concerning the truth about Acts, revealing why and when it was written and by whom as far as anyone is able to ascertain. It is also interesting to discover that he agrees with Burton L Mack (The Lost Gospel etc.) in dating the compilation of Acts to circa 120 AD, in addition to which we cannot be certain who actually wrote it. The reader is made aware of discrepancies between what Paul says in the epistles that can genuinely be ascribed to him and what is said about him in Acts. Besides dealing with all this, the work attempts to answer relevant questions such as who wrote Acts, where it was written, when it was written, why it was written and how it was written. The fact that Pervo's fluid writing style progresses after the fashion of a fascinating novel insures that this work is readably accessible to the general reader.

Pervo concludes: 'Acts is a beautiful house that readers may happily admire, but it is not a home in which the historian can responsibly live.' His careful research clearly illustrates and explains how this is, indeed, the case.

4 people found this helpful