Travis W. Proctor: Portraits, Patronage, and Hospitality in the Acts of John

• Centre for Advanced Studies
• Fellows Brunch

In this article, I examine how the apocryphal Acts of John depicts prominent and wealthy Christian converts as part its narration of the “Christianization” of Ephesus. Through analyses of the Acts’ discussion of financial gifts as well as the artistic portrayal of patrons, I establish that the Acts of John both challenges and redirects prevailing practices of Greco-Roman patronage as part of its articulation of proper Christian piety.