Elaine Pagels

Elaine Pagels is a highly respected figure in the theological community, renowned for her scholarship and contributions to the study of Christianity. She is currently the Harrington Spear Paine Professor of Religion at Princeton University, where she has taught for many years. Pagels received her doctorate from Harvard University in 1970 and began her academic career at Barnard College, Columbia University, where she eventually chaired the department of religion.

Pagels is perhaps best known for her work on the Nag Hammadi Library, a collection of early Christian manuscripts discovered in Egypt in 1945. These texts, which had been suppressed and deemed heretical by the early Christian church, provide a fascinating glimpse into the pluralistic nature of the early Christian movement and the role of women within it. Pagels' analysis of these texts, published in her bestselling book "The Gnostic Gospels," challenged long-held assumptions about the early Christian church and earned her international acclaim.

"The Gnostic Gospels" was a groundbreaking work that won both the National Book Critics' Circle Award and the National Book Award, and was chosen by the Modern Library as one of the 100 best books of the 20th century. Pagels' scholarship has been recognized with numerous awards and fellowships, including the Rockefeller, Guggenheim, and MacArthur Fellowships, which she received in three consecutive years. Despite these accolades, Pagels remains a humble and dedicated scholar, committed to exploring the complex history of Christianity and sharing her insights with a broad audience.