Hans-Martin Schenke (born April 25, 1929, in

Oschersleben Oschersleben () is a town in the Börde district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The population in 1905 was 13,271, in 2020 about 19,000. History On November 23, 994 Oschersleben was first mentioned in a document by the Emperor Otto III. In 1235 ...

; died September 4, 2002, in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

) was a German Protestant theologian,

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

scholar, and

Coptologist Coptology is the science of Coptic studies, the study of the Coptic language and Coptic literature.What is Cop ...

known for his pioneering studies on

Gnosticism Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people ...

and Coptic manuscripts.

Biography

Schenke studied at the

Humboldt University of Berlin Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative o ...

from 1950 to 1956. His received his Doctorate in Theology ( Dr. Theol.) in New Testament Studies at the

, in 1956, with his thesis titled ''Das Verhältnis von Indikativ und Imperativ bei Paulus''. He then obtained a doctorate in

Egyptology Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Greek , '' -logia''; ar, علم المصريات) is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, architecture and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious ...

in 1960, completing the thesis ''Die Orakel im Alten Ägypten'', and finished his

habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...

in New Testament Studies later that year, with the dissertation ''Der Gott "Mensch" in der Gnosis. Ein religionsgeschichtlicher Beitrag zur Diskussion über die paulinische Anschauung von der Kirche als Leib Christi''. From 1960 to 1964, he first taught as a lecturer, then from 1964 to 1994 as Professor of New Testament Studies at the Faculty of Theology of the

. After his retirement, he was a visiting professor for several years at

Laval University Laval means ''The Valley'' in old French and is the name of: People * House of Laval, a French noble family originating from the town of Laval, Mayenne * Laval (surname) Places Belgium * Laval, a village in the municipality of Sainte-Ode, Luxemb ...

in Quebec, Canada, and at

Claremont Graduate University The Claremont Graduate University (CGU) is a private, all-graduate research university in Claremont, California. Founded in 1925, CGU is a member of the Claremont Colleges which includes five undergraduate (Pomona College, Claremont McKenna Co ...

in California, United States. Hans-Gebhard Bethge, Karen Leigh King, Imke Schletterer,

Stephen Emmel Stephen Emmel is a Coptologist and musician. Academic career Stephen Emmel was born in Rochester, NY, 27 June 1952, and earned his B.A. from Syracuse University in 1973 (department of religion). He began graduate study with James M. Robinson, wh ...

(Hrsg.): ''For the children, perfect instruction. Studies in honor of Hans-Martin Schenke on the occasion of the Berliner Arbeitskreis für Koptisch-Gnostische Schriften’s thirtieth year''. Leiden 2002, .

Works (selected)

* Die Herkunft des sogenannten Evangelium Veritatis. Berlin/Göttingen 1959. * Koptisch-gnostische Schriften aus den Papyrus-Codices von Nag-Hammadi ith Johannes Leipoldt Hamburg 1960. * Der Gott "Mensch" in der Gnosis. Ein religionsgeschichtlicher Beitrag zur Diskussion über die paulinische Anschauung von der Kirche als Leib Christi. Berlin/Göttingen 1962. * Die Berliner Handschrift der sahidischen Apostelgeschichte (P.15926) ith Fritz Hintze Berlin 1970. * Einleitung in die Schriften des Neuen Testaments (with Karl Martin Fischer). Zwei Bände. Evangelische Verlagsanstalt. Berlin 1978/79. * Das Matthäus-Evangelium im mittelägyptischen Dialekt des Koptischen (Codex Scheide). Berlin 1981. * Das Thomas-Buch (Nag-Hammadi-Codex II,7). Berlin 1989, . * Apostelgeschichte 1,1 – 15,3 im mittelägyptischen Dialekt des Koptischen (Codex Glazier). Berlin 1991, . * Das Philippus-Evangelium (Nag-Hammadi-Codex II, 3). Akademie-Verlag, Berlin 1997, . * Das Matthäus-Evangelium im mittelägyptischen Dialekt des Koptischen (Codex Schoyen). Oslo 2001. * Der Same Seths. Hans-Martin Schenkes „Kleine Schriften“ zu Gnosis, Koptologie und Neuem Testament, Gesine Robinson,

Gesa Schenke Gesa is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Gesa Ederberg (born 1968), German rabbi *Gesa Felicitas Krause Gesa Felicitas Krause (born 3 August 1992) is a German athlete who specialises in the 3000 m steeplechase. She won bron ...

, Uwe-Karsten Plisch (Hrsg.). Leiden 2012, .

References

1929 births 2002 deaths People from Börde (district) 20th-century German translators German religion academics Humboldt University of Berlin alumni Humboldt University of Berlin faculty Historians of Gnosticism Coptologists New Testament scholars {{Germany-academic-bio-stub