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Christy Cobb

Christy Cobb

Associate Professor of Early Christianity

christy.cobb@du.edu

Sturm Hall, 2000 East Asbury Avenue Denver, CO 80208

What I do

I am Associate Professor of Christianity in the Department of Religious Studies where I serve as the Director of the MA Program. I am also an Affiliated Faculty in the Gender, Women's, and Sexuality Studies Department.

Specialization(s)

Christianity, gender, New Testament, Slavery, Ancient Narratives, sexuality

Professional Biography

I am a biblical scholar with a focus on the New Testament and early Christian texts. My scholarship and teaching focuses on issues of gender, sexuality, and slavery in antiquity and I write on narrative texts such as Acts, the Gospels, the Apocryphal Acts, and the Greek and Roman novels. When I read and interpret these texts, I utilize literary theory including that of Mikhail Bakhtin and also Feminist and Queer Theory.

Degree(s)

  • Ph.D., New Testament / Early Christianity, Drew University, 2016
  • MA, Religious Studies, Wake Forest University, 2010
  • MDiv, Biblical Studies with Languages, Campbell University Divinity School, 2006
  • BA, Religion, Carson Newman University, 2000

Professional Affiliations

  • Society of Biblical Literature
  • Feminist Studies in Religion
  • North American Patristics Society

Media Sources

Featured Publications

Cobb, Christy. “Reopening the Open Ending of Acts: Judaism, Dialogue, and Unfinalizability.” In Luke and Acts With(in) Second Temple Judaism. 177-88 Berlin, Germany: De Gruyter. 2026.
Cobb, Christy. “Images of Jesus in Contemporary U.S. Political Discourse.” Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus , (2026).
Sex, Violence, and Early Christian Texts. Edited by Edited by Christy Cobb and Eric Vanden Eykel. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books. 2022.

Presentations

Cobb, Christy. “Critical Fabulation and Biblical Studies: Acts 16 As a Case Study” Rocky Mountain-Great Plains Regional Conference, Colorado Springs, CO, American Academy of Religion, 2026.
Cobb, Christy. “The Passion of Felicitas: Gender, Status, and Violence” Violence in the Passion Narratives and Their Ancient Contexts, Vienna, Austria, University of Vienna, 2026.
Cobb, Christy. “Enslaved Eutychus: Stereotypes and Status in Acts 20” Society of Biblical Literature, Boston, 2025.
Cobb, Christy. “Household Conversions and Agency in the Acts of Philip” The Italian Center for Advanced Studies on Religions (CISSR) Conference on Christian Origins, Bertinoro, Italy, 2024.
Cobb, Christy. “Enslavement, Gender, and Judaism in the Acts of Xanthippe, Polyxena, and Rebecca” International Patristics Conference, Oxford, Oxford University, 2024.
Cobb, Christy. “Acts, Utopia, and Queer Futurity: Considering the Marginalized in Acts through the Theory of Jose Muñoz” Society of Biblical Literature, San Diego, 2024.
Cobb, Christy. “Prostitutes and Pipes: The Hebrew Flute Player in the Acts of Thomas” North American Patristics Society (NAPS), Chicago, 2024.
Cobb, Christy. “A Book and a Body: Slavery, Gender, and Prostitution in the Acts of Andrew." ” Female Corporeality and Religion Conference, Leuven, Belgium, 2023.
Cobb, Christy. “Enslavement and Christian Families in the Apocryphal Acts” Society of Biblical Literature, San Antonio, Texas, Society of Biblical Literature, 2023.
Cobb, Christy. “The Unfortunate Fortunatus: Enslaved Bodies and Resistance in the Acts of John” European Association for Biblical Studies, Syracuse, Sicily, European Association for Biblical Studies, 2023.

Awards

  • Dean's Award for Interdisciplinary Studies