Acts of the Apostles—A celebration of uncertainty? constructing a dialogical self for the early Jesus movement

In the ancient world, travel was often a source of anxiety and uncertainty. This uncertainty pertained both to the practical aspects of traveling and to the experience of being away from one’s own land and culture. This chapter explores how the latter type of uncertainty can inspire new formulations of self and identity. Employing the modern-day psychological notion of the dialogical self and paying particular attention to the apostolic meeting in Acts 15, I aim to show how the development of the Way, as Acts of the Apostles describes it, evoked uncertainty among its members. As a response to this uncertainty, the book of Acts suggests overarching categories to describe the Way as a movement that is both familiar and new.