The Shepherd of Hermas (70–150 CE) is one of the oldest Christian writings and was enormously popular during the early centuries as a catechetical text used for moral formation. In her new book, Boston College Clough School of Theology and Ministry Professor of New Testament Angela Kim Harkins looks at the first section of the Shepherd known as the Book of Visions. In the An Embodied Reading of the Shepherd of Hermas: The Book of Visions and its Role in Moral Formation (Equinox Publishing, 2023), Harkins argues that enactive reading can help to generate immersive experiences of Hermas’s visions and explain the success of the Book of Visions among ancient readers. Cognitive approaches also highlight how modern scholars, who are trained to read apocalypses “against the grain” in their search for historical or theological information, fail to notice and appreciate the very things that made apocalypses engaging to a broad range of ancient readers and hearers.