The Acts of Peter is one of several works that claim to describe the actions of the apostles after the resurrection of Jesus. Others ascribe history to John, Andrew, Thomas, Paul, Philip, Barnabas, and so forth. None of these books were accepted by the early church. Instead, they were considered heresy by the early church fathers, since they taught aberrant doctrines. The Acts of Peter and similar works appear to have been written in the second and third centuries to promote Gnosticism.