Handbook for the Study of the Historical Jesus by
With ca. 120 articles from ca. 100 writers from ca. 20 countries, this publication forms a repository where students and scholars can readily get to know their way around the breadth of recent research on the historical Jesus.
Historical Dictionary of Jesus by
Jesus of Nazareth is arguably the most famous and influential human being who has ever lived on earth. In the Historical Dictionary of Jesus, author Daniel J. Harrington delves into the ancient literary sources about Jesus, modern methods of approaching these sources, the major events in Jesus'life, persons and places associated with him, the form and content of his teachings, what can be said about his death and the claim that he was raised from the dead, and the contributions of major modern scholars to the quest of the historical Jesus. The book consists of three parts: an introduction to the major topics pertaining to Jesus as a historical figure; a cross-referenced dictionary containing 400 entries on a range of topics, including things Jesus did and said, ancient sources of historical data, and modern scholarship and interpretation; and a bibliography listing some of the most important books related to Jesus and the world in which he lived. This concise and objective reference work provides a clear and accurate introduction to the study of Jesus as a historical figure.
The Historical Jesus by
The introduction to this new guide sets out the sources (Graeco-Roman, Jewish and Christian), noting the problems connected with them, paying particular attention to the nature of the gospels, and the Synoptic versus the Johannine tradition. A substantial section will discuss scholarship on Jesus from the nineteenth century to the explosion of works in the present day, introducing and explaining the three different 'quests' for the historical Jesus.Subsequent chapters will analyse key themes in historical Jesus research: Jesus' Galilean origins; the scope of his ministry and models of 'holy men', particularly that of prophet; Jesus' teaching and healing; his trial and crucifixion; the highly contentious question of his resurrection; and finally an exploration of the links between the Jesus movement and the early church. Throughout, the (often opposing) positions of a variety of key scholars will be explained and discussed (eg. Sanders, Crossan, Dunn, Wright, Brown).
The Historical Jesus in Context by
The Historical Jesus in Contextis a landmark collection that places the gospel narratives in their full literary, social, and archaeological context. More than twenty-five internationally recognized experts offer new translations and descriptions of a broad range of texts that shed new light on the Jesus of history, including pagan prayers and private inscriptions, miracle tales and martyrdoms, parables and fables, divorce decrees and imperial propaganda.
Jesus from Judaism to Christianity by
One of the characteristic pursuits of the current phase of historical Jesus research, the so-called Third Quest, has been the serious attempt to locate Jesus within first-century CE Judaism, to seek a Jesus who could be found plausible within his Jewish context. Comparatively less emphasis has been laid on the question as to whether or how the contextually plausible picture of Jesus also suits and accounts for the history of the reception of Jesus in early Christianity. By integrating the Jewish context, the teaching of Jesus and Christian reception history into one explanation, the continuum perspective seeks to reveal a Jesus who would both be fitting within his Jewish context and would also help to explain and understand early Christian stances. Thus, according to this perspective, a historically plausible picture of Jesus is one that can be placed in the Judaism-Christianity continuum.
40 Questions about the Historical Jesus by
Answers to critical questions regarding the study of the Jesus of history and the Christ of faith. The conclusions of the quest for the historical Jesus, which casts the majority of Christ’s life as a myth, are a stark contrast to the orthodox view of Christ as presented in the Bible. Pate demonstrates that a critical analysis of the gospel text along with historical and cultural methods of investigation actually point toward an orthodox view of Christ. This work argues that the canonical Gospels are the most trustworthy information we have about the gospel writers as well as the life and ministry of Jesus, including his death, visit to hades, resurrection, and ascension. Readers will be encouraged by the reliability of the Gospel writers, the reality of Jesus’ humanity and deity, and the inferiority of the apocryphal gospels.
Handbook for the Study of the Historical Jesus by
A hundred years after A. Schweitzer's Von Reimarus zu Wrede, the study of the historical Jesus is again experiencing a renaissance. Ongoing since the beginning of the 1980's, this renaissance has produced an abundance of Jesus studies that also display a welcome diversity of methods, approaches and hypotheses. The Handbook of the Study of the Historical Jesus is designed to handle this diversity and abundance. Drawing from first-class scholarship throughout the world, the four large volumes of the Handbook offer a unique assembly of leading experts presenting their approaches to the historical Jesus, as well as a thought-out compilation of original studies on a large variety of topics pertaining to Jesus research and adjacent areas. With ca. 120 articles from ca. 100 writers from ca. 20 countries, this publication forms a repository where students and scholars can readily get to know their way around the breadth of recent research on the historical Jesus.
The Historical Character of Jesus: Canonical Insights from Outside the Gospels by 
Historical Jesus by
Historical Jesus asks two primary questions: What does “historical” mean? and How should we apply this to Jesus? Anthony Le Donne begins with the unusual step of considering human perception ― how sensory data from sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell are interpreted from the very beginning by what we expect, what we’ve learned, and how we categorize the world. In this way Le Donne shows how historical memories are initially formed. He continues with the nature of human memory and how it interacts with group memories. Finally, he offers a philosophy of history and uses it to outline three dimensions from the life of Jesus: his dysfunctional family, his politics, and his final confrontation in Jerusalem. This little book is ideal for those with no background in religious studies ― even those with no faith ― who wish to better understand who Jesus was and how we can know what we do know about him.
The Historical Jesus and the Christ of Faith by
Summary: The Historical Jesus and the Christ of Faith examines the conflicting views of Marcus Borg and N. T. Wright on the long-standing question of the relationship between the life and times of Jesus of Nazareth and the Christ of faith as depicted in the New Testament. Demetrion has created a study designed to supplement and expand on the discussion laid out in Borg's and Wright's widely read, The Meaning of Jesus: Two Views. While the author is more empathetic to Wright's emphasis on the continuities between the Jesus of history and the Christ of faith, as illuminated throughout the New Testament, he is critical of Wright's overemphasis on history. In placing his interpretive emphasis on the revelatory dynamic of the canonical Scripture and the Great Tradition of Christian orthodoxy, Demetrion calls for a fourth quest for the historical Jesus that starts from a position firmly rooted in biblical faith and works backwards in search of historical roots. In this, he draws on the Pauline vision of "God . . . reconciling the world to himself in Christ" (2 Cor 5:19) as his underlying hermeneutics. In exploring the broad range of issues that underpins the continuity/discontinuity question, Demetrion has provided a resource designed to span a wide audience, from Christian adult study groups interested in tackling books like The Meaning of Jesus to graduate level seminary students and professors. -- back cover.
Jesus As a Figure in History, Second Edition by
Summary: This thoroughly revised edition of the best-selling textbook provides an in-depth survey of current historical Jesus studies. Beginning with a brief discussion of early Jesus-quest research and methodologies, Mark Allan Powell develops insightful overviews of some of the most influential participants in the field today, including Marcus Borg, Jon Dominic Crossan, John Meier, E. P. Sanders, and N. T. Wright. Powell has expanded his original work with completely new material to reflect the latest scholarship. --Publisher.
Key Events in the Life of the Historical Jesus by
Using a carefully defined approach to historical Jesus studies and historical method, this collection of essays examines twelve key events in the life of Jesus that were part of a decade-long collaborative research project. Each essay examines the case for the event’s authenticity and then explores the social and cultural background to the event to provide an understanding of its historical significance.
Quest for the Historical Jesus after the Demise of Authenticity by
For two centuries scholars have sought to discover the historical Jesus. Presently such scholarship is dominated not by the question 'Who was Jesus?' but rather 'How do we even go about answering the question, "Who was Jesus?"?' With this current situation in mind, Jonathan Bernier undertakes a two-fold task: one, to engage on the level of the philosophy of history with existing approaches to the study of the historical Jesus, most notably the criteria approach and the social memory approach; two, to work with the critical realism developed by Bernard Lonergan, introduced into New Testament studies by Ben F. Meyer, and advocated by N.T. Wright in order to develop a philosophy of history that can elucidate current debates within historical Jesus studies.
Recent Research on the Historical Jesus by
Over the past two hundred years, several have ventured to write a history of Jesus, but few have discussed their method of writing about the past in any depth. Unspoken assumptions or bias often dictate what the historian will find. The fact that there are so many conflicting pictures of Jesus compounds the problem. In the last thirty years of Jesus research, which have been identified as the Third Quest for the historical Jesus, historians have agreed that Jesus makes the most sense within a Jewish context, a setting that allows historians to write about Jesus from various historical perspectives. Simpson addresses the issue of method in historical Jesus research by looking at two prominent historians of the Third Quest-John Meier and James Dunn. Both Meier and Dunn typify distinct approaches to the historical Jesus, and both claim to be a part of the Third Quest. Simpson analyses their philosophy of history and historical method. In the second part of the book, Simpson looks at how Meier and Dunn handle certain key events in the life of Jesus. The treatment of these events serves as a way of highlighting the drawbacks and advantages of each method. These distinct approaches point to the tensions that make up the Third Quest and illustrate how the concerns of recent research, evolving over a short period of time, have brought old questions to the surface in new ways. By describing the current situation of historical Jesus research as evidenced by Meier and Dunn, Simpson maps out some promising lines of future research.
Who Is Jesus? by
Summary: "Is Jesus who he said he was? Some say he was just a man; others claim he was the Son of God. Historian Darrell Boc tests the authenticity of Jesus' claims against the rules of history to find out if he truly is the Christ of Faith."--P. [4] of cover.
How the Doctrine of Incarnation Shaped Western Culture by
In recent years numerous scholars in disciplines not traditionally associated with theology have promoted an interesting thesis. They maintain that one particular Christian doctrine, the Incarnation, had an inordinate influence on the shape of Western culture. The doctrine, they say, was so radical that it mandated an epistemological break with pagan society’s perception of the universe and forced Christians to form a new culture. As medieval society worked out the consequences of the doctrine, it gave birth to those attitudes, institutions, and actions that define modern Western culture. The claims are well argued, but it is a historically untested thesis. How the Doctrine of Incarnation Shaped Western Culture is a response to the situation. It investigates whether the presence of the doctrine had the definitive effect on Western culture that so many scholars claim it did. It searches early Christian and medieval sources for evidence and concludes that the doctrine had a dominant effect on the developing culture. No other idea was as omnipresent or pervasive in Western society during its formative stage as the Incarnation doctrine. The doctrine was influential in the establishment of every major facet of Western culture. Its paradox, irrationality, and juxtaposition of opposites created a tension that cried out for resolution, and society responded accordingly. The ideas within the doctrine acted as catalysts for cultural change. As a result, the West developed its most characteristic traits and forged a path that was uniquely its own.
Incarnation and Inspiration by
Through engagement with the historical debate Incarnation and Inspiration offers a systematic exposition of the person of Jesus that brings together dissonant aspects of the tradition. It serves as an introduction to the theology to John Owen, the most able of the Puritan theologians and provides a way of understanding the theological dynamic underlying the Christology of the Fathers and the Definition of Chalcedon. Through its emphasis on coherence it seeks to illuminate the inner rationality of God's triune being and his mission among us through the Son and Spirit. Incarnation and inspiration are concepts which can be used to characterize two quite different ways of thinking about Christ. Although the history of doctrine suggests they are mutually exclusive, John Owen's theology effectively integrates them in one coherent Christology. The underlying structure of his exposition is that of incarnation, whereby the Son willingly assumed human nature into personal subsistence with himself. But his distinctive idea was that the divine Son acted on his own human nature indirectly and by means of the Holy Spirit. The foundation of the Spirit's distinctive work was the renewal of the image of God in the humanity of Christ, which the Spirit formed, sanctified, empowered, comforted and glorified. Owen thus affirmed an inspirational Christology within the framework of an Alexandrian interpretation of the incarnation. The coherence of this account is tested with respect to four areas of concern. Firstly, can a Christology which affirms the distinct operation of Christ's two natures successfully maintain the unity of his personal action? Secondly, is nature or ontological language too static to model the dynamic reality of Christ? Thirdly, is Owen justified in arguing that, other than in its assumption, the divine Son acts on his own human nature only indirectly and by means of the Spirit? Fourthly, does Owen's interpretation of the distinct action of the Trinitarian persons undermine the doctrine of the indivisibility of their external operations? Finally the significance of Owen's Christology is considered in relation to the Definition of Chalcedon and to modern theology.
The Incarnation of God by
It's at the heart of the Christian faith.It's the central fact of human history.It's the defining reality of all existence. In The Incarnation of God, theology professors John Clark and Marcus Johnson explore the doctrine of the incarnation of Christ—an unquestionably foundational yet oddly neglected topic in contemporary evangelical theology—examining its implications for the church's knowledge and worship of God, appreciation for salvation, approach to the Christian life, and understanding of human sexuality. Grounded in Scripture and informed by church history, this book will lead readers to reexamine afresh the greatest mystery of the universe: our Lord's assumption of human flesh.
The First Days of Jesus by
The birth of Jesus stands as a pivotal moment in the history of the world, marking a dramatic turning point in God’s plan to redeem creation from sin and death. Much to the world’s surprise, redemption had arrived . . . in the form of a lowly baby. Aimed at stirring your affections for Jesus, this meditative book will lead you on a step-by-step journey through the Gospels’ birth narratives, clearing away common misconceptions, making messianic connections, and setting the stage for Jesus’s later life and ministry.
The God Who Became Human by
Seeking an answer to Anselm's timeless question, "Why did God become man?" Graham Cole follows Old Testament themes of preparation, theophany and messianic hope through to the New Testament witness to the divinely foretold event. This New Studies in Biblical Theology volume concludes with a consideration of the theological and existential implications of the incarnation of God. Addressing key issues in biblical theology, the works comprising New Studies in Biblical Theology are creative attempts to help Christians better understand their Bibles. The NSBT series is edited by D. A. Carson, aiming to simultaneously instruct and to edify, to interact with current scholarship and to point the way ahead.
The Holy One in Our Midst by
The Holy One in Our Midst: An Essay on the Flesh of Christ aims to defend the doctrine of the extra Calvinisticum—the doctrine that maintains the Son of God was not restricted to the flesh of Christ during the incarnation—by arguing that it is logically coherent, biblically warranted, catholically orthodox, and theologically useful. It shows that none of the standard objections are devastating to the extra, that the doctrine is rooted in the claims of Christian Scripture and not merely a remnant of perfect being philosophical theology, and that the doctrine plays an important role in contemporary theological discussion. In this way, James R. Gordon revives an important Catholic doctrine that has fallen out of favor in contemporary theology. Secondarily, this project aims to integrate biblical, philosophical, and systematic theology by showing that the tools and methods of each distinct discipline can contribute to the goals and aims of the others.
How the Doctrine of Incarnation Shaped Western Culture by
In recent years numerous scholars in disciplines not traditionally associated with theology have promoted an interesting thesis. They maintain that one particular Christian doctrine, the Incarnation, had an inordinate influence on the shape of Western culture. The doctrine, they say, was so radical that it mandated an epistemological break with pagan society’s perception of the universe and forced Christians to form a new culture. As medieval society worked out the consequences of the doctrine, it gave birth to those attitudes, institutions, and actions that define modern Western culture. The claims are well argued, but it is a historically untested thesis. How the Doctrine of Incarnation Shaped Western Culture is a response to the situation. It investigates whether the presence of the doctrine had the definitive effect on Western culture that so many scholars claim it did. It searches early Christian and medieval sources for evidence and concludes that the doctrine had a dominant effect on the developing culture. No other idea was as omnipresent or pervasive in Western society during its formative stage as the Incarnation doctrine. The doctrine was influential in the establishment of every major facet of Western culture. Its paradox, irrationality, and juxtaposition of opposites created a tension that cried out for resolution, and society responded accordingly. The ideas within the doctrine acted as catalysts for cultural change. As a result, the West developed its most characteristic traits and forged a path that was uniquely its own.
Incarnation by
Michel Henry defends the illuminating thesis that Incarnation is not existence in a body, but existence in the flesh. It is not in a body that flesh appears originally, but being in the flesh that comes first. For only in flesh can one see or touch, feel joy or sorrow, hunger or thirst--and undergo each of these impressions as one's own. But how does flesh come into this condition? How is life given to it so that it can feel itself, or anything else, in this way? Christianity's fundamental thesis, on which its fate plays out in every generation, is that "the Word was made flesh." Henry then asks what revelation must be for it to be accomplished as flesh, and what flesh must be to be revelation. He pursues such questions with lucidity and rigor in this astonishing meditation on the human condition.
The Incarnation of God by
It’s at the heart of the Christian faith. It’s the central fact of human history. It’s the defining reality of all existence. In The Incarnation of God, theology professors John Clark and Marcus Johnson explore the doctrine of the incarnation of Christ―an unquestionably foundational yet oddly neglected topic in contemporary evangelical theology―examining its implications for the church’s knowledge and worship of God, appreciation for salvation, approach to the Christian life, and understanding of human sexuality. Grounded in Scripture and informed by church history, this book will lead readers to reexamine afresh the greatest mystery of the universe: our Lord’s assumption of human flesh.
Karl Barth and the Incarnation by
This work demonstrates the significance of Karl Barth's Christology by examining it in the context of his orientation toward the classical tradition - an orientation that was both critical and sympathetic. To compare this Christology with the doctrine's history, Sumner suggests first that the Chalcedonian portrait of the incarnation is conceputally vulnerable at a number of points. By recasting the doctrine in actualist terms - the history of Jesus' lived existence as God's fulfillment of His covenant with creatures, rather than a metaphysical uniting of natures - Barth is able to move beyond problems inherent in the tradition. Despite a number of formal and material differences, however, Barth's position coheres with the intent of the ancient councils and ought to be judged as orthodox. Barth's great contribution to Christology is in the unapologetic affirmation of 'the humanity of God'.
Paul's Theology in Context by
Summary: This accessible text by James P. Ware provides both a concise guide to Paul's theology and a general introduction to the key issues and debates in the contemporary study of Paul. Examining Paul's message in the context of the ancient world, Ware identifies what would have struck Paul's original audience as startling or unique. By comparing Paul's teaching to the other religions and philosophies of that day, Ware presents a fresh perspective on Paul's theology, revealing four pillars of his thought: creation, incarnation, covenant, and kingdom. After examining each of these dimensions of Paul's gospel, Ware explores the historical role of Paul within Christian origins and the astounding evidence embedded in his letters regarding the beginnings of Christianity and the eyewitness origins of the gospels. Clergy, students, and laypeople will find that this guide to the big picture of Paul's theology will illumine and enliven the study, preaching, and teaching of all the Pauline letters.
The Word Made Flesh by
Summary: "Most theologians believe in the human life of Jesus of Nazareth, we encounter God. Yet how the divine and human come together in the life of Jesus still remains a question needing exploring. The Council of Chalcedon sought to answer the question by speaking of "one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the same perfect in divinity and also perfect in humanity, the same truly God and truly a human being." But ever since Chalcedon, the theological conversation on Christology has implicitly put Christ's divinity and humanity in competition. While ancient (and not-so-ancient) Christologies "from above" focus on Christ's divinity at the expense of his humanity, modern Christologies "from below" subsume his divinity into his humanity. What is needed, says Ian A. McFarland, is a "Chalcedonianism without reserve," which not only affirms the humanity and divinity of Christ, but treats them as equal in theological significance. To do so he draws on the ancient Christological language that points to Christ's nature on the one hand, and his hypostasis, or personhood, on the other. And with this, McFarland begins one of the most creative and groundbreaking theological explorations into the mystery of the incarnation undertaken in recent memory"-- Provided by publisher.
Christology by
Christology: How Do We Talk about Jesus Christ Today? explores key questions that concern those who struggle to reconcile today's world with the faith and witness of centuries of Christianity. How do we talk about Jesus in a world that demands inclusivity and shies away from ideologies and doctrines of any kind? What does it mean to talk about Jesus in theological terms? Driving this book is the nature and core of the Christian witness, which acts like a GPS, guiding the reader through the terrain of a modern theological discussion of Christ.
Christology by
In this fully revised and updated second edition of his accessible account of systematic Christology, Gerald O'Collins continues to challenge the contemporary publishing trend for sensationalist books on Jesus that are supported neither by the New Testament witness nor by mainline Christian beliefs. This book critically examines the best biblical and historical scholarship before tackling head-on some of the key questions of systematic Christology: does orthodox faith present Jesus the man as deficient and depersonalized? Is his sinlessness compatible with the exercise of a free human will? Does up-to-date exegesis challenge his virginal conception and personal resurrection? Can one reconcile Jesus'role as universal Saviour with the truth and values to be found in other religions? What should the feminist movement highlight in presenting Jesus? This integral Christology is built around the resurrection of the crucified Jesus, highlights love as the key to redemption, and proposes a synthesis of the divine presence through Jesus. Clear, balanced, and accessible, this book should be valued by any student reading systematic theology, anyone training for the ministry in all denominations, as well as interested general readers.
Christology: Origins, Developments, Debates by
The study of Jesus remains central to Christianity. "Who was and is Jesus?" and "What has he done for us and for our world?" are crucial questions that demand careful consideration and perennial answers. These Christological questions reach to the heart of Christian identity—both in its understanding of itself and in its relation to other world religions. In Christology: Origins, Developments, Debates, Gerald O’Collins continues his groundbreaking work in Christology by first tracing its major developments over the last fifty years. He next turns to a theology of resurrection—Christology’s central event—and the foundational roles played by its two great witnesses, Peter and Paul. O’Collins then masterfully constructs a "theology of religions" that explores the relationship of Christianity to other living faiths precisely in light of the priesthood of Jesus Christ. In this volume, O’Collins engages the riches of the tradition and the challenges of the present to aid scholars and students alike who wish to grasp the centrality of the second person of the Trinity to the Christian faith.
Christology by
In this revised introduction, an internationally respected scholar explores biblical, historical, and contemporary developments in Christology. The book focuses on the global and contextual diversity of contemporary theology, including views of Christ found in the Global South and North and in the Abrahamic and Asian faith traditions. It is ideal for readers who desire to know how the global Christian community understands the person and work of Jesus Christ. This new edition accounts for the significant developments in theology over the past decade.
Christology by
Summary: Christology: How Do We Talk about Jesus Christ Today? explores key questions that concern those who struggle to reconcile today's world with the faith and witness of centuries of Christianity. How do we talk about Jesus in a world that demands inclusivity and shies away from ideologies and doctrines of any kind? What does it mean to talk about Jesus in theological terms? Driving this book is the nature and core of the Christian witness, which acts like a GPS, guiding the reader through the terrain of a modern theological discussion of Christ.
Christology, Ancient and Modern by
Christology was the central doctrine articulated by the early church councils, and it remains the subject of vigorous theological investigation today. The study of the doctrine of Christ is a field of broad ecumenical convergence, inviting theologians from all denominational settings to fruitful collaborative exploration. In the contemporary setting, it is especially crucial for theologians to investigate the scriptural witness afresh, to retrieve classical criteria and categories from the tradition, and to consider the generative pressure of soteriology for Christology proper. The first annual Los Angeles Theology Conference sought to make a positive contribution to contemporary dogmatics in intentional engagement with the Christian tradition. Christology, Ancient and Modern brings together conference proceedings, surveying the field and articulating the sources, norms, and criteria for constructive theological work in Christology.
Christology and Ethics by
This book brings together leading theologians and ethicists to explore the neglected relationship between Christology and ethics. The contributors to this volume work to overcome the tendency toward disciplinary xenophobia, considering such questions as What is the relation between faithful teaching about the reality of Christ and teaching faithfulness to the way of Christ? and How is christological doctrine related to theological judgments about normative human agency? With renewed attention and creative reformulation, they argue, we can discover fresh ways of tending to these perennial questions.
Christology As Critique by
Summary: If the origin of the world is not a part of the world, what are the implications for our understanding of ourselves, the world, and its origin? In antiquity, both gentile and Christian authors agreed that the significance of this question could only be maintained by accepting the unbridgeable difference between the world and God. Not even Christology as the most ambitious attempt at developing a model for divine-human communication was allowed to undermine the principle of absolute divine difference. This changed with the modern emphasis on univocity and measurability as the defining aspects of knowledge. From the point of view of a philosophy of absolute difference, this appears as an arbitrary loss of perspective. By focusing on four authors--Cusanus, Luther, Hamann, and Kierkegaard--who have explored how the Christian and paradoxical understanding of Christ as eternal God and true human subverts the modern emphasis on unambiguity and definability, the present investigation makes an attempt to retrieve what has been lost. Classical Christology as interpreted by these authors thus appears as an indispensable tool for receiving and appreciating the gift of the world in a way that is not unduly limited by anthropocentric prejudice. - back of book.
Contemporary Christologies: A Fortress Introduction by
While many know of the signal contributions of such twentieth-century giants as Paul Tillich or Karl Barth or Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, the important work since their time often goes unremarked until some major controversy erupts. Here is a smart and helpful survey of the chief approaches and thinkers in today"s understanding of the person, significance, and work of Jesus Christ. Schweitzer offers an insightful introduction to the contemporary context of Christology, in which basic questions in the discipline (and soteriology) are being rethought in light of globalization, postmodernity, and the contemporary experience of evil. He then offers a kind of typology of the current approaches and voices. Schweitzer"s volume concludes with a reflection on the recent past and present imperatives of a discipline that virtually defines what Christianity has to offer the present age.
The Earliest Christologies by
The second century was a religious and cultural crucible for early Christian Christology. Was Christ a man, temporarily inhabited by the divine? Was he a spirit, only apparently cloaked in flesh? Or was he the Logos, truly incarnate? Between varieties of adoptionism on the one hand and brands of gnosticism on the other, the church's understanding took shape. In this clear and concise introduction, James Papandrea sets out five of the principal images of Christ that dominated belief and debate in the postapostolic age. While beliefs on the ground were likely more tangled and less defined than we can know, Papandrea helps us see how Logos Christology was forged as the beginning of the church's orthodox confession. This informative and clarifying study of early Christology provides a solid ground for students to begin to explore the early church and its Christologies.
God the Son Incarnate by
Nothing is more important than what a person believes about Jesus Christ. To understand Christ correctly is to understand the very heart of God, Scripture, and the gospel. To get to the core of this belief, this latest volume in the Foundations of Evangelical Theology series lays out a systematic summary of Christology from philosophical, biblical, and historical perspectives -- concluding that Jesus Christ is God the Son incarnate, both fully divine and fully human. Readers will learn to better know, love, trust, and obey Christ -- unashamed to proclaim him as the only Lord and Savior. - Publisher.
The Origin of Divine Christology by
Summary: "In recent years, there has been considerable debate concerning the origin of divine Christology. Nevertheless, the proposed theories are beset with problems, such as failing to address the evidence of widespread agreement among the earliest Christians concerning divine Christology, and the issues related to whether Jesus' intention was falsified. This book offers a new contribution by addressing these issues using transdisciplinary tools. It proposes that the earliest Christians regarded Jesus as divine because a sizeable group of them perceived that Jesus claimed and showed himself to be divine, and thought that God vindicated this claim by raising Jesus from the dead. It also provides a comprehensive critique of alternative proposals, and synthesizes their strengths. It defends the appropriateness and merits of utilizing philosophical distinctions (e.g. between ontology and function) and Trinitarian concepts for explaining early Christology, and incorporates comparative religion by examining cases of deification in other contexts."-- from the publisher.
Pauline Christology by
This work offers an exhaustive study of Pauline Christology by noted Pauline scholar Gordon Fee. The author provides a detailed analysis of the letters of Paul (including those whose authorship is questioned) individually, exploring the Christology of each one, and then attempts a synthesis of the exegetical work into a biblical Christology of Paul. The author's synthesis covers the following themes: Christ's roles as divine Savior and as preexistent and incarnate Savior; Jesus as the Second Adam, the Jewish Messiah, and Son of God; and as the Messiah and exalted Lord. Fee also explores the relationship between Christ and the Spirit and considers the Person and role of the Spirit in Paul's thought. Appendices cover the theme of Christ and Personified Wisdom, and Paul's use of Kurios (Lord) in citations and echoes of the Septuagint. "Anyone who has read even a smattering of Paul's writings recognizes early on that his devotion to Christ was the foremost reality and passion of his life. What he said in one of his later letters serves as a kind of motto for his entire Christian life: 'For me to live is Christ; to die is [to] gain [Christ]' (Phil. 1:21). Christ is the beginning and goal of everything for Paul, and thus is the single great reality along the way."--From the Introduction
Wisdom Christology by
"What is true wisdom? While contemporary culture locates it in self-absorption, the first-century apostles revealed how wisdom, a central Old Testament theme, is located in Jesus Christ and in no other. Daniel Ebert explains how Old Testament wisdom motifs are not only fully appropriated in New Testament christology but also far surpassed in God's Son. The Explorations in Biblical Theology series addresses the need for quality literature that attracts believing readers to good theology and builds them up in their faith. Each title in the series combines solid content with accessibility and readability a valuable addition to the library of any college student, thoughtful lay reader, seminarian, or pastor"--Publisher description.
The Acts of the Council of Chalcedon by 
Jesus Wars by
Summary: Jesus Wars reveals how official, orthodox teaching about Jesus was the product of political maneuvers by a handful of key characters in the fifth century. Jenkins argues that were it not for these controversies, the papacy as we know it would never have come into existence and that today's church could be teaching some-thing very different about Jesus. It is only an accident of history that one group of Roman emperors and militia-wielding bishops defeated another faction. --from publisher description.