Windows on Early Christianity: Uncommon Stories, Striking Images, Critical Perspectives

by James W. Aageson

Publisher:

Wipf and Stock

, 2016

Overview

This book is introductory, but it is not an introduction to biblical content or to the history of early Christianity in the typical sense. Each of the chapters addresses a different aspect of the material and provides its own perspective on the origin of the church and early Christianity. The chapters begin with questions that in turn focus the discussions. The chapters can be read as independent, freestanding arguments and can be mixed and matched, enabling readers to investigate the respective topics independently. However, the chapters also follow a logical narrative line. In addition, images and diagrams are used to assist in making critical points and to enrich the visual sense of the material. The image of the window serves to give readers lines of sight into the material where historical intersections and patterns begin to emerge.

In the Logos edition, this volume is enhanced by amazing functionality. Important terms link to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and a wealth of other resources in your digital library. Perform powerful searches to find exactly what you’re looking for. Take the discussion with you using tablet and mobile apps. With Logos Bible Software, the most efficient and comprehensive research tools are in one place, so you get the most out of your study.

Key Features

• Combines elements of biblical studies, theology, church history, and cultural studies
• Tailors the message to a modern audience in a context of diverse beliefs and backgrounds
• Begins each section with a crucial question which drives the topic

Contents

Part 1: Foundational Issues

• What You Should Know before Reading this Book
• Three Middle Eastern Religions: Dynamics in Belief and Practice
• Abraham and Sarah: Story and Counterstory
• The Births of Two Great Religions: Rabbinic Judaism and Early Christianity

Part 2: Foundational Texts and Traditions

• The Apostle Paul and the Early Church
• The New Testament Gospels: History, Story, and Claims about Christ
• The Church in Motion: The Acts of the Apostles
• Paul and the Next Generations of the Church
• Jesus and Other Gospels: Widening the Circle
• Jewish Apocalyptic Tradition and the Revelation to John

Part 3: Foundational Topics

• Render unto God and unto Caesar: The Problem of Empire
• People of the Book: From Text to Canon
• Location and Legacy, Church and Opposition, Function and Formation
• Worship and Religious Practice in Early Christianity
• Abraham’s Children: Competition and Contention

Praise for the Print Edition

James W. Aageson’s helpful book offers a critical approach to the study of early Christianity in the context of today’s pluralism. Carefully chosen leading questions in each chapter open windows for deeper understanding of Christianity’s functional uniqueness as well as its commonalities with Judaism and Islam. Aageson provides a discussion companion for educational groups seeking a more reflective Christian faith along with ways to live constructively and peacefully with other faiths.

—Douglas E. Oakman, Pacific Lutheran University

With clarity and precision, Aageson offers important critical insights into the development of early Christianity. The book’s arrangement into fifteen essential questions or topics enables the text to break the mold of the historically linear ‘introduction’ while providing thorough analysis. As with his earlier In the Beginning (2000), Aageson’s eminently readable scholarship presents a vibrant and compelling approach to the academic study of religion.

—Gail P. Streete, Professor Emerita, Rhodes College

Aageson surveys basic questions in the study of Abrahamic religions, major trajectories in early Christianity that are reflected in all of the New Testament and in apocryphal gospels, and key issues in the identity and practices of early Christianity. This book will be accessible and useful to undergraduates in history of Christianity and religious studies courses.

—Mark Reasoner, Associate Professor of Theology, Marian University; author of Romans in Full Circle and Roman Imperial Texts: A Sourcebook

Product Details

• Title: Windows on Early Christianity: Uncommon Stories, Striking Images, Critical Perspectives
• Author: James W. Aageson
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Publication Date: 2016
• Pages: 280
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Topic: Early Church

About James W. Aageson

James W. Aageson is Professor Emeritus of New Testament and Early Christianity at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota. His academic interests focus on the history and thought of early Judaism, Pauline studies, and early post-New Testament Christianity. His books include Written Also for Our Sake (1993), In the Beginning (2000), and Paul, the Pastoral Epistles and the Early Church (2008).