The bestselling author and prominent New Testament scholar draws parallels between 1st–century Roman Empire and 21st–century United States, showing how the radical messages of Jesus and Paul can lead us to peace today Using the tools of expert biblical scholarship and a keen eye for current events, bestselling author John Dominic Crossan deftly presents the tensions exhibited in the Bible between political power and God’s justice. Through the revolutionary messages of Jesus and Paul, Crossan reveals what the Bible has to say about land and economy, violence and retribution, justice and peace, and ultimately, redemption. He examines the meaning of “kingdom of God” prophesized by Jesus, and the equality recommended to Paul by his churches, contrasting these messages of peace against the misinterpreted apocalyptic vision from the book of Revelations, that has been co-opted by modern right-wing theologians and televangelists to justify the United State’s military actions in the Middle East.

A major advance in Jesus studies and a critique of oppression. Horsley focuses his attention on how Jesus' proclamation of the kingdom of God relates to Roman and Herodian power politics.

Margaret Froelich examines the Gospel of Mark using political and empire-critical methodologies, following postcolonial thinkers in perceiving a far more ambivalent message than previous pacifistic interpretations of the text. She argues that Mark does not represent an entirely new way of thinking about empire or cosmic structures, but rather exhibits concepts and structures with which the author and his audience are already familiar in order to promote the Kingdom of God as a better version of the encroaching Roman Empire. Froelich consequently understands Mark as a response to the physical, ideological, and cultural displacement of the first Roman/Judean War. By looking to Greek, Roman, and Jewish texts to determine how first-century authors thought of conquest and expansion, Froelich situates the Gospel directly in a historical and socio-political context, rather than treating that context as a mere backdrop; concluding that the Gospel portrays the Kingdom of God as a conquering empire with Jesus as its victorious general and client king.

This volume brings together respected biblical scholars to evaluate the turn toward "empire criticism" in recent New Testament scholarship. While praising the movement for its deconstruction of Roman statecraft and ideology, the contributors also provide a salient critique of the anti-imperialist rhetoric pervading much of the current literature.

The New Testament Gospels came into existence in a world ruled by Roman imperial power. Their main character, Jesus, is crucified on a Roman cross by a Roman governor. How do the Gospels interact with the structures, practices, and personnel of the Roman world? What strategies and approaches do the Gospels attest? What role for accommodation, for imitation, for critique, for opposition, for decolonizing, for reinscribing, for getting along, for survival? This book engages these questions by discussing the Gospel accounts of Jesus' origins and birth, his teachings and miraculous actions, his entry to Jerusalem, his death, and his resurrection, ascension, and return. The book engages not only the first-century world but also raises questions about our own society's structures and practices concerning the use of power, equitable access to resources, the practice of justice, and merciful and respectful societal interactions.

This title looks at what kind of responses Paul made to the Roman Empire. The author subjects the methods of current interpreters to critical scrutiny and discusses what makes an anti-imperial interpretation of Pauline writings difficult.

Bestselling author and theologian Scott Hahn offers a commentary on 1 and 2 Chronicles as a liturgical and theological interpretation of Israel's history.

When Jesus of Nazareth began proclaiming the kingdom of God early in the first century, he likely had no intention of starting a new religion, especially one that included former pagans. Yet a new religion did eventually develop—one that not only included non-Jews but was soon dominated by them. How did this happen? Jesus Followers in the Roman Empire by Paul Duff offers an accessible and informed account of Christian origins, beginning with the teaching of Jesus and moving to the end of the first century. Duff's narrative shows how the rural Jewish movement led by Jesus developed into a largely non-Jewish phenomenon permeating urban centers of the Roman Empire. Paying special attention to social, cultural, and religious contexts—as well as to early Christian ideas about idolatry, marriage, family, slavery, and ethnicity—Jesus Followers in the Roman Empire will help readers cultivate a deeper understanding of the identity, beliefs, and practices of early Christ-believers.

A fascinating volume details the two priests--Arius and Athanasius--mortal enemies who became the major players in the fateful conflict in Christendom to decide whether Jesus was God or the holiest of men until the Reformation and Alexander, the powerful bishop of Alexandria, who was determined to find a speedy resolution. Reprint.

Bauckham shows that Jesus was devoted to the God of Israel, with a special focus on God's fatherly love and compassion, and like every Jewish teacher he expounded the Torah, but did so in his own distinctive way.