Synopses & Reviews
Early Christology must focus not simply on "historical" but also on theological ideas found in contemporary Jewish thought and practice. In this book, a range of distinguished contributors considers the context and formation of early Jewish and Christian devotion to God alone—the emergence of "monotheism". The idea of monotheism is critically examined from various perspectives, including the history of ideas, Graeco-Roman religions, early Jewish mediator figures, scripture exegesis, and the history of its use as a theological category.<br/><br/>The studies explore different ways of conceiving of early Christian monotheism today, asking whether monotheism is a conceptually useful category, whether it may be applied cautiously and with qualifications, or whether it is to be questioned in favor of different approaches to understanding the origins of Jewish and Christian beliefs and worship.<br/><br/>This is volume 1 in the Early Christianity in Context series and volume 263 in the Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement Series>
Synopsis
In recent years, the focus on early Christology has been "historical"--the reality of the historical Jesus--without close reference to developments in theological ideas in Jewish and early Christian thought which formed the essential background to the birth of Christianity. This book centers on these theological developments, but with reference to all the modern research into the wider historical context. The studies in this volume are representative of the different ways of conceiving early Christian monotheism today, asking whether monotheism is a conceptually useful category, or to be applied cautiously and with nuance, or to be questioned in favor of different approaches to understanding the origins of Jewish and Christian beliefs and worship.
Synopsis
Early Christology must focus not simply on "historical" but also on theological ideas found in contemporary Jewish thought and practice. In this book, a range of distinguished contributors considers the context and formation of early Jewish and Christian devotion to God alone—the emergence of "monotheism". The idea of monotheism is critically examined from various perspectives, including the history of ideas, Graeco-Roman religions, early Jewish mediator figures, scripture exegesis, and the history of its use as a theological category.<br/><br/>The studies explore different ways of conceiving of early Christian monotheism today, asking whether monotheism is a conceptually useful category, whether it may be applied cautiously and with qualifications, or whether it is to be questioned in favor of different approaches to understanding the origins of Jewish and Christian beliefs and worship.<br/><br/>This is volume 1 in the Early Christianity in Context series and volume 263 in the Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement Series>
Table of Contents
Introduction: Loren Stuckenbruck and Wendy Sproston NorthPART 1 The Religious World of the New Testament1.Jewish and Christian Monotheism in the Herodian