Product Description: This book provides three categories of investigation: 1) The Typology and Context of the Greco-Roman Banquet, 2) Who Was at the Greco-Roman Banquets, and 3) The Culture of Reclining. Together these studies establish festive meals as an essential lens into social formation in the Greco-Roman world...read more

Product Description: Each contributor is a respected scholar in the subject of his or her essay; together they present a variety of methods and approaches to biblical interpretation that includes basic data, relevant social context, aspects of religious thought and institutions, literary features, organization, primary theological teachings, relevance for the church today, and a recommended bibliography...read more

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Product Description: Discourses on women's pivotal roles in the New Testament stories of the ministry of Jesus and the rise of the early church, including several unnamed women. New Testament women discussed in this volume include: Elizabeth, Mary of Nazareth, Anna the Prophet, Peter's mother-in-law, Herodias and Salome, Justa the Canaanite woman, the Poor Widow, Mary Magdalene, the women at the Cross and the Tomb, women whose encounter with Jesus was brief but life-changing, Mary and Martha of Bethany, the Samaritan woman, Sapphira, Tabitha, Rhoda, Lydia, Priscilla, Phoebe, Chloe, and the Corinthian women prophets...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Product Description: The stories in the Acts of the Apostles have been revered throughout Chrisitan history as a resource about the origins of the church and the triumph of the faith in the face of oppoosition. The author of Acts was a skilled storyteller who used the models of popular storytelling of the day to make a compelling, inspirational account and an example for us of the power of storytelling in presenting the Christian message...read more (view table of contents, read Amazon.com's description)

Product Description: Through his clear and compelling arguments, Dennis Smith offers essential background information about the theological purposes of the gospel of John. Throughout the stories about Jesus, he shows how John's community is guided purposefully to understand Jesus' glorious divine status, and he also helps us imagine how our own Christian communities come to belief in the resurrected Christ...read more

Product Description: This book combines recent historical research, current ritual theory, and actual examples in contemporary worship to articulate a vision of the first-century situation and creative applications for today's churches.