A central figure in the reconception of early Christian history over the last three decades, Wayne A. Meeks offers here a selection of his most influential writings on the New Testament and early Christianity. His essays illustrate recent changes in our thinking about the early Christian movement and pose provocative questions regarding the history of this period.

Meeks explores a fascinating range of topics, from the figure of the androgyne in antiquity to the timeless matter of God's reliability, from Paul's ethical rhetoric to New Testament pictures of Christianity's separation from Jewish communities. Meeks' introduction offers a retrospective on New Testament studies of the past thirty years and explains the intersection of these studies with a variety of exploratory and revisionist movements in the humanities, embracing social theory, history, anthropology, and literature. In an epilogue the author reflects on future directions for New Testament scholarship.

Engaging Native American Publics considers the increasing influence of Indigenous groups as key audiences, collaborators, and authors with regards to their own linguistic documentation and representation. The chapters critically examine a variety of North American case studies to reflect on the forms and effects of new collaborations between language researchers and Indigenous communities, as well as the types and uses of products that emerge with notions of cultural maintenance and linguistic revitalization in mind. In assessing the nature and degree of change from an early period of "salvage" research to a period of greater Indigenous "self-determination," the volume addresses whether increased empowerment and accountability has truly transformed the terms of engagement and what the implications for the future might be.

This is a detailed study on the uses of the Old Testament in "Luke-Acts", focusing on the theme of the Gentile mission as it relates to the Old Testament.Scholarship on the uses of the Old Testament in "Luke-Acts" has tended to focus upon the role played by the Old Testament in the development of the author's Christology. James Meek, however, draws out the theme of the Gentile mission in Acts as it relates to the Old Testament, and gives particular attention to four texts: 13:47 ("Isaiah" 49:6); 15:16-18 ("Amos" 9:11-12); 2:17-21 ("Joel" 3:1-5 MT); 3:25 ("Genesis" 22:18). The quotations in "Acts" 13 and 15 receive greater attention because they explicitly address the issue of the Gentile mission (the two earlier texts anticipate it) and because of particular interpretive questions raised by these texts.Meek argues that while there are similarities in the quotations in "Acts" with the Old Greek form of the cited texts, the argument never depends on distinctive readings of the Old Greek. He therefore rejects claims that the author's use of Old Testament texts is dependent entirely on the Old Greek. He also maintains that all four quotations are used in a manner consistent with their sense in their original contexts, contrary to the common assertion that the New Testament commonly cites Old Testament texts without regard for original sense or context. His third principal argument is that these Old Testament quotations function as 'proof from prophecy,' contrary to the argument of some. In particular, they are cited to demonstrate the legitimacy of the Gentile mission as conducted by the early church and of the Gentiles' place among the people of God, showing these ideas to be central to the author's purpose.Formerly the "Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement", a book series that explores the many aspects of New Testament study including historical perspectives, social-scientific and literary theory, and theological, cultural and contextual approaches. "The Early Christianity in Context" series, a part of JSNTS, examines the birth and development of early Christianity up to the end of the third century CE. The series places Christianity in its social, cultural, political and economic context. "European Seminar on Christian Origins" and "Journal for the Study of the Historical Jesus Supplement" are also part of JSNTS.

Engaging Native American Publics considers the increasing influence of Indigenous groups as key audiences, collaborators, and authors with regards to their own linguistic documentation and representation. The chapters critically examine a variety of North American case studies to reflect on the forms and effects of new collaborations between language researchers and Indigenous communities, as well as the types and uses of products that emerge with notions of cultural maintenance and linguistic revitalization in mind. In assessing the nature and degree of change from an early period of "salvage" research to a period of greater Indigenous "self-determination," the volume addresses whether increased empowerment and accountability has truly transformed the terms of engagement and what the implications for the future might be.

This thoroughly revised and expanded edition includes an entirely new introduction to Paul and the central issues surrounding his writings, as well as several newly included sections of writings from Paul's time to the present, among them "Annotated Text: Pseudo-Pauline Writings"; "The Apocryphal Paul: Some Early Christian Traditions and Legends," with writings by Jerome, Clement of Alexandria, Ambrosiaster, and others; "The Martyrdom of Paul"; "Paul and His Pagan Critics;" "Valentinus and the Gnostic Paul,"with writings by Theodotus and Elaine Pagels; "Paul and the Christian Martyrs"; "A Sampler of Patristic Interpretations"; "The Second Century Paul"; "Reading Romans," with writings from Origen, Theodoret of Cyrus, Paul W. Meyer, Stanley Stowers, Ernst Kasemann, and others; and "A Sampler of Modern Approaches to Paul and His Letters," with writings by Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza, Abraham J. Malherbe, Peter Lampe, Margaret M. Mitchell, and Dale B. Martin. A helpful Epilogue-"The Christian Proteus," by Wayne A. Meeks-a Selected Bibliography, and an Index are also included.

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone

For many communities around the world, the revitalization or at least the preservation of an indigenous language is a pressing concern. Understanding the issue involves far more than compiling simple usage statistics or documenting the grammar of a tongue--it requires examining the social practices and philosophies that affect indigenous language survival.
In presenting the case of Kaska, an endangered language in an Athabascan community in the Yukon, Barbra Meek asserts that language revitalization requires more than just linguistic rehabilitation; it demands a social transformation. The process must mend rips and tears in the social fabric of the language community that result from an enduring colonial history focused on termination. These "disjunctures" include government policies conflicting with community goals, widely varying teaching methods and generational viewpoints, and even clashing ideologies within the language community.
This book provides a detailed investigation of language revitalization based on more than two years of active participation in local language renewal efforts. Each chapter focuses on a different dimension, such as spelling and expertise, conversation and social status, family practices, and bureaucratic involvement in local language choices. Each situation illustrates the balance between the desire for linguistic continuity and the reality of disruption.
"We Are Our Language "reveals the subtle ways in which different conceptions and practices--historical, material, and interactional--can variably affect the state of an indigenous language, and it offers a critical step toward redefining success and achieving revitalization.

This scarce antiquarian book is a selection from Kessinger Publishing's Legacy Reprint Series. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment to protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature. Kessinger Publishing is the place to find hundreds of thousands of rare and hard-to-find books with something of interest for everyone!

In this series of reflections on the mystery of Jesus and the questions that surround him, noted New Testament scholar Wayne Meeks redirects the course of the Jesus debates. Insisting that we cease focusing on who the historical Jesus was and ask instead, who is Christ? Meeks demonstrates with electric and lucid prose that Jesus is not a permanent artifact whose precise nature can be traced back through history but, rather, a figure whose identity continues to emerge as contemporary persons engage him in their daily lives.

By the time Christianity became a political and cultural force in the Roman Empire, it had come to embody a new moral vision. This wise and eloquent book describes the formative years-from the crucifixion of Jesus to the end of the second century of the common era-when Christian beliefs and practices shaped their unique moral order. Wayne A. Meeks examines the surviving documents from Christianity's beginnings (some of which became the New Testament) and shows that they are largely concerned with the way converts to the movement should behave. Meeks finds that for these Christians, the formation of morals means the formation of community; the documents are addressed not to individuals but to groups, and they have among their primary aims the maintenance and growth of these groups. Meeks paints a picture of the process of socialization that produced the early forms of Christian morality, discussing many factors that made the Christians feel that they were a single and "chosen" people. He describes, for example, the impact of conversion; the rapid spread of Christian household cult-associations in the cities of the Roman Empire; the language of Christian moral discourse as revealed in letters, testaments, and "moral stories"; the rituals, meetings, and institutionalization of charity; the Christians' feelings about celibacy, sex, and gender roles; and their sense of the end-time and final judgment. In each of these areas Meeks seeks to determine what is distinctive about the Christian viewpoint and what is similar to the moral components of Greco-Roman or Jewish thought.

Scholarship on the uses of the Old Testament in Luke-Acts has tended to focus upon the role played by the Old Testament in the development of the author's Christology. James Meek, however, draws out the theme of the Gentile mission in Acts as it relates to the Old Testament, and gives particular attention to four texts:13:47 (Isa 49:6); 15:16-18 (Amos 9:11-12); 2:17-21 (Joel 3:1-5 MT); 3:25 (Gen 22:18). The quotations in Acts 13 and 15 receive greater attention because they explicitly address the issue of the Gentile mission (the two earlier texts anticipate it) and because of particular interpretive questions raised by these texts. Meek argues that while there are similarities in the quotations in Acts with the Old Greek form of the cited texts, the argument never depends on distinctive readings of the Old Greek. He therefore rejects claims that the author's use of Old Testament texts is dependent entirely on the Old Greek. He also maintains that all four quotations are used in a manner consistent with their sense in their original contexts, contrary to the common assertion that the New Testament commonly cites Old Testament texts without regard for original sense or context. His third principal argument is that these Old Testament quotations function as "proof from prophecy," contrary to the argument of some. In particular, they are cited to demonstrate the legitimacy of the Gentile mission as conducted by the early church and of the Gentiles' place among the people of God, showing these ideas to be central to the author's purpose.

"This volume in the Library of Early Christianity examines the ethics and morality of the earliest Christians.

The Library of Early Christianity is a series of eight outstanding books exploring the Jewish and Greco-Roman contexts in which the New Testament developed.

In this classic work, Wayne A. Meeks analyzes the earliest extant documents of Christianity-the letters of Paul-to describe the tensions and the texture of life of the first urban Christians. In a new introduction, he describes the evolution of the field of New Testament scholarship over the past twenty years, including new developments in fields such as archaeology and social history. Praise for the earlier edition: "Many readers are likely to join me in feeling that they have never been so close to their mixed and mixed-up spiritual ancestors as Meeks helps them to be. For those who are open to the possibility that they can find fresh angles on the familiar, this book is not only recommended; it is urged."-Martin E. Marty, Christian Century "A much-needed authoritative study."-J. L. Houlden, Times Literary Supplement "Those with any historical bent will be intrigued by the way a story usually overlaid with thick layers of theological speculation is unraveled. . . . And those who simply have an interest in how groups form in any era . . . will be fascinated by this case study of one particular community that has ramifications for understanding all other communities."-Robert McAfee Brown, New York Times Book Review "Should fascinate any reader with an interest in the history of human thought."--Phoebe-Lou Adams, Atlantic Monthly