In the tradition of Karl Rahner and Teilhard de Chardin, this book from renowned New Testament scholar Gerd Theissen daringly probes the innermost sanctuaries of the biblical tradition through the lens of evolutionary theory. Without associating evolution with a na?ve optimism about progress, Theissen shows how a thorough examination of the "cultural evolution" of the Christian faith can yield glimmers of a possible goal of history: "complete adaptation to the reality of God."

As those who have read his The Shadow of the Galilean and Biblical Faith are aware, Gerd Theissen is not someone whose main concern is the theory and practice of preaching. However, he himself is a fascinating preacher, as was evident in his imaginative collection The Open Door, which Frances Young in Theology described as 'nothing less than gripping'. In this book he engages as it were in self-analysis, an analysis of haw he preaches, in order to offer help to others. A first draft was shown to younger ministers, women and men, for their critical comments, and the book derives from lectures which gave rise to lively discussion. Professor Theissen's illuminating comments are grouped round a variety of focal points. The first chapter discusses the biblical world and how that can be approached; then comes the text, and the new possibilities offered by the 'open' text. The third chapter examines how preaching can talk about God and the fourth looks at the existential dimension of preaching. A fifth chapter on preaching as communication is followed by five sample sermons. Preachers will learn a great deal from this book - but so too will their congregations, and anyone interested in the communication of Christianity in the modern world. Few theologians are richer in creative ideas than Gerd Theissen, and they are here in abundance.

This title provides a sociological investigation into the life of the early Church by one of the 20th-century's leading biblical scholars.

All the main issues for reading the New Testament are covered in this exciting new introduction by one of the world's foremost biblical scholars.

Should the dissimilarity between Jesus and early Christianity or between Jesus and Judaism be the central criteria for the historical Jesus? Gerd Theissen and Dagmar Winter argue that the criterion of dissimilarity does not do justice to the single most important result of more than two-hundred years of Jesus research: that the historical Jesus belongs to both Judaism and Christianity. The two authors propose a criterion of historical plausibility so that historical phenomenon under question can be considered authentic so long as it can be plausibly understood in its Jewish context and also facilitates a plausible explanation for its later effects in Christian history. This book is a cooperative project between Dagmar Winter and Gerd Theissen and represents the fruit of many years of their research on the historical Jesus.

In these distinguished Oxford lectures, Theissen picks up where he left off in The Historical Jesus (1998). Employing the notion of religion as a "cultural sign language which promises a gain in life by corresponding to an ultimate reality," he plots the emergence of Christianity as a religion, with elements of myth, ritual, ethics, and an emergent symbolic system. He expands upon the historical, social, and theological analysis of his earlier works to cover such issues as the relationship of Jesus to the earliest churches, power, possessions, interpretations of Jesus' death, and the separation of the church and synagogue. Theissen's most complete and systematic treatment of early Christianity to date Traces the gradual emergence of the most important beliefs about Jesus Encompasses beliefs, ethics, ritual, and the origin of the New Testament canon in one synthesis

Signs of Life follows the signs from God in a world from which he seems to have disappeared. It points o ut how they are often to be found in unexpected places, in t he offensive, the immoral and the absurd. '

The book includes practice plans for 24 coaching sessions -- enough for an entire season -- clearly explained and diagrammed with key coaching points throughout. Ideal for junior league and recreational level soccer coaches, parents and elementary physical education teachers, this is the best and most informative book available specifically for coaching 5-7 year old girls and boys.

In the continuing quest for the elusive but compelling figure of Jesus of Nazareth, Gerd Theissen and Annette Merz's authoritative yet engaging book is the single most helpful resource to date. Comprehensively detailing the sources for our knowledge of Jesus, Theissen and Merz fully explore the historical and social context of Jesus and his activity. They then unfold what we can know about Jesus' characteristics as a charismatic teacher, a Jewish prophet, a healer, a teller of parables, and an ethical teacher. Finally, they examine closely the historical questions surrounding Jesus' last supper, his violent death, the accounts of Easter, and the beginnings of Christology. Beholden to neither ancient dogma nor contemporary fantasy, written in a clear style with a variety of learning aids, The Historical Jesus will provide students, teachers, and other individuals with a fascinating and reliable guide into this most exciting field of Jesus research.

The field of New Testament studies often appears splintered into widely different specializations and narrowly defined research projects. Nevertheless, some of the most important insights have come about when curious men and women have defied disciplinary boundaries and drawn on other fields of knowledge in order to gain a more adequate view of history. The essays in Bridges in New Testament Interpretation offer surveys of the current scholarly discussion in areas of New Testament and Christian origins where cross-disciplinary fertilization has been decisive and describe the role that interdisciplinary 'bridges,' especially as led by Richard A. Horsley, have played. Topics include the socioeconomic history of Roman Palestine; the historical Jesus in political and media contexts; communication media, orality, and social context in the study of Q; the Gospels in the context of oral culture, performance, and social memory; reading Paul’s letters in the context of Roman imperial culture; the narrativization of early Christianity in relation to the ancient media environment; and the role of power in shaping our understanding of history, as evident in 'people’s history;' the historical agency of subordinate classes; and the role of public and 'hidden transcripts' in contexts shaped by power relations. Essays also address the role of the interpreter as engaged with the social and political concerns of our time. The sum is even greater than the parts, presenting a powerful argument for the value of further exploration across interdisciplinary bridges.

Gerd Theissen describes the emergence of the New Testament canon out of the wide variety of early Christian literature, drawing on Max Webers discussion of the evolution of religious organizations. Theissen describes a series of phases in the life of the early Christian movement: the charismatic, the pseudepigraphic, the functional, and the canonical.

Why read the Bible? Gerd Theissen uses the wisdom gained from decades of teaching Bible instruction at a state university to address questions of the Bible's relevance in a postmodern, pluralistic society. He describes the core themes and enduring value of the biblical legacy for anyone seeking to be a well-informed, self-aware, and responsible citizen, and he commends the contributions the Bible can make to interreligious and secular conversation.

The context of Jesus, his followers, and the early movementWhat do the social sciences have to contribute to the study of Jesus and the Gospels? This is the fundamental question that these essays all address - from analyses of ancient economics to altered states of consciousness, politics, ritual, kinship, and labeling.Contributors: Bruce J. Malina, Wolfgang Stegemann, Richard L. Rohrbaugh, Ekkehard W. Stegemann, Gerd Theissen, T. Raymond Hobbs, Dennis C. Duling, K.C. Hanson, Philip F. Esler, S. Scott Bartchy, John J. Pilch, Christian Strecker, Richard DeMaris, Stuart L. Love, Jerome H. Neyrey, Douglas E. Oakman, Gary Stansell, Santiago Oporto Guijarro

A discussion of 'primitive' Christianity - Christianity in its original form, this work was first given as Speaker's Lectures in Oxford. Covering the first five centuries of Christianity, it argues that neither a theology of the New Testament nor a history of the early Church can do justice to all the dimensions of the earliest Christianity. It explores in depth the formation of primitive Christianity and studies the effect of the two great crises of primitive Christianity: the split with Judaism and the threat from Gnosticism. It is aimed at academic theologians.