In these two essays two distinguished Reformed scholars accept the challenge of understanding and explaining the central meaning of the Lord's Supper. How did primitive Christianity understand this event? What relationship was Christ attempting to establish with mankind? Did He wish to establish a link other than the one of preaching His Word? What is the relationship of Word and Sacrament? These and other vital issues for the churches of the Reformation tradition are addressed. In the first essay, Oscar Cullmann proposes to investigate the true meaning of the Lord's Supper with which primitive Christianity invested the cultic act of the sacred meal, as it was practised in the communities of the first century. He examines the Breaking of Bread and the Resurrection Appearances and draws a connection between the Lord's Supper and the Death of Christ, and successfully combines the two in his conclusion. The second essay, by F.J. Leenhardt, provides an answer to the question: What relationship did Christ wish to establish with man? Or more precisely, since Christ wished His disciples to proclaim His Gospel, He established a link which is the preaching of His Word: "He that hears you, h

Cullman's study is distinguished by its responsible exegesis and its attention to the philosophical issues so often overlooked in general books on prayer." -Sharyn Dowd, Lexington Theological Seminary Oscar Cullman offers here the first complete treatment of the New Testament doctrine and practice of prayer, a subject he refers to as "the greatest gift of grace and a difficult task to be learned." He comments on the difficulties of praying, objections to prayer, prayer and human weakness, prayer in the Synoptic Gospels, in Paul, in John, and in the rest of the New Testament. Oscar Cull mann, Professor Emeritus of the Universities of Basel and Paris, is one of the most distinguished New Testament scholars of the twentieth century. Among his influential books are Christ and Time (1951), The Christology of the New Testament (1959), and Unity through Diversity (Fortress Press, 1988).

"The New Testament" is an accesible review of the literary and historical problems of the books of the New Testament, and a brief study of their theological content. Part One deals with the history of the New Testament text and discusses basic documents, families of texts, and the history of the printed text. Part Two furnishes brief introductions to the twenty-seven New Testament books, covering authorship, literary structure, and religious content. Part three deals with the formation of the New Testament canon.

Oscar Cullmann's 1962 revision of Peter in turn carefully treats the "Historical Question" and the "Exegetical and Theological Question" of the apostle Peter. While Cullmann cannot decisively confirm some of the details of Peter's life-his residence in Rome and the location of his grave, in particular-other details are described as more probable, such as Peter's travel to Rome and his martyrdom under Nero. Cullmann faithfully seeks Catholic-Protestant dialogue while maintaining that Jesus' words-"upon this rock I will build my church"-refer to the apostle alone and provide no historical basis for succession. The timeless quality of Cullmann's methods and his overwhelming concern for Christian unity are sure to inspire new generations of biblical scholars and contemporary theologians.

Oscar Cullmann's 1962 revision of Peter in turn carefully treats the ""Historical Question"" and the ""Exegetical and Theological Question"" of the apostle Peter. While Cullmann cannot decisively confirm some of the details of Peter's life - his residence in Rome and the location of his grave, in particular - other details are described as more probable, such as Peter's travel to Rome and his martyrdom under Nero. Cullmann faithfully seeks Catholic-Protestant dialogue while maintaining that Jesus' words - ""upon this rock I will build my church"" - refer to the apostle alone and provide no historical basis for succession. The timeless quality of Cullmann's methods and his overwhelming concern for Christian unity are sure to inspire new generations of biblical scholars and contemporary theologians.

Oscar Cullmann's The Christology of the New Testament was the standard student textbook in New Testament courses and the measuring stick for scholarly inquiry into Christology for decades. An enduring classic, this book is based on a lifetime of study from one of the most creative and disciplined minds ever to tackle the problem of New Testament Christology. Cullmann moves methodically through his careful philological and textual consideration of the various titles used for Jesus in the New Testament, dividing them into four groups: titles used to refer to Jesus' earthly life (prophet, servant, and priest); titles used to refer to Jesus' eschatological work (Messiah and Son of Man); titles used to refer to Jesus' present work in the church (Lord and Savior); and titles used to refer to Jesus' preexistence (Word and Son of God). In each case, he weighs the New Testament's usage of each title against the Old Testament, Second Temple Jewish, and Hellenistic semantic backgrounds. Though Cullmann sifts the evidence analytically and presents it systematically, the end result is not simply a christological lexicon. Instead, he creates a cohesive picture by showing that early Christianity's view of Jesus originated with the historical Jesus himself. For Cullmann, New Testament Christology was not a later Hellenistic imposition upon earlier Jewish beliefs about Jesus. Rather, the titles used for Jesus form a chain of specific events centered around Jesus, events that fit into and extend the long string of God's saving deeds in history. Cullmann's Christology remains as instructive and important today as when it first appearedaand still repays careful reading and study.

Originally published in 1950 as the first title in the series Studies in Biblical Theology, Baptism in the New Testament was welcomed as, and has continued ever since to be an invaluable contribution to the debate set afoot by Barth in his booklet, The Teaching of the Church Concerning Baptism. Here the reader can study the fresh, stimulating and constructive researches of one of the great Biblical scholars of Europe into the burning question of the origins of baptism. Dr Cullmann is an ardent protagonist of infant baptism, which is the subject of intense debate at the moment. He rightly deplores Barth's attempts to discredit the practice. On the basis of the kinship between circumcision and baptism on the one hand, and between the proselyte bath of the Jews and baptism on the other, he makes a forceful plea for the spiritual reality and legitimacy of baptizing infants. This is an essay which is packed with profound scriptural analysis; its relevance to current discussion in the Church of England is obvious' (Church Times). 'Of the merits of this essay there is little need to speak. The author is a well-known expert in matters relating to the origins of Christianity, and he has also a fine apprehension of the theological issues involved. He treats his subject under the four heads: the foundation of baptism in the work of Christ; baptism as acceptance into the body of Christ; baptism and faith; and baptism and circumcision ... Not everyone will agree entirely with the author's account of what takes place in baptism, but there can be no doubt that he is right in his general stress upon the objective character of this sacrament. We are indebted to him also for useful discussions of various texts and passages of the New Testament. It will be a surprise to some that there is even less New Testament evidence for the adult baptism of the children of believing Christians than there is for their baptism as infants. The linking of baptism with circumcision is very ably done, and in an appendix on an early baptismal formula the genuineness of Acts 8.37 is defended and the relevance of Christ's blessing of the children displayed' (The Life of Faith).

Oscar Cullmann was born in Strasbourg and studied theology and classical philology there and in Paris. Since 1938 he has been Professor of New Testament and Early Church History in the Theological Faculty of the University of Basel and also, since 1949, Professor of Early Christianity at the Sorbonne, the Ecole des Hautes Etudes, and the Facult6 de Theologie Protestante in Paris. He has received honorary degrees from Lausanne, Manchester, Edinburgh, and Lund.

'Among historians of the Early Church in Europe today, none surpasses Professor Cullmann, wrote Professor F. F. Bruce in a review of this book, adding: 'this volume of studies is assured of wide and eager acceptance.' A reviewer from a quite different religious background, Father Gervase Mathew, O.P., noted that these essays are 'marked by three rare qualities: strong sanity, exact scholarship and Christian charity'. 'All are written with the author's customary distinction, clarity and orderliness,' said an Anglican, Canon Montefiore, about this 'fine collection of brilliant essays'. The Early Church was first published in English in 1956. For this edition five of the chapters (2-6) have been selected as being of special importance, but the original pagination has been retained for the convenience of scholars. This arrangement, suggested by the volume's editor Dr A.J.B. Higgins, has been approved by Dr Cullmann.