The Gospels And Christian Life reads the four canonical Gospels as handbooks for religious formation through communal practices. The book focuses on the communities that produced each gospel, the dynamic energy each gospel displays for creating and sustaining community life, the different interpretations of the person of Jesus, and the different systems of organization and leadership each gospel promulgated. The authors carefully describe the social context of each Gospel and delineate the practices the texts prescribe. Each gospel has an imaginative portal, an introductory chapter introducing the necessary background for understanding the social, intellectual, and religious setting for each gospel. Their reading of each Gospel builds on these foundations to illustrate the nature and scope of the community's practices. Their work starts from the assumption that the communities did not look to the Gospels for biographical data on the life of Jesus to offer the reader a powerful reading of each Gospel community, its unique practices, and the way people were trained to become members of it. This book is aimed at undergraduate and graduate teachers and students, pastors, and the general audience eager for new ways to understand the New Testament.

The Gospels And Christian Life reads the four canonical Gospels as handbooks for religious formation through communal practices. The book focuses on the communities that produced each gospel, the dynamic energy each gospel displays for creating and sustaining community life, the different interpretations of the person of Jesus, and the different systems of organization and leadership each gospel promulgated. The authors carefully describe the social context of each Gospel and delineate the practices the texts prescribe. Each gospel has an imaginative portal, an introductory chapter introducing the necessary background for understanding the social, intellectual, and religious setting for each gospel. Their reading of each Gospel builds on these foundations to illustrate the nature and scope of the community's practices. Their work starts from the assumption that the communities did not look to the Gospels for biographical data on the life of Jesus to offer the reader a powerful reading of each Gospel community, its unique practices, and the way people were trained to become members of it. This book is aimed at undergraduate and graduate teachers and students, pastors, and the general audience eager for new ways to understand the New Testament.

This volume offers the first full commentary on the Gospel of Thomas, a work which has previously been accessible only to theologians and scholars. Valantasis provides fresh translations of the Coptic and Greek text, with an illuminating commentary, examining the text line by line. He includes a general introduction outlining the debates of previous scholars and situating the Gospel in its historical and theological contexts.
The Gospel of Thomas provides an insight into a previously inaccessible text and presents Thomas' gospel as an integral part of the canon of Biblical writings, which can inform us further about the literature of the Judeo-Christian tradition and early Christianity.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203131479

This volume offers the first full commentary on the Gospel of Thomas, a work which has previously been accessible only to theologians and scholars. Valantasis provides fresh translations of the Coptic and Greek text, with an illuminating commentary, examining the text line by line. He includes a general introduction outlining the debates of previous scholars and situating the Gospel in its historical and theological contexts.
The Gospel of Thomas provides an insight into a previously inaccessible text and presents Thomas' gospel as an integral part of the canon of Biblical writings, which can inform us further about the literature of the Judeo-Christian tradition and early Christianity.

A leading scholar of ascetical studies, Richard Valantasis explores a variety of ascetical traditions in late Antiquity developing a theory of asceticism informing the analysis of historical texts and opening the way for postmodern ascetical studies. Wide-ranging in historical scope and in developing theory, these essays address asceticism for scholar and student alike. The theory will particularly interest students of cultural theory and analysis, while the history offers researchers access to a corpus of academic writing on asceticism. "In the context of belligerently hedonistic Western society, Richard Valantasis's 'The Making of the Self' has never been more relevant. Valantasis proposes that past and present can best be compared, not through ideas, but through analysis of practices and what they produce. Informative and inspirational, The Making of the Self should be required reading for all who seek to make intentional choices that shape the self." - MARGARET R. MILES author of A Complex Delight: The Secularization of the Breast, 1350-1750 "A tour-de-force journey through the theory and practice of asceticism in late antiquity. Valatansis focusses on the transformative power of ascetic performance portraying asceticism through the ascetic's eyes. He compels us to reflect anew on the nature and role of asceticism in antiquity, and, in the process, to consider its meaning and relevance today." - JAMES E. GOEHRING author of Ascetics, Society, and The Desert "A coherent and compelling presentation of Valantasis's mature theorizing about a complex and fascinating phenomenon. Valantasis had already taught me much about asceticism. But this book is Valantasis at his best - articulate, creative, witty, feisty, provocative, brilliant." - VINCENT L. WIMBUSH editor of Ascetic Behavior in Greco-Roman Antiquity: A Sourcebook RICHARD VALANTASIS is Professor of Ascetical Theology and Director of the Anglican Studies Programme at the Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia. He is the author of The Gospel of Thomas, Centuries of Holiness: Ancient Spirituality Refracted for a Postmodern Age, and The New Q: Translation and Commentary.

Description: A leading scholar of ascetical studies, Richard Valantasis explores a variety of ascetical traditions ranging from the Greco-Roman philosophy of Musonius Rufus, the asceticism found in the Nag Hammadi Library and in certain Gnostic texts, the Gospel of Thomas, and other early Christian texts. This collection gathers historical and theoretical essays that develop a theory of asceticism that informs the analysis of historical texts and opens the way for postmodern ascetical studies. Wide-ranging in historical scope and in developing theory, these essays address asceticism for scholar and student alike. The theory will be of particular interest to those interested in cultural theory and analysis, while the historical essays provide the researcher with easy access to a significant corpus of academic writing on asceticism. Endorsements: ""In the context of belligerently hedonistic North American society, a society reduced to waging war to support our lifestyle, Richard Valantasis's The Making of the Self has never been more relevant. Valantasis proposes that past and present can best be compared, not through ideas, but through analysis of practices and what they produce. This book asks, What did historical people seek to achieve through the ascetic disciplines they practiced? What do we seek? Could some of the ascetic repertoire of historical people be of practical use toward our goals? Valantasis describes a theory and practice of asceticism for secular twenty-first-century society. Both informative and inspirational, The Making of the Self should be required reading for everyone who seeks to make intentional choices that shape the self."" --Margaret R. Miles, Professor Emerita of Historical Theology, Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, and author of A Complex Delight: The Secularization of the Breast, 1350-1750 ""A tour-de-force through the theory and practice of asceticism in late antiquity. Valatansis's insightful focus on the transformative power of ascetic performance permits one to see asceticism through the ascetic's eyes. His work compels us to reflect anew on the nature and role of asceticism in antiquity, and, in the process, to consider its meaning and relevance today."" --James E. Goehring, Professor of Religion, University of Mary Washington and author of Ascetics, Society, and The Desert ""The Making of the Self: Ancient and Modern Asceticism opens up traditional Christian and Roman sources to a new kind of close reading, showing us what difference it makes to recast asceticism in a theoretically rich and provocative way. In undertaking this task, Richard Valantasis invites his readers to rethink the historical texture of ancient Mediterranean asceticism as well as the ongoing legacies of asceticism's hardwiring of human society in any time and place where people resist the current order of things and dream of a new and better reality."" --Elizabeth A. Castelli, Professor of Religion, Barnard College at Columbia University and author of Martyrdom and Memory: Early Christian Culture Making ""This wide-ranging collection of essays is a remarkably coherent and compelling presentation of Valantasis's mature theorizing about a complex and fascinating phenomenon. Through his writings and through our conversations and collaborations over the years, Valantasis had already taught me much about asceticism. But this book I read as the capstone of his musings, playfulness, and hard work. It is Valantasis at his best--articulate, creative, witty, feisty, provocative, brilliant. All students of religion and culture will be enlightened and delighted and challenged by this book."" --Vincent L. Wimbush, Professor of Religion, Claremont Graduate University and editor of Ascetic Behavior in Greco-Roman Antiquity: A Sourcebook About the Contributor(s): Richard Valantasis is Professor of Ascetical Theology and Director of the Anglican Studies Program at the Candler School of Theology, Emory University, Atlanta, Geor

Description: ""One of the great joys of the academic life is to pay homage in a Festschrift to a scholar who has influenced both colleagues and students over years of interaction and friendship both professional and personal. This volume honors a scholar and theologian of historical theology, a theorist and a practitioner of religion and the arts, and a keen analyst of cultural trends both ancient and modern. . . . "" Margaret R.] Miles's prodigious production as a scholar has legendary qualities. Her dozen-plus books alone explore history, patristics, ancient philosophy, art and art history, spiritual formation and religious practice, critical theory, film, ethics and values, personal growth, gender and women's studies, as well as her true academic loves, Augustine and Plotinus. . . . The breadth and depth of her own work and her influence upon others demands an expansive volume, which the editors of this Festschrift unfortunately had to restrict to four categories--Historical Theology, Religion and Culture, Religion and Gender, and Religion and the Visual Arts--in order to capture the heart of our appreciation for her."" --from the Introduction About the Contributor(s): Richard Valantasis is Professor of Asceticism and Christian Practice and the Director of the Anglican Studies Program at Candler School of Theology / Emory University. Among his numerous publications are The Gospel of Thomas, The New Q: Translation and Commentary, Third-Century Spiritual Guides, Centuries of Holiness, and The Beliefnet Guide to Gnosticism. He is also the editor of Religions of Late Antiquity in Practice and co-editor of Asceticism. An artist as well as a teacher and scholar, Deborah J. Haynes is Professor of Fine Arts at the University of Colorado at Boulder. James D. Smith III is Associate Professor of Church History at Bethel Seminary San Diego and Lecturer in Theology and Religious Studies at the University of San Diego. He also serves on the pastoral staff of College Avenue Baptist Church. After many years on staff at several scholarly and educational publishers, Janet F. Carlson is currently an independent editor and writer. She has been a friend and admirer of Margaret R. Miles for twenty-five years.

This is an unprecedented collection of nearly seventy Late Antique primary religious texts. These texts--all in new English translation and many appearing in English for the first time--represent every major religious current from the late first century until the rise of Islam. Produced through the efforts of thirty-six leading scholars in the field, they constitute a comprehensive view of religious practice in Late Antiquity.

Religious life and performance during this period comprised diverse, often unusual practices. Philosophical ascent, magic, legal pronouncement, hymnography, dietary and sexual restriction, and rhetoric were all part of this deeply fascinating world. Religious and political identity often intertwined, as reflected in the Roman persecution of Christians. And a fluid boundary between religion and superstition was contested in daily life. Many practices, including ascetic training, crossed religious boundaries. Others, such as "incubation" at specific temples and certain divination rites, were distinctive practices of individual groups and orders.

Intrinsically interesting, the practice of religion in the Late Antique also edifies modern-day religious life. As this volume shows, the origins of the contemporary Western religious terrain can be gleaned in this period. Rabbinic Judaism flourished and spread. Christianity developed still-important theological categories and structures. And even movements that did not survive intact--such as Neoplatonism and the once-powerful Manichaean churches--continue to influence religion today.

This rich sourcebook includes discussions of asceticism, religious organization, ritual, martyrdom, religion's social implications, law, and theology. Its unique emphasis on practice and its inclusion of texts translated from lesser-known languages advance the study of religious history in several directions. A strong interdisciplinary orientation will reward scholars and students of religion, theology, gender studies, classical literatures, and history. Each text is accompanied by an introduction and a bibliography for further reading and research, making the book appropriate for use in any university or seminary classroom.

The American and European public has a voracious appetite for more information about Jesus and the formation of early Christianity. The best-selling books on the subject by Marcus Borg, John Dominic Crossan, John Meyer, and Luke Timothy Johnson, among many others, attest to this hunger. But each of these scholars presents his own reading of the historical information, usually beginning with the earliest known Jesus-related material, Jesus' sayings, and leads the public into a particular understanding of Jesus and the early Jesus movements. The New Q will provide the general public with the original source through a fresh translation of the early Sayings Gospel known as Q. This book will guide people through their reading of the texts themselves so that readers will be able to judge the validity of other scholars' reconstructions. The New Q is the companion volume necessary to understand the current writing on the historical Jesus and the history of earliest Christianity. Valantasis provides a new translation of the Synoptic Sayings Source, Q. He translates each section from the Greek of the critical edition of Robinson and Kloppenborg, and he gathers the translation of the full text as a coherent collection of sayings at the end of the book. Avoiding the scholarly arguments that make Q inaccessible, as well as the constant comparison of Matthew and Luke, this commentary will straightforwardly present the text based on the work of those scholars who have provided a critical edition. It provides an initial reading in a language appropriate to religious seekers. The translation itself will be fresh and provocative, since its meaning and interpretation are not linked to its later use in the narrative gospels of Mark, Matthew, and Luke. In fact, readers of this translation will be able to hear the sayings of Jesus as Matthew and Luke heard them before the writing of their gospels. The goal is to recreate the kind of challenging and intellectually stimulating engagement with the sayings that probably put Christianity on the Roman map. Readers will be able to encounter Jesus' voice and the voices of early Christians directly, without the intrusion of the later use of these sayings by the gospel writers. Valantasis also provides a commentary on each of the sayings. The commentary will focus on three facets: what the saying says, what it could have meant at the time, and how is was used by early Christians. The first two questions provide the basic information by developing a literary analysis of the sayings (a reading of Jesus' words) and by positing a significance for the saying in the context of earliest Christianity (what the saying could have meant). The final question directs the reading of the saying toward its use by religious people then and now as a means of forging an alternative subjectivity, defining new religious and social relationships, and constructing an alternative understanding of the nature of the spiritual and physical world. In other words, this commentary will provide an ascetical reading of the sayings to explore the manner in which the sayings source might have been read by individuals and communities in antiquity, and it will provide an alternative to the currently established reading of the sayings in modern scholarship primarily as a window on the historical Jesus' doctrines and teaching.

From meditation and fasting to celibacy and anchoretism, the ascetic impulse has been an enduring and complex phenomenon throughout history. Offering a sweeping view of this elusive and controversial aspect of religious life and culture, Asceticism looks at the ascetic impulse from a unique vantage point. Cross-cultural, cross-religious and multidisciplinary in nature, these essays provide a broad historical and comparative perspective on asceticism - a subject rarely studied outside the context of individual religious tradtions. The work represents the input of more than forty preeminent scholars in a wide range of fields and discilplines, and analyses asceticism from antequity to the present European, Near Eastern, African, and North American settings.