Böcker av Rebecca I. (University of Pittsburgh) Denova

A detailed exploration of both Paul the Apostle and his world, providing an understanding of how the Christian faith originated in the first centuries Paul the Apostle is often acclaimed as "the true founder of Christianity," but many Christians are unaware of Paul's teachings in their historical context. Paul: Apostle to the Gentiles explores both Paul and his world in the first century, investigating how he integrated his values, politics, and daily life through his teachings on the nature of God, how humans relate to God, and how to live God's commandments. With a multidisciplinary Religious Studies approach and methodology, Rebecca I. Denova sheds light on the origin and evolution of the creation of a Christian "systematic theology" that became the basis for the establishment of Orthodox Christianity, the Catholic Church, and the Protestant Reformation. Accessible chapters provide the background and history of Judaism, analyze the Pauline epistles, and explore Paul's background as a Jewish Pharisee who became a believer in Christ within the context of the cities of the Eastern Roman Empire. Throughout the text, Denova offers insights into how Paul's engagement with the ancient world can help us understand the ways today's Christians articulate their own systems of meaning. Helping readers fully understand the development of Paul's theology and its importance over the centuries, Paul: Apostle to the Gentiles: Offers analyses of the Pastoral Epistles, I and II Corinthians, I Thessalonians, the Apocryphal Acts of Paul, Romans, and other key textsExplores the ways Paul's letters established Christian hierarchy, set rules for Christian assemblies, and were used to both include and separate Christianity from JudaismDiscusses the shared concepts between Judaism and Greco-Roman religion, philosophy, and cultureIncludes "Excurses" between chapters, detailed examinations and summaries of important topics and different perspectivesContains numerous pedagogical tools, including historical timelines, maps and illustrations, definitions of concepts and terminology, references to traditional studies and recent scholarship, excerpts of ancient literature, and schematics of archaeological sites Covering both the world of ancient Christianity and the scholarly methods used in analyses of Paul's letters, Paul: Apostle to the Gentiles is an excellent textbook for undergraduate students taking courses on the origins and history of Christianity, as well as general readers interested in Paul's life and letters.

In The Origins of Christianity and the New Testament, distinguished scholar Rebecca I. Denova explores how the first followers of Jesus arrived at their faith, the way their sacred texts developed into the New Testament, and how their movement eventually became the religion of Christianity. This accessible volume examines the concepts, beliefs, issues, and events that gave rise to institutional Christianity--providing readers with the historical context of the gospels of Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John, the Acts of the Apostles, the Book of Revelation, the letters of Paul, and other foundational New Testament documents.Approaching the subject from the multidisciplinary perspective of Religious Studies, the author addresses topics including the ethnic and religious background of "Jesus the Jew," the New Testament's different portraits of Jesus, the genesis of Christian concepts such as the divine incarnation and "second coming" of Jesus, Paul the Apostle's contributions to Christian dogma, how ancient Judaism, Greco-Roman culture, and early philosophy was incorporated into the Christian tradition, and more.Containing maps, timelines, figures of archaeological sites, a brief history of ancient Judaism, and a wealth of pedagogical features, The Origins of Christianity and the New Testament is an excellent textbook for all undergraduate and graduate courses in the study of ancient Christianity, as well as lay readers with interest in tracing the roots of the Christian faith.