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.

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.

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

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 Käsemann, and others; and “A Sampler of Modern Approaches to Paul and His Letters,” with writings by Elisabeth Schüssler 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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 Käsemann, and others; and “A Sampler of Modern Approaches to Paul and His Letters,” with writings by Elisabeth Schüssler 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.

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.

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.