The Ancient Church As Family

The author explores the literature of the first three centuries of the church in terms of group identity and formation as surrogate kinship. Why did this become the organizing model in the earliest churches? How did historical developments intervene to shift the paradigm? How do ancient Mediterranean kinship structures correlate with church formation? Hellerman traces the fascinating story of these developments over three centuries and what brought them about. His focus is the New Testament documents (especially Paul's letters), second-century authors, and concluding with Cyprian in the third century. Kinship terminology in these writings, behaviors of group solidarity, and the symbolic power of kinship language in these groups are examined.

A study of the early Christian church in the Mediterranean region and its emphasis on collective good over individual desire clarifies much about what is wrong with the American church today.

Jesus talks about children often, and we quote him time after time. But are we correctly understanding the position of children as Jesus intended? In this thorough, nontechnical summary, Dr. Strange provides a wealth of cultural background that often challenges popular assumptions. Within this framework he also discusses key Bible passages, looking especially at the role Jesus ascribes to children in his Kingdom and in relation to church membership, baptism, and the Eucharist. He draws from the many sources available on the position of children in the ancient world, the writings of the New Testament, and the early church. The author concludes by encouraging us to be passionately involved with children and to imitate them in our adult discipleship, motivated by the example of Jesus himself. Anyone involved in children's ministry, in education, or with an interest in the doctrinal position of children in the church will find this book of interest and value.

Typical studies of marriage and family in the early Christian period focus on very limited evidence found in Scripture. This interdisciplinary book offers a broader, richer picture of the first Christian families by drawing together research by experts ranging from archaeologists to ancient historians. By exploring the nature of households in the ancient Greco-Roman world, the contributors assemble a new understanding of ancient Christian families that is both compelling and instructive. Divided into six parts, the book covers key aspects of ancient family life, from meals and child-rearing to women's roles and the lives of slaves. Three concluding chapters explore the implications of all this information for theological education today. Contributors: David L. Balch Suzanne Dixon J. Albert Harrill Ross S. Kraemer Christian Laes Peter Lampe Amy-Jill Levine Margaret Y. MacDonald Dale Martin Eric M. Meyers Margaret M. Mitchell Carolyn Osiek Beryl Rawson Richard Saller Timothy F. Sedgwick Monika Trumper Andrew Wallace-Hadrill

Examines the role played by the Old Testament in the formation of early Christian thinking.

Part of new 'Risen Hope' church history series

The family is a topical issue for studies of the Ancient world. Family, household and kinship have different connotations in antiquity from their modern ones. This volume expands that discussion to investigate the early Christian family structures within the larger Graeco-Roman context. Particular emphasis is given to how family metaphors, such as 'brotherhood' function to describe relations in early Christian communities. Asceticism and the rejection of sexuality are considered in the context of Christian constructions of the family. Moxnes' volume presents a comprehensive and timely addition to the study of familial and social structures in the Early Christian world, which will certainly stimulate further debate.

Joseph Hellerman (PhD, UCLA) is Professor of New Testament at Biola University. He also currently serves as Team Pastor at Oceanside Christian Fellowship Church. Hellerman's other publications include The Ancient Church as Family, Reconstructing Honor in Roman Philippi, When the Church Was Family, and Jesus and the People of God.

Inspired by the epistles of St Paul, St John Chrysostom has many important and practical things to say to Christian couples and families.

Now a modern classic, Michael Green’s Evangelism in the Early Church shows how the first Christians worked to spread the good news to the rest of the world. Studying the New Testament and church fathers, Green explores the earliest methods, motives, and strategies of spreading the good news. He also considers the obstacles to evangelism, using outreach to Gentiles and to Jews as examples of differing contexts for proclamation. Thoroughly informed by primary sources, this book will help contemporary readers learn from the past and renew their own evangelistic vision.