Was Jesus a wisdom sage or an apocalyptic prophet? Did later followers view him as the Danielic "Son of Man" or did he use this expression for himself? These are familiar questions among historical Jesus scholars, and there has been much debate over Jesus' eschatological outlook since the controversial work of the Jesus Seminar. This book asks what is at stake in these debates and explores how scholarly constructions of Christian origins participate in contemporary efforts to confirm or challenge particular understandings of the essence of Christianity. Proposing that a Jesus-centered...
Was Jesus a wisdom sage or an apocalyptic prophet? Did later followers view him as the Danielic "Son of Man" or did he use this expression for himself...
Does Christianity have an essence? How should the identity of Christianity be defined in the modern world? As early as 1903, German theologian Ernst Troeltsch began to question the then-popular concept of an "essence of Christianity." In his search for alternative categories and methods for conceptualizing Christianity and its potential roles in modern society, Troeltsch immersed himself in the study and analysis of Christian history. This book demonstrates the intimate connection between Troeltsch's philosophical writings on the essence of Christianity and his historical investigations of...
Does Christianity have an essence? How should the identity of Christianity be defined in the modern world? As early as 1903, German theologian Erns...
This description of the Americanization of a European institution, the Puritan ministry as it was transported to the New England colonies in the seventeenth century, offers a host of new insights into American religious history. By focusing on such areas as the ministers' authority, church membership, and ecclesiastical organization, David D. Hall shows that, although the effects of the American experience might be considered liberalizing or democratizing in the first years of settlement, during the entire course of the seventeenth century the New World environment produced an institutional...
This description of the Americanization of a European institution, the Puritan ministry as it was transported to the New England colonies in the seve...
The relationship between religion and modern culture remains a controversial issue within Christian theology. This book focuses on Paul Tillich's interpretation of modern culture and the influence of capitalism, highlighting the context of his work in relation to Karl Marx and the Critical Theory of the Frankfurt School. When Tillich moved to the United States he sharpened his focus on the cultural dimensions of capitalism. Using the concept of "cultural modernity," Francis Ching-Wah Yip reconstructs Tillich's interpretation of modernity with the key categories of autonomy,...
The relationship between religion and modern culture remains a controversial issue within Christian theology. This book focuses on Paul Tillich's ...
Rediscovered at the end of the nineteenth century in Coptic and Ethiopic versions, the Epistle of the Apostles (Epistula Apostolorum) is a "revelation dialogue," in which the risen Jesus converses with his disciples before his ascension and delivers instructions for strengthening the young church. In the first major study in English of this ancient document, Julian V. Hills probes its remarkable witness to the traditions that circulated in Jesus' name in the second century.
Hills tackles the document's literary framework, collecting and assessing signals to its composition. In detailed...
Rediscovered at the end of the nineteenth century in Coptic and Ethiopic versions, the Epistle of the Apostles (Epistula Apostolorum) is a "revelatio...
Iblis, the character in the Qu'ran who refuses God's command to bow to Adam and is punished by eviction from heaven, is commonly depicted as a fiendish character. However, some Sufi stories describe Iblis as a figure tragically rejected by God. This book traces the origins and development of the Iblis story.
Iblis, the character in the Qu'ran who refuses God's command to bow to Adam and is punished by eviction from heaven, is commonly depicted as a fiendis...
