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In Forensic Scriptures Brian Arthur Brown presents a long overdue Diagram of Sources of the Pentateuch from Hebrew Scriptures, a new perspective on authorship of the document known as "Q" in the Christian Scriptures, an acceptable entree into particular disciplines of scriptural criticism for Muslims, and an exciting new paradigm from Islam identifying the role women may have played in production of the Qur'an and the Bible.

With a newly written preface relating his theology to the current global situation, The Future of Love contains revised versions of eighteen of John Milbank's essays on theology, politics, religion, and culture--ranging from the onset of neoliberalism to its current crisis, and from the British to the global context. Many of the essays first appeared in obscure places and are thus not widely known. Also included are Milbank's most important responses to critiques of his seminal work, Theology and Social Theory. Taken together, the collection amounts to a "political theology" arrived at from diverse angles. This work is essential reading for all concerned with the current situation of religion in the era of globalization and with the future development of Radical Orthodoxy.

New Testament Greek Intermediate is the companion volume to New Testament Greek Primer. The Intermediate text reviews grammar, expands vocabulary, and exposes the student to more New Testament context. Grammar review intends to consolidate gains from the Primer, but deepens the discussion, adds more illustrative paradigms, and includes more syntax. Vocabulary acquisition expands the Primer's frequency base of 50 or more times down to a frequency of 15 or more times, including second aorist forms. This vocabulary acquisition is divided by frequency into seven vocabulary lists ready for seven vocabulary exams. The exercises have longer passages both to increase the student's translation stamina and to bring more contextualization to bear on the act of translation. In addition, the text includes informative illustrations and graphics, beautiful layout, full indexes, a glossary, charts, paradigms, and principal parts for even more usability. By the end of this text, the student is thoroughly prepared for Greek exegesis and advanced courses on Greek syntax.

The United Nations Educational and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) entrusted author James Robinson with tracking down the place where the Nag Hammadi Codices had been discovered. Priests whom the author interviewed in the region told Robinson that the codices had once been in the possession of a priest in the town of Dishna, a bit further upstream than Nag Hammadi itself. Robinson found that this priest had not had the Nag Hammadi Codices but rather the Bodmer Papyri. For Dishna is where the monastery headquarters of the first monastic order was located. The Bodmer Papyri discovery consisted of all that was left of the library of the Pachomian monastic order: Coptic letters of Pachomius and very early Greek copies of Luke and John, perhaps donated when Athanasius was in hiding at the monastery. These treasures were preserved in a jar hidden in the mountain where monks were buried. This book traces the story of the Bodmer Papyri from beginning to end.

Why do so many feel so lonely today? Are our friendships in breakdown mode, or are they just changing? Why are we burdened with the creeping sense that our communities are falling apart? Sociologists report that in recent decades the number of Americans who have no one in whom to confide may have tripled. Likewise, church attendance, participation in local clubs and groups, even the number of times we invite one another over to supper are all in decline. Meanwhile, some of us have more ""friends"" than ever on social media. The question of friendship, its definition, virtue, and quality, is not a new one to the church or the culture in which Christianity was birthed. Greco-Roman ethicists were fascinated by the virtue of friendship. Taking a cue from Jesus, the New Testament authors transformed Greco-Roman friendship notions to express visions of Christian community that were spiritually fulfilling, sustainably flourishing, and socially just. This book traces the New Testament transformation of friendship in specific passages in Matthew, Luke, John, Acts, Philippians, and James, and connects them to contemporary issues and cutting-edge experiments in Christian community. It is New Testament Theology for the twenty-first century. Douglas A. Hume is Associate Professor and Chair of the Religion and Practical Theology Department at Pfeiffer University in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he teaches both undergraduate and graduate professional students. He is the author of The Early Christian Community: A Narrative Analysis of Acts 2:41-47 and 4:32-35 (2011) and is the past president of the Society of Biblical Literature Southeastern Region.

Hymns and the music the church sings in worship are tangible means of expressing worship. And while worship is one of, if not the central functions of the church along with mission, service, education, justice, and compassion, and occupies a prime focus of our churches, a renewed sense of awareness to our theological presuppositions and cultural cues must be maintained to ensure a proper focus in worship. Hymns and Hymnody: Historical and Theological Introductions is a sixty-chapter, three-volume introductory textbook describing the most influential hymnists, liturgists, and musical movements of the church. This academically grounded resource evaluates both the historical and theological perspectives of the major hymnists and composers who have impacted the church over the course of twenty centuries. Volume 1 explores the early church and concludes with the Renaissance era hymnists. Volume 2 begins with the Reformation and extends to the eighteenth-century hymnists and liturgists. Volume 3 engages nineteenth century hymnists to the contemporary movements of the twenty-first century.Each chapter contains these five elements: historical background, theological perspectives communicated in their hymns/compositions, contribution to liturgy and worship, notable hymns, and bibliography. The mission of Hymns and Hymnody is (1) to provide biographical data on influential hymn writers for students and interested laypeople, and (2) to provide a theological analysis of what these composers have communicated in the theology of their hymns. We believe it is vital for those involved in leading the worship of the church to recognize that what they communicate is in fact theology. This latter aspect, we contend, is missing--yet important--in accessible formats for the current literature. ""Covering three centuries that were 'the most momentous for the development of congregational hymnody,' these essays help us understand how hymns were finely tuned to the vernacular liturgies and denominational nuances that proliferated during this period. The editors have carefully planned the volume so that it is both comprehensible and useful. From the engaging prefatory explanation of hymns to the diverse range of first-rate contributors, this is an invaluable collection and is highly recommended for anyone interested in hymnology.""--Andrew Shenton, Boston UniversityMark A. Lamport is a graduate professor in the United States and Europe. He is coeditor of Encyclopedia of Christianity and the Global South (2 vols., 2018); Encyclopedia of Martin Luther and the Reformation (2 vols., 2017); Encyclopedia of Christianity in the United States (5 vols., Selected: ""Notable Books of 2016""); Encyclopedia of Christian Education (3 vols., Winner, Booklist Editors' Choice: Adult Books, 2016).Benjamin K. Forrest is Professor of Christian Education and Associate Dean at the College of Arts and Sciences at Liberty University. He is coeditor of A Legacy of Preaching (2 vols., 2018), Biblical Leadership: Theology for Everyday Leaders (2017), and Biblical Worship: Theology unto the Glory of God (forthcoming). Vernon M. Whaley is Dean of the Liberty University School of Music. His publications include, Exalt His Name (2018), Worship Through the Ages (2012), The Great Commission to Worship (2011), and The Dynamics of Corporate Worship (2001).

This anthology is a collection of readings on the Christian life. They were carefully selected from every era of history and from across the spectrum of Christian traditions. They include letters, sermons, treatises and disputations, poems, songs and hymns, confessions, biblical commentary, and even part of a novel. In each case, the subject is life with God, life in God, life for God--life infused and enlivened by God's grace.The editors introduce each selection, highlighting relevant aspects of the author's biography, spirituality, and historical context. Introductions are also provided for the major eras of the church which present theological, historical, and cultural perspectives to help the reader best engage the selections. For individuals and groups, classrooms and seminars, this collection will generate dialogue between past and present, and between traditions familiar and unfamiliar. It is not merely a book on the Christian life but for the Christian life, making yesterday's witness to life with God a resource for the Church today.""Today, people often know why a biologist or a historian is important. But many people draw a blank when asked what a theologian would be good for. Just in time, The Grammar of Grace reminds us that the theologians are important because they know (or should know) about the reality and communication of God's grace. This highly welcome anthology displays the riches that the life of theological learning, united with Christ, has to offer.""--Matthew Levering, Mundelein Seminary""Grace is central to Christianity, but also-maybe therefore--highly contentious; it could be argued that all controversies among Christians revolve round the notion of grace. This wonderful anthology of passages--drawn from treatises, rules of living, prayer and praise--illustrates both the richness of grace, as its manifold signs are explored, and a sense of the one thing necessary: Christ and his grace.""--Andrew Louth, Durham University""This anthology is a remarkable accomplishment. Traversing the entire history of the church, every major Christian tradition, and a spectrum of literary genres, Eilers, Cocksworth, and Silvas take the reader on an exhilarating pilgrimage, centering throughout on the proximity of God. The result is a tremendous collection of writings that focus on the Christian life--the grammar of God's undeserved, transformative favor in Jesus Christ. The retrieval theology of The Grammar of Grace illuminates life with God as the pulsing heartbeat of the Christian tradition.""--Hans Boersma, Regent CollegeKent Eilers is Professor of Theology at Huntington University (USA). He has authored and edited several books, including Theology as Retrieval, with W. David Buschart (2015) and Sanctified by Grace, with Kyle Strobel (2014).Ashley Cocksworth is Senior Lecturer in Theology and Practice at the University of Roehampton (UK). He is the author of Karl Barth on Prayer (2015) and Prayer: A Guide for the Perplexed (2018). Anna Silvas is adjunct research fellow at the University of New England (Australia). She is the editor and translator of Basil of Caesarea. Questions of the Brothers: Syriac Text and English Translation (2014) and The Rule of St. Basil in Latin and English: A Revised Critical Edition (2013).

This book aims to uncover and explore the ideas of notable people in the story of Christian universalism from the time of the Reformation until the end of the nineteenth century. It is a story that is largely unknown in both the church and the academy, and the characters that populate it have for the most part passed into obscurity. With carefully located bore holes drilled to release the long-hidden theologies of key people and texts, the volume seeks to display and historically situate the roots, shapes, and diversity of Christian universalism. Here we discover a diverse and motley crew of mystics and scholars, social prophets and end-time sectarians, evangelicals and liberals, orthodox and heretics, Calvinists and Arminians, Puritans, Pietists, and a host of others. The story crisscrosses Continental Europe, Britain, and America, and its reverberations remain with us to this day.""Parry (and Ramelli) are to be commended--or, really, praised--for having brought this project to completion with such scrupulous care and comprehensiveness. Taken in its totality, it is a work that reminds us how large and venerable the Christian universalist tradition is, how intellectually and spiritually rich, and how deeply biblically informed. This is an indispensable text.""--David Bentley Hart, Affiliate of the Notre Dame Institute for Advanced Study""Robin Parry''s work on universalism is well known and widely admired. In this volume, he tracks the doctrine in the work of a number of key thinkers from the Reformation to the nineteenth century. For those concerned to think carefully and thoroughly about this vital issue, his series of theological explorations will provide guidance on how the doctrine has developed and changed in modern thought, as well as theological grist for the conceptual mill. Along the way he corrects various misrepresentations that have grown up in the recent debates about universalism, and provides fascinating insight into some important but largely forgotten thinkers. Written in Parry''s engaging style, this is a work that scholars and students of Christian eschatology will want to consult.""--Oliver Crisp, Professor of Analytic Theology, University of St. Andrews""This theological history of universalism from the early modern to the modern period is scholarly, nuanced, careful, and encyclopedic in scope. Uncovering the quiet stream of universalism throughout the period, A Larger Hope? reminds the theological community of the varieties and forms of universalism that have always been present in theological reasoning."" --Tom Greggs, Marischal (1616) Chair and Head of Divinity, University of AberdeenRobin A. Parry is a curate at the Church of St. Martin with St. Peter in Worcester, UK, and an editor for Wipf & Stock Publishers. Ilaria Ramelli is Professor of Theology and K.Britt Chair Graduate School of Theology, SHMS, Angelicum University), and Senior Fellow Oxford; Durham; Catholic University; Erfurt University Max Weber Center.

In this stimulating analysis, Shipp provides the reader with an introduction and critique of literary-rhetorical analysis as well as an in-depth treatment of the triple account of Paul''s Damascus Road experience in Acts.""Luke used the repetition of the Damascus narrative as a literary device identifying Pauline disobedience and resistance and the transformation of these characteristics. With the first Damascus narrative, Luke provided the reader with a paradigmatic image of resistance transformed. . . . Luke used the Damascus narratives and these themes to bracket the Paulusbild, fashioning the trial narrative into an extended period of transformation of Pauline resistance. Beginning in 19:21, Paul resisted the leading of the Holy Spirit and his appointed location of witness. He was an intentionally forceful actor resisting God. God bound this intentionally forceful actor in chains. In this opening scene of the Paulusbild Luke included the second Damascus narrative (21:33--22:24a). The themes emphasized in the narrative were those of Saul intentionally resisting gospel expansion and God''s subsequent overcoming of Saul. Saul was physically restored through Ananias but not fully transformed. He is not yet an empowered and intentionally forceful witness. At the end of the Paulusbild, as Paul is headed to Rome, Luke included the final Damascus narrative (25:23--26:32). Paul was headed to Rome, but not in the freedom intended by God. He remained in chains because of his own actions. Thus, his character was one of tension. The Damascus narrative that Luke included demonstrates Saul''s intentionally forceful resistance to the gospel. However, the vacating of power and overcoming of Saul is suppressed, and the theme of the transformation of resistance to empowered witness is emphasized. Nonetheless, the character of Saul in the speech does not match the character of Paul in the narrative. Tension remains, but the projected direction of transformation is evident. Paul is headed to Rome. The ''vision of grace'' has effected a transformation in Saul but not yet in Paul. If the trajectory of transformation continues, then Paul should once again be an intentionally forceful, empowered witness for the gospel when he arrives in Rome.""--from Chapter 5""Paul the Reluctant Witness"" is a new and exciting investigation into one of the most familiar, and yet frequently misunderstood, narratives in all of Acts--Luke''s trilogy of accounts commonly known as the Damascus Road. By exploring the rhetorical horizons of the three accounts, Shipp methodically exposes Luke''s characterization of Saul/Paul. The unfolding portrait of Paul brings power and vigor into an understanding of this character throughout the narrative in Acts, explains Luke''s unusual employment of a ""Saul/Paul"" dual characterization, and reveals beautifully Luke''s overall narrative strategy with this character and the plot of Acts. A fresh look at a time-worn narrative that plows through the massive literature on Acts and invites renewed reflection on a Lukan character we think we all know so well.--Dr. Gerald L. StevensProfessor of New Testament and GreekNew Orleans Baptist Theological SeminaryBlake Shipp, Ph.D., is currently the Pastor of New Henleyfield Baptist Church in Carriere, Mississippi.

What does failure mean for theology? In the Bible, we find some unsettling answers to this question. We find lastness usurping firstness, and foolishness undoing wisdom. We discover, too, a weakness more potent than strength, and a loss of life that is essential to finding life. Jesus himself offers an array of paradoxes and puzzles through his life and teachings. He even submits himself to humiliation and death to show the cosmos the true meaning of victory. As David Bentley Hart observes, ""most of us would find Christians truly cast in the New Testament mold fairly obnoxious: civically reprobate, ideologically unsound, economically destructive, politically irresponsible, socially discreditable, and really just a bit indecent.""By incorporating the work of scholars working with a range of frameworks within the Christian tradition, Theologies of Failure aims to offer a unique and important contribution to understanding and embracing failure as a pivotal theological category. As the various contributors highlight, it is a category with a powerful capacity for illuminating our theological concerns and perspectives. It is a category that frees us to see old ideas in a brand-new light, and helps to foster an awareness of ideas that certain modes of analysis may have obscured from our vision. In short, this book invites readers to consider how both theology and failure can help us ask new questions, discover new possibilities, and refuse the ways of the world.""In this moment when theology is in danger of failing along with its traditional institutions, when politics threatens to fail us all along with the earth itself--these essays burst failure open from within. Vibrating with the art, the humility, and even the humor of our indelible inadequacies, this conversation enlivens a practice more important than success--an improvisational minding of failure that may indeed prove to be ''a condition of the possibility of theology itself.''"" --Catherine Keller, Professor of Constructive Theology, Drew University""''The scandal of the cross . . .''; ''. . . whenever I am weak, then I am strong . . .'' . . . Rather than being marginal theological slogans, Theologies of Failure reminds us that these and other similar motifs and themes are the deepest truths at the heart of the Christian story of redemption, and that they point to what is possible only on the other side of the misfortune, defeat, and loss that permeate every domain of creaturely and historical existence."" --Amos Yong, Professor of Theology & Mission, Fuller Seminary""Given the almost-irresistible temptation to which the Church regularly succumbs--to imitate the world''s obsession with glory and national greatness, success stories, triumphalism, celebration of the powerful and winners and denigration of losers--this book is a timely and perhaps timeless resource for resistance and renewal . . . It''s not clear what it means to construct a ''successful'' book concerned with Christianity and failure, but Sirvent and Reyburn have done it. --Michael L. Budde, Center for World Catholicism and Intercultural Theology, DePaul UniversityRoberto Sirvent is Professor of Political and Social Ethics at Hope International University in Fullerton, California.Duncan B. Reyburn is Senior Lecturer at the Department of Visual Arts at the University of Pretoria, South Africa.