The social history of the early Christian church is closely related to the kinds of documents and the secular, cultural context that was around at the time. Paul was highly influential on early Christian theology as was other people that wrote under his name. Three canonized works have classically been attributed to Paul, but are now known to be forgeries: 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, and Titus. These books are known as “The Pastorals” and they are different from Paul’s authentic works in many fundamental ways. In order to see the historical context in which these letters were written, we must first understand the social history of Christian theology at the time. We will present the social history and changes to early Christian theology that occurred in the time that spans the writing of 1 and 2 Corinthians to the writings of the Pastorals. The pastorals are generally regarded to have been written sometime in the late 1st or early 2nd century.[1] Thus, by reading these works and by examining other early Christian writings from this time period, we can understand what Christians were most concerned with at this time. In doing so, early Christian theology becomes apparent. We will examine three major changes: the apparent interest in establishing conventional social norms regarding gender roles, the surfacing of the clergy, and how the view of non-believers on Christians changed through the years with writings such as the Pastorals, Galatians, and 1st and 2nd Corinthians to back up our findings. When we read the Pastorals, we can see that the concerns the author writes about are vastly different than the concerns written about in 1 and 2 Corinthians. For instance, in the Pastorals there appears to be a vested interest in establishing conv... ... middle of paper ... ...nity and brought the Christian faith into another atmosphere that was more inviting. It portrayed a better image of how the Church of Christ should be. In comparing Corinthians and the Pastoral it is evident that Christianity has transformed dramatically between the time Paul wrote Corinthians and when the Pastorals were written. in Corinthians the women were seen as inferiors to men, but in the latter Pastorals men were advised to uphold their wives and respect them. The clergy, in the Corinthians are nonexistent with much discourse between the Christians that believed themselves to be empowered by the same united Spirit. In the Pastorals, we see that the clergy has been established with instructions on how to better run the church. Lastly we saw how the views of the church change from a dualism point of view to more a more united focus in the Pastorals.
Carson, D. A. New Bible Commentary: 21st Century Edition. 4th ed. Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994.
Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition Bible. Eds. Dom Bernand Orchard, Rev. R. V. Fuller. San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1966. Print.
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... The New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocrypha Revised Standard Version.(1977). New York: Oxford University Press, 1977. Nyberg, Nancy.(November 1997). Personal Interview and survey with Pastor of 1st Congregational Church of Dundee. Poole, W. Michael, D.Min., Th.D.(November 1997). Personal Interview and survey with pastor of Calvary Church of God. Strong, James.(1996). The New STRONG'S Complete Dictionary of Bible Words. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers. Tierney, Michael J.(November 1997). Personal Interview and survey with Priest from Saint Margaret Mary Catholic Parish. Unger, Merrill F.(1967). Unger's Bible handbook. Chicago: Moody Press. Weizsacker, H.I(1958). The Apostolic Age. Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications. White, R.E.O.(1960). The Biblical Doctrine of Initiation: A Theology of Baptism and Evangelism. Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
As one begins to read the letter to the Ephesians, he is intrigued not only by the many topics that the letter mentions, but also the fact that there are some major differences between this book and Paul’s other writings. The purpose of this essay is to explore the book of Ephesians by commenting on critical issues, such as date, authorship, and setting, major theological themes, the purpose of the letter, and to offer an outline of the book itself.
1. Carter’s book focuses on the diverse ways the Early Christians dealt with their world, where imperial politics, economics, culture, and religion were mixed together (x). Furthermore, the author organized his book around important imperial realities that New Testament writings negotiate (x). The audience for Carter’s book includes high school or college students, Bible study groups, Sunday school students, clergy, and scholars interested in insights about passages in the New Testament to study.
...ty in the world that even remotely resembles it”. (p91) Going forward what is needed is for the Corinthians is to stop being self-centered and repent. The church is God’s sanctuary. Paul’s portrayal of the church expands upon the role of the “Father Son and Holy Spirit in relation to the church”(p91). Which minimizes the role of its leaders, the leaders are not to be put on a pedestal. Because all the glory goes to God the leaders are mere servants of their flock and servants of God. The growth in God’s field is caused by God not humans as for God’s building the only foundation is that of Jesus Christ, and God’s temple is where the Holy Spirit dwells. According to Romans 8:17 what is Jesus’s is ours 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
One of the more surprising features of the Christian faith is that it produced at its very beginning a substantial body of writings. That this should be the case is by no means a necessity: not all religious movements produce writings. Furthermore, that these writings should be collected into one book and thus become a sacred corpus, and that this sacred corpus should continue to influence the life of believers and to determine the content and the practices of the faith two thousand years later is also remarkable.
In 1988, the Council for Biblic¬al Manhood and Womanhood published the Danvers Statement, affirming that "In the church, redemption in Christ gives men and women an equal share in the blessings of salvation; nevertheless, some governing and teaching roles within the church are restricted to men." I am hesitant to single out one organization for focused argument, but this statement accurately represents a sentiment within the faith that I find disturbing. In this paper, I will use the redemptive trend hermeneutic to deconstruct the CBMW's affirmation, while providing my own views on why I find both women in ministry and the redemptive trend hermeneutic as valid.
In Women, Church, God: A Socio-Biblical Study, Caleb Rosado uses a socio-biblical approach to discuss the role of women in the church today and how they were treated in the Bible, during the patriarchal times. Rosado looks at the connection between what people believe now, their culture, and how they treat women in regards to how one perceives God. This book contains ten chapters in which several topics are discussed, including the nature of God, the treatment of women in the Bible, patrimonialism, servitude, and servanthood.
In Sarah Ruden’s book, Paul Among the People, Ruden strives to disprove modern society’s common belief that the apostle Paul was a man strongly against women and homosexuality. She makes the claim that he was actually fighting for more equality and love than what Roman society allowed in Paul’s time and even before his time. Ruden compares the words Paul wrote around the middle of 50 A.D. and into the early 60 A.D.’s against other popular literary works of the Roman first and second century B.C.in an effort to challenge contemporary negative thoughts regarding Paul. Despite the negative opinions that a majority of modern society hold about the apostle, Sarah Ruden does a remarkable job of refuting the claims that Paul was a misogynist homophobe by putting Paul in perspective inside the society that he lived in. She claims that Paul was offering equality and a better life for the people of his time. By doing this, Ruden attests that Paul was not the negative man that most people believe but that he actually fought for more equality and compassion than what he is given credit for by most people today.
Gonzalez, J. L. (1970). A History of Christian Thought: From the beginnings to the Council of Chalcedon. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press.
An awareness of the historical-cultural background of Paul’s letter to Philemon will aid in interpretation of the text. The information gleamed should allow for a greater contextual appreciation. With this knowledge in hand, the reader can grasp a deeper understanding of the theological teachings of the book of Philemon.
Church History in Plain Language is written by Bruce L. Shelley. This work focuses on the history of Christianity from 6 B.C. to the current period. It covers some of Christianity’s greatest events, theologians, and the various subsection of Christianity. Other than the events leading up to the death of Jesus, I had very little knowledge of Christianity’s history. After reading through the book, I have gained understanding on the Christian Councils, scholasticism, Christendom, and modern trends of Christianity.
When studying the Gospel message of Jesus Christ, many scholars regard the book of Romans as the most important of the apostle Paul’s letters. (Knight & Ray, 2005) This is perhaps because it contains the most in-depth exploration of Christian theology, namely justification through faith in Jesus Christ. (Hinson & Towns, 2013)The letter, especially chapters one through eight, contains a summary of what embodies a Christian worldview. Since Paul wrote to both the Jewish and Gentile believers in Rome, he provided for them, as well as readers today, a biblical perspective that answers questions about the natural world, human identity, human relationships, and culture.