Jesus And The Empire Of God

The bestselling author and prominent New Testament scholar draws parallels between 1st–century Roman Empire and 21st–century United States, showing how the radical messages of Jesus and Paul can lead us to peace today Using the tools of expert biblical scholarship and a keen eye for current events, bestselling author John Dominic Crossan deftly presents the tensions exhibited in the Bible between political power and God’s justice. Through the revolutionary messages of Jesus and Paul, Crossan reveals what the Bible has to say about land and economy, violence and retribution, justice and peace, and ultimately, redemption. He examines the meaning of “kingdom of God” prophesized by Jesus, and the equality recommended to Paul by his churches, contrasting these messages of peace against the misinterpreted apocalyptic vision from the book of Revelations, that has been co-opted by modern right-wing theologians and televangelists to justify the United State’s military actions in the Middle East.

A major advance in Jesus studies and a critique of oppression. Horsley focuses his attention on how Jesus' proclamation of the kingdom of God relates to Roman and Herodian power politics.

The New Testament Gospels came into existence in a world ruled by Roman imperial power. Their main character, Jesus, is crucified on a Roman cross by a Roman governor. How do the Gospels interact with the structures, practices, and personnel of the Roman world? What strategies and approaches do the Gospels attest? What role for accommodation, for imitation, for critique, for opposition, for decolonizing, for reinscribing, for getting along, for survival? This book engages these questions by discussing the Gospel accounts of Jesus' origins and birth, his teachings and miraculous actions, his entry to Jerusalem, his death, and his resurrection, ascension, and return. The book engages not only the first-century world but also raises questions about our own society's structures and practices concerning the use of power, equitable access to resources, the practice of justice, and merciful and respectful societal interactions.

Margaret Froelich examines the Gospel of Mark using political and empire-critical methodologies, following postcolonial thinkers in perceiving a far more ambivalent message than previous pacifistic interpretations of the text. She argues that Mark does not represent an entirely new way of thinking about empire or cosmic structures, but rather exhibits concepts and structures with which the author and his audience are already familiar in order to promote the Kingdom of God as a better version of the encroaching Roman Empire. Froelich consequently understands Mark as a response to the physical, ideological, and cultural displacement of the first Roman/Judean War. By looking to Greek, Roman, and Jewish texts to determine how first-century authors thought of conquest and expansion, Froelich situates the Gospel directly in a historical and socio-political context, rather than treating that context as a mere backdrop; concluding that the Gospel portrays the Kingdom of God as a conquering empire with Jesus as its victorious general and client king.

We love ragtag rebels who defeat the empire in films we watch and books we read. But living in centers of the world’s wealth and power, do we recognize that we are participants in today’s version of empire? Most of the Bible is written for and by people under threat or under the thumb of a variety of empires. The question faced by the children of Israel and the early followers of Jesus was how to live for the kingdom of God while powerful empires demanded full obedience. Does living with affluence and influence change the way we read and understand that story? Are we likely to miss the way the Bible critiques our use of wealth, weapons, and walls? What do Abraham, Moses, and Daniel teach us about living in the heart of the empire and reaching for something better? What can Paul teach us about using the resources of the empire to spread the message that Jesus is Lord, not Caesar? What do the birth and death of Jesus teach us about how God is redeeming the world of empires? Is our citizenship in the empire a temptation, or an opportunity?

How do we as Christians proclaim God's name in all the earth in the midst of false gospels? Learn from the Apostle Paul as he communicated the Good News of Christ to Philippi, a Roman colony that worshipped false gods. In this fifteenth volume of the That The World May Know series, take a tour through the land of the Bible and discover how to live in your present-day Philippi or Delphi—a dechristianized Western world—in a way that keeps your citizenship in God's Kingdom. This discovery guide includes passages of Scripture explored in the DVD (sold separately); questions for discussion and personal reflection; personal Bible studies to help you deepen your learning experience between sessions; as well as sidebars, maps, photos, and other study tools. The Gospel of Caesar The Believers The Powers of Darkness The Philippian Jailer Confronting the Empire Designed for use with A Clash of Kingdoms Video Study (sold separately). _______________ THAT THE WORLD MAY KNOW Join renowned teacher and historian Ray Vander Laan as he guides you through the land of the Bible. In each lesson, Vander Laan illuminates the historical, geographical, and cultural context of the sacred Scriptures. Filmed on location in the Middle East and elsewhere, the That the World May Know film series will transform your understanding of God and challenge you to be a true follower of Jesus.

This volume brings together respected biblical scholars to evaluate the turn toward "empire criticism" in recent New Testament scholarship. While praising the movement for its deconstruction of Roman statecraft and ideology, the contributors also provide a salient critique of the anti-imperialist rhetoric pervading much of the current literature.

"In Matthew and Empire, Warren Carter argues that Matthew's Gospel protests Roman imperialism by asserting that God's purposes and will are performed not by the empire and emperor but by Jesus and his community of disciples. Carter makes the claim for reading Matthew this way against the almost exclusive emphasis on the relationship with the synagogue that has long characterized Matthean scholarship. He established Matthew's imperial context by examining Roman imperial ideology and material presence in Anitoch, the traditional provenance for Matthew. Carter argues that Matthean Christology, which presents Jesus as God's agent, is shaped by claims - and protests against those claims - that the emperor and the empire are God's agents. He pays particular attention to the Gospel's central irony, namely that in depicting God's ways and purposes, the Gospel employs the very imperial framework that it resists. Matthew and Empire challenges traditional readings of Matthew and encourage fresh perspectives in Matthean scholarship."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved