Worshipping A Crucified Man

By the mid-second century Christian writers were engaging in debates with educated audiences from non-Jewish Graeco-Roman cultural backgrounds. A remarkable feature of some of the texts from this period is how extensively they refer to the Jewish scriptures, even though those scriptures were unfamiliar to non-Jewish Graeco-Romans. In Worshipping a Crucified Man, Jeremy Hudson explores for the first time why this should have been so by examining three works by Christian converts originally educated in Graeco-Roman traditions: Justin Martyr’s First Apology, Tatian’s Oratio and Theophilus of Antioch’s Ad Autolycum. Hudson considers their literary strategies, their use of quotations and allusions and how they present the Jewish scriptures; all against the background of the Graeco-Roman literary culture familiar to both authors and audiences. The scriptures are presented as a critically defining feature of Christianity, instrumental in shaping the way the new religion presented itself, as it strove to engage with, and challenge, the cultural traditions of the Graeco-Roman world.

By the mid-second century Christian writers were engaging in debates with educated audiences from non-Jewish Graeco-Roman cultural backgrounds. A remarkable feature of some of these texts is how extensively they refer to the Jewish scriptures, even though those scriptures were unfamiliar to non-Jewish Graeco-Romans. In Worshipping a Crucified Man, Jeremy Hudson explores for the first time why this should have been so. As the basis for his argument, Hudson examines three works by Christian converts originally educated in Graeco-Roman traditions: Justin Martyr's First Apology, Tatian's Oratio and Theophilus of Antioch's Ad Autolycum. He considers their literary strategies, their use of quotations and allusions and how they present the Jewish scriptures, all against the background of the Graeco-Roman literary culture familiar to both authors and audiences. The scriptures are presented as a critically defining feature of Christianity, instrumental in shaping the way the new religion presented itself, as it strove to engage with, and challenge, the cultural traditions of the Graeco-Roman world. This book will engage scholars interested in the very earliest centuries of Christianity and in the central role the Jewish scriptures played in the new religion’s self-presentation.

This book presents two new proposals regarding Paul's letter to the Galatians. First, it demonstrates an entirely new chiastic structure embracing the entire letter, based on strict linguistic and textual criteria rather than on conceptual or theological themes. This chiastic structure accords with the view that Galatians was originally performed orally in a setting of communal worship. Secondly, it offers a new proposal for a key theme that runs throughout Galatians, as expressed by the subtitle of this book-"Worship for Life by Faith in the Crucified and Risen Lord." It considers "worship" to be a comprehensive concept that includes liturgical, cultic, or ritual worship as well as the moral behavior that is to complement it as ethical worship in accord with the biblical tradition. "Life" refers both to the present way of living as well as to future eternal life. "Faith" refers to the acceptance of divine grace available to the believer because of the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is by means of worship that man recognizes his absolute dependence upon God, comes into His presence, and gains practical knowledge of His goodness and sovereign majesty. Father Marie-Dominique Philippe, founder of the Congregation of St. John and one of the twentieth century's most profound theological and pastoral minds, takes us back to the First Commandment, back to the primacy of worship, in You Shall Worship One God. For only by recognizing the singular importance of worship, of making ourselves an offering of love before God, can we hope to fulfill the other commandments and develop a deep and lasting spiritual life. Divine revelation, says Father Philippe, presents true worship to us in the form of sacrifice. The Old Testament stories in which goods and lives are offered to God, and the holocausts and oblations of the Jewish Temple, train God's people to express their love and fidelity and penitence through sacrifice. In so doing they also prefigure and prepare us for the Passion of Our Lord on Calvary, the perfect and lasting sacrifice that completes and gives meaning to all the others. Christ's offering of Himself is at root a sacrifice of filial worship, glorifying the Father in the truest way possible and thereby effecting the greatest spiritual fruits. You Shall Worship One God is a fascinating study of the development of sacrificial worship throughout salvation history, a rich meditation on the mystery of the Cross, and a necessary reminder to our busy world that the heart of Christianity is found not in service to our fellow man, but in recognizing the Lord's supreme majesty before all. Such worship is essential to salvation, says Father Philippe, for it makes us die to ourselves in order to proclaim that God is first.

Stephen M. Miller’s journalistic approach to Bible knowledge is fascinating—and has sold over two million copies of his books! Now Miller has set his sights on crucifixion, gathering firsthand testimony from ancient witnesses to discover, What does it really mean that Jesus was executed on a Roman cross? You’ll examine the historical context for your faith as seen through first-century eyes—and draw closer to Jesus in gratefulness, godly sorrow, and awe.

Some sought his death. Others left everything to follow him. Who was this Jesus, this son of a carpenter turned wandering teacher? Why did he provoke such extreme reactions? And why does he still do so today, more than two thousand years after his death? Jesus the Radical highlights the impact of Jesus against the backdrop of life in first-century Judea, with its customs, its Messianic hopes, its multi-faceted Judaism and its Roman overlords. Here are many fascinating insights into the story you thought you knew. "Sensitive and compelling . it confronts the reader with Jesus and lets him decide what responses to make." -Christianity Today R. T. France has taught at London Bible College and was principal of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, from 1989 to 1995. He is the author of Matthew in the Tyndale New Testament Commentary series, The Evidence for Jesus, The Living God, and Jesus and the Old Testament.

In Christian theology, the teaching that Christ possessed both a human and divine will is central to the doctrine of two natures, but it also represents a logical paradox, raising questions about how a person can be both impeccable and subject to temptation. This volume explores these questions through an analytic theology approach, bringing together 15 original papers that explore the implications of a strong libertarian concept of free will for Christology. With perspectives from systematic theologians, philosophers, and biblical scholars, several chapters also offer a comparative theology approach, examining the concept of impeccability in the Muslim tradition. Therefore, this volume will be of interest to scholars and graduate students working in analytic theology, biblical scholarship, systematic theology, and Christian-Islamic dialogue.

Why should the cross--an object of Roman distaste and Jewish disgust--be the emblem of our worship and the axiom of our faith? And what does it mean for us today? In this thoughtful, comprehensive study of Scripture, tradition and the modern world, John R. W. Stott brings you face to face with the centrality of the cross in God's plan of redemption.