This authoritative collection brings together the latest thinking on women's leadership in early Christianity. Patterns of Women's Leadership in Early Christianity considers the evidence for ways in which women exercised leadership in churches from the 1st to the 9th centuries CE. This rich and diverse volume breaks new ground in the study of women in early Christianity. This is not about working with one method, based on one type of feminist theory, but overall there is nevertheless a feminist or egalitarian agenda in considering the full equality of women with men in religious spheres a positive goal, with the assumption that this full equality has yet to be attained. The chapters revisit both older studies and offers new and unpublished research, exploring the many ways in which ancient Christian women's leadership could function.

This book focuses on Christological-Monotheism, an underexplored area which combines two disciplines of theological appraisal often addressed as separate subjects. Christological-Monotheism is underexplored in the literature, and even more underexplored are interpretations of Christological-Monotheism from the perspectives of Christian voices within the “Oneness Pentecostal” faith tradition. Oneness Pentecostalism offers opposing perspectives to what is considered ‘fixed orthodoxy’ within the Christian faith traditions: i.e., its views differ on doctrines relating to the nature of God and Christ from accepted norms. This project seeks to include various Oneness Pentecostal interpretations to commonly held perspectives, and explore what such might look like when juxtapose with Christian orthodoxy. Moreover, it rereads perspectives about the relationship between God and Christ offered by both traditions in the contexts of earlier contributors to Christian history, all the way to the Second Temple Jewish periods, and includes similar patterns exposed by various groups/scholars along this trajectory.

Many in the church have forgotten the Psalms. They may still be read, but the rich history of using them as the backbone of Christian worship (from the earliest days of the church until the 19th century) is unknown. For some the thought of praying or singing the Psalms, alone or with others, is entirely foreign. In this we are out of step with our forebears in the faith; we are an oddity in the history of the church and duly suffer for it. Drawn by the rich spiritual depth produced in so many who have invested themselves in the Psalms, Forgotten Songs seeks to reclaim the content in various areas of worship. This book first examines biblical and historical foundations for the use of the Psalms in worship. The Old Testament and New Testament are revisited noting the nature and purpose of the Psalms and how they were used. Examples of the Psalms being employed by the Church Fathers and throughout the Reformation are also explored . The second section of the book examines specific ways of using the Psalms in our worship today. These aren’t abstract ideas or suggestions but are examples from the personal and corporate lives of individuals who have been significantly impacted by the Psalms. From group singing of the Psalms, to praying Psalms publicly and privately, to pastoral care and the place of lament, Forgotten Songs will help others remember to actively use the Psalms in their own worship lives, individually and corporately. Contributors include such academicians and authors as Craig A. Blaising, Douglas Bond, Randall Bush, Jack Collins, Chad Davis, J. Michael Garrett, James H. Grant, Jr., James Richard Joiner, Ray Ortlund, Leland Ryken, Calvin Seerveld, Justin Wainscott, and John D. Witvliet along with editors Ray Van Neste and C. Richard Wells.

This book is introductory, but it is not an introduction to biblical content or to the history of early Christianity in the typical sense. Each of the chapters addresses a different aspect of the material and provides its own perspective on the origin of the church and early Christianity. The chapters begin with questions that in turn focus the discussions. The chapters can be read as independent, freestanding arguments and can be mixed and matched, enabling readers to investigate the respective topics independently. However, the chapters also follow a logical narrative line. In addition, images and diagrams are used to assist in making critical points and to enrich the visual sense of the material. The image of the window serves to give readers lines of sight into the material where historical intersections and patterns begin to emerge.

Proceeding from Josef A. Jungmanns groundbreaking book of the same title, this volume gathers new work from fifteen renowned scholars on christological and trinitarian themes in prayer and worship. Eastern and Western traditions, Catholic and Protestant, ancient and contemporary are all represented in this record of the 2005 meeting of the Yale Institute of Sacred Music. Collectively, these practitioners and theologians, from their varied settings, grapple with the competing ideas and expressions of christological and trinitarian doctrine in meaningful liturgy.

“Spirituality” has become a buzzword in our contemporary culture as individuals strive for meaning and fulfillment. Its detachment from the church and conventional definitions of religious practice highlights the seeming redundancy of what has come before. “Spirituality” in this light signals a new attempt to find wholeness unencumbered by outmoded doctrines and stale rituals. It is the conviction of this publication that the intuition behind contemporary searches for spiritual reality is a good one. It acknowledges that there must be more to life than what secular media or consumerism might tell us. The joyful message of Perspectives on Prayer and Spirituality is that the spiritual quest is a valid one and worth exploring. There is treasure to be found. However, the surprise is that we must rediscover what we have left behind. In the words of G. K. Chesterton, “it is not that the Christian ideal has been tried and found wanting, rather it has been found difficult and left untried.” This book offers us the tools to mine the riches of Christian spirituality and find that elusive treasure. The title, Perspectives on Prayer and Spirituality, alerts us to the fact that life-giving spirituality stems from relationship with a personal God who can be known.

This outstanding book provides an in-depth historical study of the place of Jesus in the religious life, beliefs, and worship of Christians from the beginnings of the Christian movement down to the late second century. Lord Jesus Christ is a monumental work on earliest Christian devotion to Jesus, sure to replace Wilhelm Bousset s Kyrios Christos (1913) as the standard work on the subject. Larry Hurtado, widely respected for his previous contributions to the study of the New Testament and Christian origins, offers the best view to date of how the first Christians saw and reverenced Jesus as divine. In assembling this compelling picture, Hurtado draws on a wide body of ancient sources, from Scripture and the writings of such figures as Ignatius of Antioch and Justin to apocryphal texts such as the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of Truth. Hurtado considers such themes as early beliefs about Jesus divine status and significance, but he also explores telling devotional practices of the time, including prayer and worship, the use of Jesus name in exorcism, baptism and healing, ritual invocation of Jesus as Lord, martyrdom, and lesser-known phenomena such as prayer postures and the curious scribal practice known today as the nomina sacra. The revealing portrait that emerges from Hurtado s comprehensive study yields definitive answers to questions like these: How important was this formative period to later Christian tradition? When did the divinization of Jesus first occur? Was early Christianity influenced by neighboring religions? How did the idea of Jesus divinity change old views of God? And why did the powerful dynamics of early beliefs and practices encourage people to make the costly move of becoming a Christian? Boasting an unprecedented breadth and depth of coverage — the book speaks authoritatively on everything from early Christian history to themes in biblical studies to New Testament Christology — Hurtado s Lord Jesus Christ is at once significant enough that a wide range of scholars will want to read it and accessible enough that general readers interested at all in Christian origins will also profit greatly from it.

Many congregations today experience collisions between parents who ant to spend time with their children and age-segregated church programming, as well as between the children worshiping in their pews and the increasing number of seniors in the same pew. Among the questions these congregations struggle to address are these: Should we try to hold the generations together when we worship/ Is it even possible? Led by pastor and resource developer Howard Vanderwell, nine writers--pastors, teachers, worship planners, and others serving in specialized ministries--offer their reflections on issues congregational leaders need to address as they design their worship ministry. In addition, numerous sidebars illustrate the diversity of practices in the church today. Contributors do not propose easy answers or instant solutions. Rather, they guide readers as they craft ministries and practices that fit their own community, heritage, and history. Each chapter includes questions for reflection and group discussion, and an appendix provides guidelines for small group use. The thread that connects these varied contributions is the belief that there is no greater privilege for Christians than worshiping God, and there is no better way to do that than as an intergenerational community in which all are important and all encourage and nurture the faith of the others.

The vast majority of Christians in India are landless laborers descended from low-caste converts or animistic origins. Thus, the middle and upper castes in India regard Christianity as an untouchable religion.