Community Formation: In the Early Church and in the Church Today

by Richard N. Longenecker (Editor)

Twelve essays by a multidisciplinary panel of distinguished scholars present a coherent, panoramic picture of the formation of the Christian community. Richard Ascough, Alan Segal, and Peter Richardson explore Greco-Roman and Jewish organizational models. Craig Evans, Richard Longenecker, Scott Bartchy, and Howard Marshall present evidence of early community formation from the Gospels, the major Pauline letters, Acts, and the Pastoral Epistles. Alan Hayes and Frances Young explore post-New Testament Latin and Greek Christianity. John Webster, David Hester, and Miroslav Volf assess modern episcopal, presbyterian, and congregational polities in light of their biblical and theological roots. What has sometimes been called "church order" turns out to be rather the formation of a community, oriented to ministries in which all the people participate.

251 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2002

About the author

Richard N. Longenecker is Ramsey Armitage Professor of New Testament, Wycliffe College, University of Toronto. He receivec the B.A. and M.A. degrees from Wheaton College and Wheaton Graduate School of Theology, respectively, and the Ph.D. from New College, University of Edinburgh. His principal publications include Paul, Apostle of Liberty (1964), The Christology of Early Jewish Christianity (1970), The Ministry and Message of Paul (1971), Biblical Exegesis in the Apostolic Period (1975), “The Acts of the Apostles” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary (1981), and The New Testament Social Ethics for Today (1984).

Reviews

[Kessia Reyne · Rating 4 out of 5]

+4 stars for being scholarly.
-1 star for being dry.