Social Reality and the Early Christians: Theology, Ethics, and the World of the New Testament

Gerd Theissen here assesses the social dimension of Christian faith and action as it emerges from the biblical texts themselves.
In Part I he concentrates on the Jesus tradition, including such topics as the wandering radicals, discipleship and the social uprooting in Jewish-Palestinian society of the first century, Jesus' temple prophecy, and the ideal of nonviolence.
Part II, studies on Pauline theology, includes discussion of soteriological symbolism, Christology, and the relation between Judaism and Christianity.
Also included are an overview of sociological research into the New Testament and ideas about a sociological theory of early Christianity.