Early Christian Reader

The ideal basic textbook for introductory courses in early Christianity

For studying early Christianity in its historical context, standard editions of the New Testament fail to provide the best resources. They present the earliest Christian writings out of chronological order and omit writings similar in age and historical importance to the books of the New Testament.

In Early Christian Reader, these texts are arranged in a more historically meaningful order. The books of the New Testament are presented in the NRSV, the most widely accepted version in university classrooms today. Also included are translations of the Gospel of Thomas, the Didache, the Letter of Barnabas, 1 Clement, and the letters of Ignatius.

Each work's introduction discusses the date and place of composition, authorship, audience, basic themes, literary features, the Jewish and Hellenistic contexts, and suggestions for further readings in the secondary literature. Generous notes illuminate specific historical, lexical, and interpretive issues.

Broader issues affecting the treatment of these texts are introduced in seven lead articles. Each section opens with discussions of pseudonomous authorship, church tradition, synoptic sources, epistles as documents, conflicting doctrines, and originating events.

This approach allows Early Christian Reader to offer an objective, informed entrée into the complex world of the earliest Christian literature. Informative appendixes, maps, and charts make this an ideal text for the university or college classroom.

Early Christian Reader includes the following texts, indexes, and maps:

The Letters of Paul
• 1 Thessalonians
• 1 Corinthians
• Philippians
• Philemon
• 2 Corinthians
• Galatians
• Romans

Letters Attributed to Paul
• Colossians
• Ephesians
• 2 Thessalonians
• Titus
• 1 Timothy
• 2 Timothy

Letters Associated with Peter
• 1 Peter
• Jude
• 2 Peter

Biography, Anecdote, and History
• Mark
• Matthew
• Luke
• Acts
• Gospel of Thomas

Writings Attributed to John
• John
• 1 John
• 2 John
• 3 John
• Revelation

Other Early Writings
• James
• Didache
• Barnabas
• Hebrews
• 1 Clement
• Ignatius, Romans
• Ignatius, Ephesians
• Ignatius, Magnesians
• Ignatius, Trallians
• Ignatius, Philadelphians
• Ignatius, Smyrnaeans
• Ignatius, Polycarp

Appendixes
• Coins and Money
• Major Figures in the Herodian Family
• The Jewish Civil Year
• Early Christian Use of the Jewish Bible
• The Lost Sayings of Source: "Q"
• Dating the Early Christian Texts
• The Literary Context of the Early Christians

Maps
• The Land of Israel/Palestine in the First Century of the Common Era
• The Roman Empire
• Jerusalem in the Second Temple Period

Introductions and notes in the Early Christian Reader were written and edited by Steve Mason and Tom Robinson with contributions from Michael W. Holmes, Robert A. Kraft and Jay C. Treat, and Stephen J. Patterson.