Families in the New Testament World: Households and House Churches (Family, Religion, and Culture) [Paperback]

Carolyn A. Osiek (Author), David L. Balch (Author)

Book Description

Series: Family, Religion, and Culture | Publication Date: April 1, 1997

What was the family like for the first Christians? Informed by archaeological work and illustrated by figures, this work is a remarkable window into the past, one that both informs and illuminates our current condition.

The Family, Culture, and Religion series offers informed and responsible analyses of the state of the American family from a religious perspective and provides practical assistance for the family's revitalization.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Billed as 'the most comprehensive discussion of the family in early Christianity in any language,' the study explores the transformation the Christianity effected on the Greco-Roman family using everything from floor plans to classical references. The coverage includes the different systems of honor and shame for men and women in that culture, the confinement of women (who were thought to be less able to control their sex drive), and the abstinence ideal which was medically recommended to avoid debilitation and even death. Despite its shortcomings with respect to women, Christianity turns out to be one of the least patriarchal religions of the ancient world. While the symbolically significant ritual meals of the culture underlined boundaries and differences in status, Christian meals crossed boundaries and transformed status." -- Eric Mount, Jr. book review in Theology Today, April 1998

About the Author

Carolyn A. Osiek is Catholic Distinguished Visiting Professor of New Testament at Brite Divinity School, Texas Christian University, in Fort Worth, Texas.

David L. Balch is Professor of New Testament at Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary in Berkeley, California. He is the author or coauthor of many books, including Families in the New Testament World: Households and House Churches; Early Christian Families in Context; and Homosexuality, Science, and the "Plain Sense" of Scripture.

Product Details

• Paperback: 342 pages
• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press; 1st edition (April 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0664255469
• ISBN-13: 978-0664255466
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #864,720 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Early Christian Hearth and Home, May 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Families in the New Testament World: Households and House Churches (Family, Religion, and Culture) (Paperback)

This book, one of a number of excellent titles from the Religion, Culture, and Family Project of the University of Chicago Divinity School, takes the reader behind the frequent rhetoric concerning the biblical family to the reality of family life in early Christian communities. Setting the New Testament teachings on the family within the social and cultural context of the Greco-Roman world, it moves through an analysis of Greek and Roman household architecture to an analysis of family life. The open architecture of ancient Christian houses, unlike modern houses, had large entryways which invited anyone who passed by into their spacious and semi-public courtyards. Balch and Osiek's work shows how the architectural patterns of Greek and Roman homes formed and influenced relationships in early Christian house churches and how worship in these house churches influenced Christian families. For example, with respect to gender relations, it shows that early Christian women enjoyed wider ranges of freedom and leadership and that early Christian men learned to think of themselves as servants. This outstanding piece of scholarship shed new light on the early Christian household.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Ken's review, September 25, 2007

By 

Kenneth P. Moffett - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Families in the New Testament World: Households and House Churches (Family, Religion, and Culture) (Paperback)

Way too much information on Rome. I was looking for more information on the life in Palistine during the time of Christ. This book does go into some aspects of the life in Palistine, but it is heavely weighted with Roman life. Not bad as books during this period go, but not what I expected.