Matthew and Empire: Initial Explorations (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"Carter has written an excellent, eminently readable piece of social history." -- Bruce J. Malina, Creighton University, June 2002

Product Description

Although New Testament scholars have examined Paul's writings and their relationship to the Roman empire and its imperial policies and writings, they have focused little attention on ways in which the Gospels were influenced by that imperialism. In Matthew and Empire, Warren Carter argues that Matthew's Gospel protests Roman imperialism by asserting that God's purposes and will are performed not by the empire and emperor but by Jesus and his community of disciples.

Matthew and Empire makes the claim for reading Matthew in this way against the almost exclusive emphasis on the relationship with the synagogue that has long been a staple of Matthean criticism. Carter establishes Matthew's imperial context by examining Roman imperial ideology and material presence in Antioch, the traditional provenance for Matthew. He argues that Matthean Christology, which presents Jesus as God's agent, is shaped by claims—and protests against those claims—that the emperor and empire are agents of God. In successive chapters Carter pays particular attention to the Gospel's central irony, namely that in depicting God's ways and purposes, the Gospel employs the very imperial framework that it resists. Matthew and Empire challenges traditional readings of Matthew and Empire encourages fresh perspectives in Matthean scholarship.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Trinity Press International (October 10, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 156338342X
• ISBN-13: 978-1563383427
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #798,831 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, essential, best of Context approach, October 5, 2005

By	Michael Hoffman (Egodeath.com) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This may be the best book presenting the Context approach to the origins and original meaning of the New Testament. Its wording is more straightforward, to-the-point, and sophisticated than the more average Context books such as Horsley and Silberman's The Message and the Kingdom, and Crossan's In Search of Paul.

The first few chapters get to the point by defining Imperial Theology, Pax Romana, and Ruler Cult. Subsequent chapters then readily demonstrate how the New Testament draws upon Old Testament political themes to principally stand as a rebuttal to the Roman Empire system, and only secondarily as an intertwined expression of religious, mystical, and religious-morality content. Thus this book provides the ideal framework, on the canonical side, to identify the difference between New Testament Christianity and Gnostic-mystical Christianity, a comparison project which is today's main challenge as both the cultural context is being reconstructed and as Gnostic mysticism is being reconstructed.

Books presenting the Context-oriented approach are generally a must-have in any library of Christian origins, but to get started the fastest in understanding the original intended audience of New Testament Christianity, start by reading the first few chapters of this book.

5.0 out of 5 stars Matthew and Empire: Initial Explorations, September 1, 2009

By	K. Oh - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book opens my eyes wide open. The approach and interpretation give me a challenging experience. Some people may not agree with author's view, but I do and praise his theology.