A witness to the peculiar way of being that is the scholar's Luke Timothy Johnson is one of the best-known and most influential New Testament scholars of recent decades. In this memoir, he draws on his rich experience to invite readers into the scholar's life-its aims, commitments, and habits. In addition to sharing his own story, from childhood to retirement, Johnson reflects on the nature of scholarship more generally, showing how this vocation...

A selection of sermons or homilies preached over a fifty-year period explicitly linked to the church's liturgical year-thus, In Season. The sermons exemplify how engagement with lectionary texts, the church's cycle of worship, and the circumstances of contemporary believers, can all be brought into lively conversation.

"For me, Paul has always been the most difficult and therefore also most delightful advocate and interpreter of the Lord Jesus Christ and of the human experience of God's transforming power through Christ. In Paul's letters, above all I have found the quality of mind and the depth of conviction that could arouse in me both excitement and passion. And it is Paul's letters, above all, that show how important and difficult is life together in the church."-...

In the 2nd and 3rd centuries, martyrdom and apologetic literature responded powerfully to the persecution of Christians. Investigate the phenomenon of martyrdom as the perfect form of discipleship, in the actions of martyrs who exalted in their sacrifice. See how apologetic literature created a reasoned case for Christianity in the wider world.

It's easy to forget that philosophy means "love of wisdom," not "love of thinking." In addition to the philosophy that tells you how to think well, the field also provides guidance on how to live well, solid advice on how to be a good father or friend, or how to grow old gracefully or to know what true happiness is. Greek and Roman thinkers such as Marcus Tullius Cicero, Lucius Annaeus Seneca, Marcus Aurelius, Dio Chrysostom, and Plutarch of Chaeronea...

Benedictine monasticism played a foundational role in the shaping of medieval Christianity, and it continues to thrive today. Take a deep look at Benedict of Nursia's Rule for Monks; its principles of obedience and humility and detailed prescriptions for monastic life, promoting monasteries as centers of both Christian discipleship and learning.

After 2,000 years, Christianity is the world's largest religion and continues to prosper and grow. What accounts for its continued popularity? In these twenty-four lectures, Professor Johnson maintains that the most familiar aspects of Christianity, its myths, institutions, ideas, and morality are only its outer "husk." He takes you on a journey to find the "kernel" of Christianity's appeal: religious experience. You'll travel back to Christianity's...

Investigate the appeal of monasticism in the medieval world and why this dominant institution in the Catholic West required constant renewal. Look at three famous medieval monastic houses and the key reforms each implemented in their quest for a more complete realization of the ideals of the Rule of Benedict.

Here, identify the pivotal factors that secured the framework of Christianity, defining an orthodoxy based in tradition and reason. In particular, study the role of Irenaeus of Gaul in establishing the canonical scriptures, the rule of faith in one God, and the religious authority of the bishops.

Our contemporary universities have origins in medieval universities that were entirely Christian. Trace the rise of universities in the West - their functions, curricula, and the development of scholastic theology with its methodology of dialectical reasoning. Assess the expression of Christian thought in the theology of Thomas Aquinas and John Duns Scotus and in the poetry of Dante Alighieri.