In recent years, scholars have explored anew the interface between the early Christian movements and the Roman Empire. Once thought to be quietistic, the early Christian movements turn out to have been critical of the Empire and significantly counterimperial. This collection of essays in honor of Robert Brawley turns the spotlight on Luke-Acts. The soundings taken here disclose deeper anti-imperial rhetoric than previously thought. In brazen and subtle ways, Luke-Acts displays an alternative realm of peace and justice inaugurated by Jesus under the God of Israel. The essays in this volume will lead you to hear Luke-Acts in fresh ways.

Acts is the sequel to Luke's gospel and tells the story of Jesus's followers during the 30 years after his death. It describes how the 12 apostles, formerly Jesus's disciples, spread the message of Christianity throughout the Mediterranean against a background of persecution. With an introduction by P.D. James

This book will review Luke's two volume historical narrative concerning Jesus' life and ministry as well the beginning and spread of Christianity in the Roman Empire as he experienced it.

This title looks at what kind of responses Paul made to the Roman Empire. The author subjects the methods of current interpreters to critical scrutiny and discusses what makes an anti-imperial interpretation of Pauline writings difficult.

This new, authoritative commentary on the Gospel of Luke epitomizes the New Testament Library series. Combining scholarly rigor and theological insight, Carroll not only focuses on the Gospel text but also makes frequent reference to Luke's second volume, the Acts of the Apostles, to show how the two writings work together to present a full picture of the life of Christ and the work of the apostles. In addition, Carroll includes several illuminating notions about special topics in Luke's Gospel: a comparison of the birth announcements to Mary and Zechariah, an examination of the role of women, a discussion of wealth and poverty, and insights on the reign of God and the Roman Empire.

This book combines New Testament studies and cultural theory, and analyzes Acts of the Apostles as a product of imperial discourse. In five chapters, Christina Petterson engages Acts with ideology, gender, class, and empire with different emphases. All of these analyses argue that Christianity can never be set outside discourses of exploitation, discrimination, and hierarchies, but must always be set within them.