"In this commentary on the Gospel readings in the Revised Common Lectionary, Allen and Williamson call attention to ways in which the lections are continuous with the theology, values, and practices of Judaism and reflect critically on the caricatures in the readings. They explain the polemics in their first-century setting but criticize them historically and theologically. They also suggest ways that preachers can help their congregations move beyond these contentious themes to a greater sense of kinship and shared mission with Judaism."--BOOK JACKET.

In this engaging treatment of the Gospel of Mark, Dawn Ottoni Wilhelm combines biblical scholarship with a close reading of the Gospel text to meet the needs of preachers today. Swift and purposeful, the Gospel of Mark proclaims God's reign and urges the participation of all God's people in the witness of the good news that God has transformed human reality through Jesus Christ. This insightful commentary helps that message come alive while providing pertinent suggestions about how preachers can proclaim this message to today's churchgoers.

In this third and concluding volume of their lectionary commentary collection (Preaching the Gospels without Blaming the JewsandPreaching the Letters without Dismissing the Law), Ronald Allen and Clark Williamson encourage the church and its preachers to rediscover the Old Testament as a vibrant wellspring of Christian faith and life. Preachers often neglect the Old Testament, misrepresent it, or regard its theological content as superseded by Jesus and the New Testament, Allen and Williamson claim. The authors help preachers avoid these traps by explaining how a text was understood before the Common Era without any reference to Jesus or Christian doctrine, mentioning representative New Testament passages or themes that are informed by the older material, and commenting briefly on the relationship between the lections in those cases when readings from the Old Testament are paired with readings from the New Testament.

Preaching and the Other introduces the reader to six major themes characteristic of the postmodern era that are important for preaching and explains their implications. Themes discussed include: perception as interpretation, deconstruction, otherness, transgression, pluralism, and the importance of apologetics.

This is the final volume in a unique new commentary series that helps the preacher identify and reflect on the social implications of the biblical readings in the Revised Common Lectionary. The essays concentrate on the themes of social justice in the weekly texts and how those themes can be teachable moments for preaching social justice in the church. In addition to the lectionary days, there are essays for twenty-two "Holy Days of Justice," including Martin Luther King Day, Earth Day, World AIDS Day, and Children's Sabbath. These days are intended to enlarge the church's awareness of God's call for justice and of the many ways that call comes to the church and world today.

In Exegeting the Jews: The Early Reception of the Johannine "Jews", Michael G. Azar analyzes the rhetorical function of the Gospel of John’s "Jews" in the earliest surviving full-length expositions of John in Greek: Origen’s Commentary on John (3rd cent.), John Chrysostom’s Homilies on John (4th cent.), and Cyril of Alexandria’s Commentary on John (5th cent.). While scholarship often has portrayed the reception history (Wirkungsgeschichte) of the Gospel’s “Jews” as simply and uniformly anti-Jewish or antisemitic, Azar demonstrates that these three writers primarily read John’s narrative typologically, employing the situation and characters in the Gospel not against contemporary Jews with whom they regularly interacted, but as types of each patristic writer’s own intra-Christian struggle and opponents.

Missiology "A robust and practical theology that integrates worship and mission into a seamless whole." Anglican & Episcopal History "A very useful and insightful text. . . . A remarkable synthesis of most of the best insights liturgical scholars and missiologists have gained regarding the relationship between mission and liturgy over the last decades." George R. Hunsberger — Western Theological Seminary "Ruth Meyers brings a deep grasp of what's at stake in the rediscovery of mission as the essence of the church, together with a generous mastery of liturgical traditions, to provide vision for seeing these two dimensions of the church's life as one. . . . This is the handbook that should accompany every Christian community on its worshiping, witnessing journey." Stephen B. Bevans, SVD — Catholic Theological Union "A wonderful, faith-filled meditation on the missional heart of worship. . . . A new classic in liturgical studies and in missiology as well." Todd E. Johnson — Brehm Center, Fuller Theological Seminary "Ruth Meyers's approach to the issues surrounding worship and mission is spot-on. Instead of approaching worship from a missional slant, or mission from a liturgical perspective, she takes both topics back to their biblical and historical roots — the nature of the church. . . . In practical and insightful ways Meyers demonstrates how a church's ministry in the world and its regular offering of worship reinforce one another. Her careful, direct, evenhanded approach is a breath of fresh air to much of the current theological discourse." Taylor W. Burton-Edwards — Worship Resources, Discipleship Ministries of The United Methodist Church "Seminarians, pastors, deacons, and worship leaders seeking to understand, articulate, or imagine how the basic and most enduring structures of Christian worship `engage worshipers in the mission of God' will discover in these pages both Meyers's wise and challenging counsel and many wonderful companions for the journey." International Bulletin of Missionary Research "A helpful and timely new resource. . . . In Missional Worship Meyers does excellent work developing the notion that mission and worship are inseparably and integrally related." Anglican and Episcopal History "A very useful and insightful text, particularly for those just beginning to explore the field of liturgical studies. The book is a remarkable synthesis of most of the best insights liturgical scholars and missiologists have gained regarding the relationship between mission and liturgy over the last decades." Church Times "[Myers] deserves to be read, because we need to hear this message in all parts of the Church of England today."