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

Jesus Christ is arguably the most famous man who ever lived. His image adorns countless churches, icons, and paintings. He is the subject of millions of statues, sculptures, devotional objects and works of art. Everyone can conjure an image of Jesus: usually as a handsome, white man with flowing locks and pristine linen robes. But what did Jesus really look like? Is our popular image of Jesus overly westernized and untrue to historical reality? This question continues to fascinate. Leading Christian Origins scholar Joan E. Taylor surveys the historical evidence, and the prevalent image of Jesus in art and culture, to suggest an entirely different vision of this most famous of men. He may even have had short hair.

The stories and contributions of the apostles provide an important entrée into church history. This comprehensive historical and literary introduction uncovers their lives and legacies, underscoring the apostles' impact on the growth of the early church. The author collects and distills the histories, legends, symbols, and iconography of the original twelve and locates figures such as Paul, Peter, and John in the broader context of the history of the apostles. He also explores the continuing story of the gospel mission and the twelve disciples beyond the New Testament.

"Magisterial. . . . A learned, brilliant and enjoyable study."—Géza Vermès, Times Literary Supplement In this exciting book, Paula Fredriksen explains the variety of New Testament images of Jesus by exploring the ways that the new Christian communities interpreted his mission and message in light of the delay of the Kingdom he had preached. This edition includes an introduction reviews the most recent scholarship on Jesus and its implications for both history and theology. "Brilliant and lucidly written, full of original and fascinating insights."—Reginald H. Fuller, Journal of the American Academy of Religion "This is a first-rate work of a first-rate historian."—James D. Tabor, Journal of Religion "Fredriksen confronts her documents—principally the writings of the New Testament—as an archaeologist would an especially rich complex site. With great care she distinguishes the literary images from historical fact. As she does so, she explains the images of Jesus in terms of the strategies and purposes of the writers Paul, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John."—Thomas D’Evelyn, Christian Science Monitor

This book is a definitive history of the lives and deaths of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. It details the lives of twelve Jewish men who walked the earth with the Son of God and who changed the course of world history. Using scholarly sources, modern translations of the ancient texts, and the often-ignored concept of local tradition, the author follows each of the Twelve Apostles from their calling by the Lord, to the most likely geographical locations of their evangelical missions, and to the locations of their deaths by martyrdom. As well as it can be known, the author goes one step further and tells the reader the fascinating stories of the far-flung postmortem journey's of each apostle's earthly remains and informs us of where their tombs can be visited today. Along with all of this, Dr. Orzeck shares with us his firsthand account of his adventures involved in visiting the locations mentioned in the book. He does so first and most importantly because of what he feels is a huge responsibility to get the story of these great men correct as humanly possible. With the possible exception of the late Pope John Paul II, to the best of his knowledge, he (and his wife and traveling partner) are the only persons ever to have been in the physical presence of all Twelve Apostles of Jesus since the first Pentecost, an honor he doesn't take lightly.