Author Description

At a time when the Western church is having to come to terms--painfully and often reluctantly--with its diminished social and intellectual status in the world following the collapse of Christendom, we find ourselves, as interpreters of Paul, increasingly impressed by the need to relocate his writings in their historical context. That is not a coincidence. The Future of the People of God is an attempt to make sense of Paul's letter to the Romans at the intersection of these two developments. It puts forward the argument that we must first have the courage of our historical convictions and read the text before Christendom, from the limited, shortsighted perspective of an emerging community that dared to defy the gods of the ancient world. This act of imaginative, critical engagement with the text will challenge many of our assumptions about Paul's ""gospel of God,"" but it will also put us in a position to reconstruct an identity and purpose for the people of God after Christendom that is both biblically and historically coherent ""The Future of the People of God: Reading Romans Before and After Western Christendom is clearly written and compellingly argued. Andrew Perriman probes the meaning of Romans, Paul's most important letter, shedding light on the respective places of Jews and Gentiles in the redemptive plan of God. Perriman has captured the apostle's thought and with impressive skill shows how it unfolds step by step. More impressive still is how the letter to the Romans is read in the light of the political realities of the Roman Empire in the middle of the first century and the dominical prophecy of Jerusalem's impending doom. This is a great book. Highly recommended."" --Craig A. Evans Payzant Distinguished Professor of New Testament Acadia Divinity College, Nova Scotia ""Andrew Perriman here gives a fresh, highly stimulating reading of Romans rooted in its first century setting. His approach focuses on a soon-to-come historical crisis for Judaism and for t