New Testament Basics

<p><i>New Testament Basics</i> introduces college university seminary and divinity school students to the study of the New Testament. Authors Stefan Alkier and David M. Moffitt adopt five major aims: (i) to explore how the Bible came to exist dealing with the formation and significance of the Christian canon; (ii) to discuss the ways the Bible continues to exert influence on contemporary culture demonstrating the ongoing value and importance of biblical literacy; (iii) to introduce readers to some of the most fundamental methods used in the study of the New Testament including a substantial discussion of semiotics and its usefulness for New Testament interpretation; (iv) to provide a survey of central historical social and economic information as important contextual knowledge for interpreting the New Testament; and (v) to offer some brief discussion of the contents of several New Testament texts and consider ways they might inform theological reflection. In the end Alkier and Moffitt's <i>New Testament Basics</i> fosters within students important competencies needed to read and interpret the New Testament for themselves.</p>