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Release Revolutionary, brief commentary unlocks the faith, hope, and life of Christian communities before the written Gospels Milavec makes knowledge of the earliest Christian communities assessable by unlocking the hidden secrets of the
Didache COLLEGEVILLE, MINNESOTA— Most Christians believe that everything about
Jesus and the early church can be found in their New Testament. In recent years, however, the discovery of
the Gospel of Thomas and the reconstruction of the Q-Gospel have led scholars
to recognize that some very early materials were left out. Now, due to the pioneering efforts of Dr.
Aaron Milavec, the most decisive document of them all, namely, the Didache
(“Did-ah-Kay”), has come to light. Milavec has decoded the Didache and enabled it to reveal
its hidden secrets regarding those years when Christianity was little more
than a faction within the restless Judaisms of the mid-first-century. The Didache reveals a
tantalizingly detailed description of the prophetic faith and day-to-day
routines that shaped the Jesus movement some twenty years after the death of
Jesus. The focus of the movement then
was not upon proclaiming the exalted titles and deeds of Jesus‑-aspects
that come to the fore in the letters of Paul and in the Gospel narratives. In
contrast to these familiar forms of Christianity, the focus of the Didache
was upon "the life and the knowledge" of Jesus himself. Thus, the Didache details the
step-by-step process whereby non-Jews were empowered by assimilating the
prophetic faith and the way of life associated with Jesus of Nazareth. Milavec’s
clear, concise, and inspiring commentary is not only of essential importance
to scholars, pastors, and students but also very useful for ordinary people
who wish to unlock the secrets of the Didache. Milavec’s analytic, Greek-English
side-by-side, gender-inclusive translation is included as well as a
description of how this document,
after being fashioned and used 50-70 C.E., was mysteriously lost for over
eighteen hundred years before being found in an obscure library in Istanbul. The study questions, bibliography, and flowcharts
enable even first-time users to grasp the functional and pastoral genius that
characterized the earliest Christian communities. Clayton
N Jefford, Professor of Scripture at Saint Meinrad School of Theology,
describes Milavec’s commentary as a “masterful presentation of the text and
an intriguing perspective upon the ancient origins and unique purposes of the
work.” Dr. Philip Culbertson, Auckland University, New Zealand, adds, “This
insightful new edition should appeal as much to erudite scholars as to the
plainest of faiths.” The
internationally known scholar, John Dominic Crossan, declares, "The works by Milavec have
revolutionized my own understanding of the Didache and I recommend them as
the best introduction to a new and more profitable way of studying the
document." Aaron
Milavec, Ph.D., is founder and director of EasyGreek Software. He has served
as a seminary and university professor for twenty-five years and currently
chairs the new program unit of the Society of Biblical Literature “The
Didache in Context: 50-59 C.E.” Published
in paper, 128 pages, 6 x 9 @ $9.95, The Didache is available in
religious and trade bookstores or directly from Liturgical Press. Call:
1-800-858-5450; fax: 1-800-445-5899; or e-mail: sales@litpress.org. A
complete catalog is also available online: www.litpress.org. "In
this new and landmark study, Aaron Milavec comprehensively examines how the
first-century pastoral manual known as the Didache enumerated the
step-by-step training of converts for the full, active participation in the
earliest Jewish-Christian communities. . . ."
"In recent times, the Didache, a
significant first-century Christian manual, has come to be seen as a
compilation of several older sources which are structured into clearly
separated thematic sections belonging to different literary genres. Attention
therefore often focuses on issues of source and redaction criticism.
Professor Milavec, in dialogue with recent international scholarship, sets
great store by allowing the internal evidence of the text to speak for itself.
This volume, which looks at the unity of the manual against the cultural
background of its time, is an indispensable addition to the literature on the
Didache. It provides a gender-inclusive translation and a clear, concise, and
inspiring commentary which is not only of essential importance to scholars,
pastors, and students but also very useful for ordinary people."
"Milavec’s newest book is the
culmination of fifteen years of insightful scholarship into the mysterious
text of the Didache. The parallel English ‘analytical’ translation from the
Greek is done with simplicity, yet with a sensitivity to gender issues and
the Jewish background of the original text. This insightful new edition
should appeal as much to erudite scholars as to the plainest of faiths. The
commentary, the website, and the flow charts are brilliant additions."
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