Books For An Introduction To Studying Bible and Theology

My housemate Chase and I were having lunch the other day and we started talking about important books that we would use if we were going to teach Bible and Theology students.  Now granted we’re both from more of an Evangelical stream of Christianity so I recognize that some of these books may not appeal to all flavors of Christianity but this list does represent a number of viewpoints and would a number of individuals on here would certainly have a lot of critique for Evangelicalism (so don’t write it off either way).

NRSV with Apocrypha

Ecclesiology:
1.

Resident Aliens – Stanley Hauerwas and Will Willimon
2.
Community of Character – Stanley Hauerwas (Anglican)

Philosophy:
1.

Primer to Postmodernism – Stanley Grenz
2.
Reasoning and Rhetoric in Religion – Nancey Murphy (anabaptist)

Ethics:
1.

Kingdom of Ethics – Glen Stassen (baptist)
2.
African American Ethics – Samuel Roberts

Old Testament:
1.

Introduction to the Old Testament – Walter Brueggeman (United Church of Christ)
2.
Old Testament Theology: Israel’s Gospel – John Goldingay (Anglican)
3.
Israel’s Scripture Traditions – Willard Swartley – (Mennonite)

New Testament:
1.

Introduction to the New Testament – Raymond Brown (Catholic)
2.
Politics of Jesus – John Howard Yoder

General history:
1.

A People’s History of the United States – Howard Zinn

Church history:
1.

Fundamentalism and American Culture – George Marsden
2.
A History of Christianity in the United States – Mark Noll
3.
Scandal of the Evangelical Mind – Mark Noll

Spiritual Formation:
1.

Reaching Out – Henry Nouwen (Catholic)
2.
John Woolman’s Journal – John Woolman (Quaker)

Theology:
1.

Across the Spectrum – Gregory Boyd
2.
Doctrine Systematic Theology – James McClendon

Culture:
1.

Habits of the Heart – Robert Bellah
2.
Hidden Power of Electronic Media – Shane Hipps

Well this might be a bit ambitious for one class, but if we’re thinking introductions for a first year it might be a bit more attainable.

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