Early Christian Rhetoric: The Language of the Gospel. This item is unavailable.Early Christian Rhetoric: The Language of the Gospel

Thirty-five years ago an ever-so-slim volume appeared whose impact would be not only far-reaching but long-lasting. Amos Wilder's "Early Christian Rhetoric" arguably started the wave of interest in narrative and literary aspects of the New Testament that has swept over biblical studies in recent years. At the time, Wilder's views were a bold departure from the prevailing historical-critical methodology or the literary-theological approach to the Bible as literature. By the time the volume was reissued in 1971, Wilder could observe, Today we have moved beyond either an idealist aesthetic in art or a theological rationalism in religion, and wide common ground is opened up in our total exploration of language and its uses (from the introduction). The reappearance of the volume attests to the enduring contribution of Amos Wilder to the field of biblical studies and to the validity of this approach to studying the New Testament.

Amos N. Wilder (1895-1993), New Testament scholar, poet, literary critic, and clergyman, received all earned degrees from Yale. His teaching career included posts at Andover Newton Theological School, Chicago Theological Seminary and the University of Chicago, and Harvard Divinity School. Special honors included the Golden Rose of the New England Poetry Club (1943) and the Bross Prize (1952). Wilder also received the Croix de guerre for service in World War I. He was the brother of playwright and novelist Thornton Wilder.