The First Urban Christians: The Social World of the Apostle Paul
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3.84 · Rating details · 254 ratings · 23 reviews
What was it like to be an ordinary Christian in the beginning decades of the Roman Empire? In this absorbing and authoritative book, Meeks analyzes the earliest extant documents of Christianity--the letters of Paul--to describe the tensions and the texture of life of the first urban Christians.
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Dec 06, 2018Richard Worden rated it it was amazing
In the 1950's there was a TV program called "You Were There" which re-created historical events. Meeks' book is a You Were There experience. Using sociological concepts the author gives a bird's eye view of the church in Roman cities and how they survived, interacted with their neighbours, differed from the Jerusalem James led church and how the Pauline theology evolved ultimately dominating the Roman Empire.
The book is academic with hundred of footnotes and an excellent biography. (less)
The book is academic with hundred of footnotes and an excellent biography. (less)
Oct 08, 2007Brett rated it it was amazing
Recommends it for: anybody who is studying Paul, his letters, his theology
Awesome book. It is early '80's. So it doesn't seem that novel now, but it was a turning point in Pauline and biblical scholarship as he was one of the pioneers of the social-critical approach. It is a must read for anybody reading Paul.
I was particularly fascinated his first chapter about urban life at the time. (less)
I was particularly fascinated his first chapter about urban life at the time. (less)
Sep 02, 2014Dan Lacich rated it really liked it
Very insightful look at early Christianity. Meeks tends to take the most liberal and skeptical of views on dating New Testament books as well as questions of authorship. This impacts how he interprets certain events but is not a reason to reject the basic work.
May 27, 2013Annie Large rated it liked it
Really interesting, full of lots of information. Presented as a thesis, tough, not a book you would just volunteer to read.
Jul 27, 2008Chantee rated it it was amazing
One of the most interesting books on the early Christian/Pauline community I have ever read. The roles of urban ecology and "low-status crystallization" are particularly thought-provoking so I recommend this book without hesitation. (less)
Classic work on the types of social organization reflected in the Pauline epistles. I'm embarrassed that I never read it until now. ...more
May 31, 2017Michael Walker rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: christianity, sociology, theology
This was a ground-breaking work in biblical sociology by one of the field's pioneers. Thought-provoking! (less)
May 08, 2018Nicola Hawkes rated it liked it
I'm not a theologian and so not really qualified to judge the literary value of the content - some reviewers dispute Meeks' assertions of authorship for some of the epistles, or lack of treatment of some relevant material and I can see why they might be concerned that he extrapolates too far from scanty material (I have no idea). However I found a great deal of this book extremely interesting and thought provoking. It set the scene for me of the early church. Yes a lot of it was technical - discussions of the translations were simply beyond me. But when the author tried hard to make it accessible, I thought he succeeded very well. Its refreshing to read about every-day life, and how many problems there must have been. Paul must have been a strong-willed (even stroppy!) apostle, full of the Spirit but humanly exasperated at times.
Can't give it 4 stars simply because it was hard-going at times, but a very interesting read. (less)
Can't give it 4 stars simply because it was hard-going at times, but a very interesting read. (less)
Jun 18, 2017Jim Warren rated it really liked it
I started this book as part of my study of a Biblical sense of community. Meeks writes to an audience of scholars yet is understandable to anyone who reads above a 7th grade reading level. His scholarly insights help us understand the culture surrounding and within the early churches established by Paul in Urban Centers.
May 27, 2017Laura Robinson rated it really liked it
Great quick read about the evidence from Pauline letters about what sort of communities Paul was in the business of forming -- their self-understanding, social mobility, social class, etc.
REVIEW AND CRITIQUE Meeks, Wayne A. The First Urban Christians: The Social World of the Apostle Paul. New Haven: Yale, 1983.
In The First Urban Christians Meeks offered a ground-breaking social history model of explaining the growth of the Pauline-Christian movement, studying the sociological conditions (urban lives, social classes, rituals and household conventions) of the ordinary Pauline Christians in the Greco-Roman environment.
The distinctive orientation of Meek’s study is to “describe” th ...more
In The First Urban Christians Meeks offered a ground-breaking social history model of explaining the growth of the Pauline-Christian movement, studying the sociological conditions (urban lives, social classes, rituals and household conventions) of the ordinary Pauline Christians in the Greco-Roman environment.
The distinctive orientation of Meek’s study is to “describe” th ...more
Jan 10, 2017T.A. Gallant rated it liked it
This book came highly rated, but honestly I found it a bit disappointing. It's not simply that I don't share the author's opinions about the New Testament text, although that certainly contributed: I happen to think Acts has actual historical value, and don't buy the notion that Ephesians, Colossians and the Pastorals are "deutero-Pauline." Thus, I found much of Meeks' analysis frustrating.
Equally problematic is that in mutiple cases, Meeks made an assertion about Paul himself, and I could readily think of an instance in an uncontested Pauline letter that disproved the point—including at times verses that elsewhere Meeks showed awareness of the text.
Then too, I frankly found the writer a bit "dry," which helps explain why it took me so long to come back and finish the book.
All that said, Meeks knows his stuff and if you're willing to put up with the above, you'll probably find a good deal valuable in terms of how the various social realities of the time impinged upon the first century churches. (less)
Equally problematic is that in mutiple cases, Meeks made an assertion about Paul himself, and I could readily think of an instance in an uncontested Pauline letter that disproved the point—including at times verses that elsewhere Meeks showed awareness of the text.
Then too, I frankly found the writer a bit "dry," which helps explain why it took me so long to come back and finish the book.
All that said, Meeks knows his stuff and if you're willing to put up with the above, you'll probably find a good deal valuable in terms of how the various social realities of the time impinged upon the first century churches. (less)
Jul 24, 2015Milk Badger rated it liked it
A fascinating, though at times scholarly, sociological and historical study of the religious communities founded by Paul in a dozen or so cities around the Mediterranean basin. Meeks compares them with a number of other contemporary social phenomena in the Hellenistic world (patrifamilial households, voluntary associations, synagogues, rhetorical schools), describing how the Pauline ekklēsiai were in some ways similar to these groups but also unprecedented. Although much is still unknown about the earliest Christians, the book left me with an impression of them that bears more resemblance to sixteenth-century Anabaptists, eighteenth-century Wesleyan "class meetings" and contemporary house churches than to most of the established Christian institutions in existence today. (less)
Nov 04, 2012Gretchen rated it it was ok
I started out excited by the title, thinking I'd get some insight into Paul's world. Well. I did, but it was work. Dry read. Really more of a research paper feel. Really felt like I was back in college and HAD to read it for the class. Nothing compelling about it for me. (Maybe I'm not intellectual enough...) (less)
Jan 22, 2013Brian rated it really liked it
I'm very curious about the few hundred years of Christianity. This is four stars and not five because I'm not expert enough to evaluate it, but I certainly enjoyed it and found it informative. I don't know what group is the contemporary counterpart to the very early church -- the holiness churches? ...more
Sep 05, 2011Bruce Morton rated it liked it
Wayne Meeks provides much helpful information regarding the first century world. The weakness in the study (even the revised version) shows up in the almost complete lack of attention he gives to the powerful ancient mystery religions such as the Artemis and Dionysus cults. The omissions seriously weaken some of his conclusions.
This book has been influential among New Testament scholars - helping to open up new ways to understand Paul's ministry. My personal response though was - a little too academic and not direct enough for my interests.
I read it all, but it was somewhat tedious compared to works aimed more at lay readers. (less)
I read it all, but it was somewhat tedious compared to works aimed more at lay readers. (less)
