Simon Peter in Scripture and Memory: The New Testament Apostle In The Early Church

"All of Bockmuehl's much admired gifts are generously displayed in this volume. Those wishing to trace the footsteps of the 'underestimated apostle' in early Christianity will find no better guide than Bockmuehl and no better exposition of why that journey of remembrance matters."--C. Clifton Black, Princeton Theological Seminary
After Jesus, Peter is the most frequently mentioned individual both in the Gospels and in the New Testament as a whole, yet we know very little about this formative figure of the early church. Markus Bockmuehl introduces the New Testament Peter by asking how first- and second-century sources may be understood through the prism of "living memory" among the disciples of the apostolic generation and the students of those disciples. He argues that early Christian memory of Peter underscores his central role as a bridge-building figure holding together the diversity of first-century Christianity. Drawing on more than a decade of research, Bockmuehl applies cutting-edge scholarship to the question of the history and traditions of Simon Peter. New Testament students and professors will value Bockmuehl's fresh insight into the biblical witness and early Christian tradition.
Contents
Introduction
Part 1: Peter in Canon and Memory
1. Simon Peter... in Living Memory?
2. The New Testament Peter: An Overview
Part 2: Peter in the "Living Memory" of East and West
3. The Eastern Peter
4. The Western Peter
Part 3: History and Memory--Two Case Studies
5. How Peter Became a Disciple
6. From Unlikely Birthplace to a Global Mission
Concluding Observations
Indexes