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Books by Richard A Wright

Research paper thumbnail of A Reader in Biblical Greek

A Reader in Biblical Greek. Eerdmans., 2022

Research paper thumbnail of Ethics in Context: Essays in Honor of Wendell Lee Willis

Ethics in Context: Essays in Honor of Wendell Lee Willis. Pickwick Publications., 2019

Ethics in Contexts ESSAYS IN HONOR OF Wendell Lee Willis e essays in this volume are an expressio... more Ethics in Contexts ESSAYS IN HONOR OF Wendell Lee Willis e essays in this volume are an expression of appreciation of Wendell Lee Willis, who recently retired a er a distinguished career as a classroom teacher, colleague, and scholar. Current and former colleagues have written to advance Wendell's research interests in the various contexts of early Christianity, particularly in the apostle Paul, New Testament ethics, and ecclesiology. Essays include discussions of issues related to Paul's correspondence with the church in Corinth and the depiction of Paul in Acts, Jesus's parables, meals, and the religious and socio-political world in which Christianity arose.

Papers by Richard A Wright

Research paper thumbnail of “Out with the Christians . . . Out with the Epicureans!’ Atheism and Constructing the Other in Antiquity.”

Gods, Spirits, and Worship in Christianity and the Greco-Roman World. SSEJC 23. Edited by Craig A. Evans and Adam Z. Wright. New York: Bloomsbury., 2022

Around the year 180 CE , the satirist Lucian responded to a request from a friend that he provide... more Around the year 180 CE , the satirist Lucian responded to a request from a friend that he provide an account of the life of a certain Alexander, a man who established himself as a priest/prophet for the god Asclepius. Lucian believed Alexander to be a charlatan. He tells the friend that he is embarrassed that his friend would make a request to document the life of such a scoundrel; and he was also embarrassed for himself that he had fulfi lled the request (Alex. 1-2). According to Lucian, Alexander concocted an extravagant plan to scam foolish simpletons out of their money. Th ere came a time when people began to see through the charade-primarily Epicureans (Alex. 25). 1 Alexander went on the attack by warning the citizens of Pontus that the area had become overrun by atheists and Christians spreading scandalous reports about him; he also spoke out against Epicurus (Alex. 25). He later moved to Rome. As part of an expanding menu of cultic options, Alexander introduced a set of mysteries modeled aft er those of Eleusis. On the fi rst day of the mysteries, a proclamation was read: any atheist, Epicurean, or Christian must immediately leave; then an antiphonal cry was raised: "Out with the Christians"; to which the response came: "Out with the Epicureans" (Alex. 38). My interest for this chapter is not in Lucian's characterization of Epicureans and Christians. 2 Rather, I use Lucian's text as an invitation to think about the circumstances in which educated people living in antiquity might apply the label "atheist. " I let Lucian's 1 Lucian indicates that Epicurus and Metrodorus were men with skeptical minds who had keen insight and were able to see through deceit (Alex. 17). Epicureans appear to thwart Alexander in chapters 45-7. Th e work ends with a tribute to Epicurus (Alex. 61). 2 It is fascinating to see the diff erent roles Christians play in Lucian's writing. In Th e Passing of Peregrinus , they are the foolish and gullible. In Alexander , they are among those who can see through Alexander and are placed on the same level as the Epicureans who are the ostensible heroes of the story. For a brief, recent, description of the challenges presented by Lucian and his usefulness for understanding non-Christians' perceptions of Christians in the second century, see John A.

Research paper thumbnail of Reconsidering Assets: Paul and Galen on a Life Worth Living

Ethics in Contexts: Essays in Honor of Wendell Lee Willis, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of Drinking, Teaching, and Singing: Ephesians 5:18-19 and the Challenges of Moral Instruction at Greco-Roman Banquets

Lexington Theological Quarterly, 2017

Research paper thumbnail of "Flesh"

Oxford Encyclopedia of Bible and Theology, 2015

Research paper thumbnail of Possessions, Distress, and the Problem of Emotions: De indolentia and the Gospel of Luke in Juxtaposition

Galen's De indolentia: Essays on a Newly Discovered Letter. Edited by Clare K. Rothschild and Trevor W. Thompson, 2014

Research paper thumbnail of The Sounds of Silence: Hearing the Music in Pauline Assemblies

"The One Who Sows Bountifully": Essays in Honor of Stanley K. Stowers. Eds. Caroline Johnson Hodge, et. al. Brown Judaic Studies 356., 2013

Research paper thumbnail of Greco-Roman Backgrounds to the New Testament

The Transforming Word. Ed. Mark Hamilton. Abilene, TX: ACU Press., 2009

Research paper thumbnail of Plutarch on Moral Progress

Passions and Progress in Greco-Roman Thought. Ed. John T. Fitzgerald London: Routledge., 2007

Research paper thumbnail of A Reader in Biblical Greek

A Reader in Biblical Greek. Eerdmans., 2022

Research paper thumbnail of Ethics in Context: Essays in Honor of Wendell Lee Willis

Ethics in Context: Essays in Honor of Wendell Lee Willis. Pickwick Publications., 2019

Ethics in Contexts ESSAYS IN HONOR OF Wendell Lee Willis e essays in this volume are an expressio... more Ethics in Contexts ESSAYS IN HONOR OF Wendell Lee Willis e essays in this volume are an expression of appreciation of Wendell Lee Willis, who recently retired a er a distinguished career as a classroom teacher, colleague, and scholar. Current and former colleagues have written to advance Wendell's research interests in the various contexts of early Christianity, particularly in the apostle Paul, New Testament ethics, and ecclesiology. Essays include discussions of issues related to Paul's correspondence with the church in Corinth and the depiction of Paul in Acts, Jesus's parables, meals, and the religious and socio-political world in which Christianity arose.

Research paper thumbnail of “Out with the Christians . . . Out with the Epicureans!’ Atheism and Constructing the Other in Antiquity.”

Gods, Spirits, and Worship in Christianity and the Greco-Roman World. SSEJC 23. Edited by Craig A. Evans and Adam Z. Wright. New York: Bloomsbury., 2022

Around the year 180 CE , the satirist Lucian responded to a request from a friend that he provide... more Around the year 180 CE , the satirist Lucian responded to a request from a friend that he provide an account of the life of a certain Alexander, a man who established himself as a priest/prophet for the god Asclepius. Lucian believed Alexander to be a charlatan. He tells the friend that he is embarrassed that his friend would make a request to document the life of such a scoundrel; and he was also embarrassed for himself that he had fulfi lled the request (Alex. 1-2). According to Lucian, Alexander concocted an extravagant plan to scam foolish simpletons out of their money. Th ere came a time when people began to see through the charade-primarily Epicureans (Alex. 25). 1 Alexander went on the attack by warning the citizens of Pontus that the area had become overrun by atheists and Christians spreading scandalous reports about him; he also spoke out against Epicurus (Alex. 25). He later moved to Rome. As part of an expanding menu of cultic options, Alexander introduced a set of mysteries modeled aft er those of Eleusis. On the fi rst day of the mysteries, a proclamation was read: any atheist, Epicurean, or Christian must immediately leave; then an antiphonal cry was raised: "Out with the Christians"; to which the response came: "Out with the Epicureans" (Alex. 38). My interest for this chapter is not in Lucian's characterization of Epicureans and Christians. 2 Rather, I use Lucian's text as an invitation to think about the circumstances in which educated people living in antiquity might apply the label "atheist. " I let Lucian's 1 Lucian indicates that Epicurus and Metrodorus were men with skeptical minds who had keen insight and were able to see through deceit (Alex. 17). Epicureans appear to thwart Alexander in chapters 45-7. Th e work ends with a tribute to Epicurus (Alex. 61). 2 It is fascinating to see the diff erent roles Christians play in Lucian's writing. In Th e Passing of Peregrinus , they are the foolish and gullible. In Alexander , they are among those who can see through Alexander and are placed on the same level as the Epicureans who are the ostensible heroes of the story. For a brief, recent, description of the challenges presented by Lucian and his usefulness for understanding non-Christians' perceptions of Christians in the second century, see John A.

Research paper thumbnail of Reconsidering Assets: Paul and Galen on a Life Worth Living

Ethics in Contexts: Essays in Honor of Wendell Lee Willis, 2019

Research paper thumbnail of Drinking, Teaching, and Singing: Ephesians 5:18-19 and the Challenges of Moral Instruction at Greco-Roman Banquets

Lexington Theological Quarterly, 2017

Research paper thumbnail of "Flesh"

Oxford Encyclopedia of Bible and Theology, 2015

Research paper thumbnail of Possessions, Distress, and the Problem of Emotions: De indolentia and the Gospel of Luke in Juxtaposition

Galen's De indolentia: Essays on a Newly Discovered Letter. Edited by Clare K. Rothschild and Trevor W. Thompson, 2014

Research paper thumbnail of The Sounds of Silence: Hearing the Music in Pauline Assemblies

"The One Who Sows Bountifully": Essays in Honor of Stanley K. Stowers. Eds. Caroline Johnson Hodge, et. al. Brown Judaic Studies 356., 2013

Research paper thumbnail of Greco-Roman Backgrounds to the New Testament

The Transforming Word. Ed. Mark Hamilton. Abilene, TX: ACU Press., 2009

Research paper thumbnail of Plutarch on Moral Progress

Passions and Progress in Greco-Roman Thought. Ed. John T. Fitzgerald London: Routledge., 2007