Christian Origins and the Ancient Economy

What does economics have to do with Christian origins? Why study such a connection? First of all, the New Testament makes many direct references to economic issues. But, second, the economy affects every other aspect of life (family, religion, community, work, health, and politics).

To understand what it was like to live in a society, one must understand what the economy was doing. The study of the economy includes not only the goods and services of a society but also human labor and its control. For one, it entails the size of the pie of goods. (How prosperous was first-century Galilee?) But the study of economy also takes account of the slice of the pie that each family obtained. (How fair was the economy to each family?)

Those involved in the quest for the historical Jesus have discovered that the ancient economy is a major point of dispute among various interpreters. Was the early Jesus movement a socioeconomic protest? Or was it primarily a religious reform? These two approaches understand Jesus in remarkably different ways. This volume seeks to guide readers through some of the most controversial issues raised in the last twenty years on this important topic.


These essays trace the lively contemporary controversy about the socioeconomic background of Jesus of Nazareth. Fiensy fairly reviews various proposals, yet does not find a Jesus in abject poverty, but someone of modest means who could lead a mass movement. All in all, a most welcome contribution to a crucial debate about the social origins of earliest Christianity.
--Douglas E. Oakman, Professor of Religion, Pacific Lutheran University, Washington

The socioeconomic situation of Galilee at the time of Jesus has recently provided loads of fodder and fuel for the historical Jesus research. This book serves two great purposes: it brings the reader right up to the front line by discussing all new material available, as well as furthering the discussion by in-depth investigations. Thus, this is the place to start!
--Morten Horning Jensen, author of Herod Antipas in Galilee

Many scholars have made claims about economic conditions in Galilee and elsewhere in Palestine, but very few have sifted through the evidence as carefully and systematically as Fiensy has. He convincingly demonstrates that much of what we thought we knew about the subject is wrong, while pointing us in new, fruitful directions. These sophisticated yet accessible essays are a must-read for everyone interested in the cultural climate of Jesus and the movement he started.
--Mark A. Chancey, Professor of Religious Studies, Dedman College of Humanities and Sciences, Southern Methodist University, Texas


David A. Fiensy is Professor of New Testament and Dean of the Graduate School of Bible and Ministry at Kentucky Christian University. He also serves as Associate Director of the Shikhin Excavation Project. His previous publications include The Social History of Palestine in the Herodian Period (1991) and Jesus the Galil...