Good Girls, Bad Girls of the New Testament: Their Enduring Lessons

(Hardback)

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Good Girls, Bad Girls of the New Testament takes readers on a powerful journey through the vast landscape of Roman-occupied Judea during the first century and the genesis of Christianity. This landscape serves as the backdrop for twelve amazing stories of women whose paths intersect, either by providence or design, with the paths of Jesus or Paul. Some of these women are familiar, such as Mary, the mother of Jesus, while others, like the wife of the infamous Pontius Pilate, are lesser known. Whether she is popular or obscure, good or bad, each womans story is an important part of the overall Christian narrative.

Good Girls, Bad Girls of the New Testament invites readers to take a more nuanced look at twelve stories that feature women, to explore their lives more deeply in historical context, and to understand the real story that includes both men and women. The book goes beyond simply telling the story of a particular biblical woman to challenge readers to explore the enduring lessons the ancient writers sought to impart. These timeless lessons are as important for us today as they were thousands of years ago.

Reviews

In 12 chapters, Wray introduces well-known women (Mary, the mother of Jesus; Mary and Martha; the Samaritan woman at the well) and those less familiar (Tabitha, Bernice and Drusilla, Prisca), situating them in their historical and literary contexts and drawing from them lessons for the contemporary world. In general introductions to biblical materials, the author gently introduces source-critical questions and the difficulties of distinguishing fact from authorial invention. . . .Wray's contemporary applications are eloquent, which commends the volume for church-based adult education courses: she comments on the nature of grief, the need to balance service with self-care, and the toxic effect of rumor. . . .

Summing Up:Recommended. General readers.

* Choice Reviews *
T. J. Wrays Good Girls, Bad Girls of the New Testament offers a lively reflection on twelve stories that feature intriguing and powerful women whose lives and activity are preserved across the early Christian scriptures and beyond. The power of Wrays prose is in bringing these women of the first century to life across the ages and illustrating the relevance of their lessons for the twenty-first century and beyond. -- Sherri Brown, Creighton University
T. J. Wray presents twelve stories of New Testament good girls and bad girls in a style that readers will find both engaging and edifying. Wrays studies, although anchored in careful scholarship, are never pedantic and her challenging reflections are aimed at prompting lively discussions and deeper appreciation for these exceptional women of the Bible. -- Robin M. Jensen, University of Notre Dame
Some of the women in Good Girls, Bad Girls of the New Testament are household names like Mary Magdalene, some have little-known names like Tabitha, and some have no name at all, like the forever-anonymous woman at the well. Whether they have a name or not makes no difference. T. J. Wray draws at least one lesson to remember from each of the stories of the women upon whom she gazes with a scholars and mothers eye. -- Raymond F. Collins, Brown University
Informed by solid scholarship, this is an eminently readable introduction to the women of the New Testament for students and general readers alike. It is filled with colorful accounts that bring these women to life, drawing thought-provoking parallels to our own day. The picture is fascinating and complexfrequently challenging our assumptions about the lives of these ancient women. -- Margaret Y. MacDonald, Saint Mary's University

Author Bio

T. J. Wray is the author of several books, including Surviving the Death of a Sibling, What the Bible Really Tells Us: The Essential Guide to Biblical Literacy, and Good Girls, Bad Girls: The Enduring Lessons of Twelve Women of the Old Testament. She is associate professor of religious studies at Salve Regina University. She has appeared on the History Channel and NPR.