The Social World of Jesus and the Gospels provides the reader with a set of possible scenarios for reading the New Testament: How did first century persons think about themselves and others? Did they think Jesus was a charismatic leader? Why did they call God 'father'? Were they concerned with their gender roles? The eight essays in this collection were previously published in books and journals generally not available to many readers. Carefully selected and edited, this collection will be both an introduction and an invaluable source of reference to Bruce Malina's thought.