Brant Pitre

Examines the Last Supper from a Jewish perspective, describing Passover during the time of Jesus Christ and the meaning behind his Eucharistic words, and discussing ancient Jewish beliefs about the Passover, the Manna, and the Bread of Presence.

Unlocking the Secrets of the Last Supper

Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist

A compelling exploration of the biblical foundations, contemplative practices, and spiritual path of Jesus himself—from the bestselling author of The Case for Jesus “What happens when a biblical theologian explores classic spirituality? This book. Pitre’s students have asked, Why have we never heard this before? The reader wonders the same.”—Dr. David Fagerberg, author of Liturgical Mysticism The path of following Jesus is an ancient and storied spiritual tradition. Yet many believers are not familiar with the three major forms of prayer and the three stages of spiritual growth that exist to bring them closer to God. In his most personal book yet, Brant Pitre, PhD, draws on the riches of the Bible, the words of Jesus, and the writings of mystics across the centuries to shed light on the mystery—and wonder—of the spiritual life. Starting with the age-old belief that the path of prayer is not only informative but transformative, Dr. Pitre explores • the scriptural roots of the major forms of prayer: vocal prayer, meditation, and contemplation • the purgative, illuminative, and unitive stages of spiritual growth • the spiritual exercises of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving • the Jewish roots of the Lord’s Prayer • Lectio Divina: how to pray with the Bible • seven vices and their seven opposing virtues • the battle of prayer: how to deal with difficulty and distractions • the “dark night of the soul” in the Scriptures Full of sacred truths, contemplative insights, and practical steps, Introduction to the Spiritual Life is a biblical road map of the spiritual landscape that enables us to follow Jesus as our primary guide.

Walking the Path of Prayer with Jesus

Introduction to the Spiritual Life

Scott Hahn

Michael P. Barber

John A. Kincaid

After the landmark work of E. P. Sanders, the task of rightly accounting for Paul's relationship to Judaism has dominated the last forty years of Pauline scholarship. Pitre, Barber, and Kincaid argue that Paul is best viewed as a new covenant Jew, a designation that allows the apostle to be fully Jewish, yet in a manner centered on the person and work of Jesus the Messiah. This new covenant Judaism provides the key that unlocks the door to many of the difficult aspects of Pauline theology. Paul, a New Covenant Jew is a rigorous, yet accessible overview of Pauline theology intended for ecumenical audiences. In particular, it aims to be the most useful and up to date text on Paul for Catholic Seminarians. The book engages the best recent scholarship on Paul from both Protestant and Catholic interpreters and serves as a launching point for ongoing Protestant-Catholic dialogue.

Rethinking Pauline Theology

Paul, a New Covenant Jew

In Jesus the Bridegroom, Brant Pitre once again taps into the wells of Jewish Scripture and tradition, and unlocks the secrets of what is arguably the most well-known symbol of the Christian faith: the cross of Christ. In this thrilling exploration, Pitre shows how the suffering and death of Jesus was far more than a tragic Roman execution. Instead, the Passion of Christ was the fulfillment of ancient Jewish prophecies of a wedding, when the God of the universe would wed himself to humankind in an everlasting nuptial covenant. To be sure, most Christians are familiar with the apostle Paul’s teaching that Christ is the ‘Bridegroom’ and the Church is the ‘Bride’. But what does this really mean? And what would ever possess Paul to compare the death of Christ to the love of a husband for his wife? If you would have been at the Crucifixion, with Jesus hanging there dying, is that how you would have described it? How could a first-century Jew like Paul, who knew how brutal Roman crucifixions were, have ever compared the execution of Jesus to a wedding? And why does he refer to this as the “great mystery” (Ephesians 5:32)? As Pitre shows, the key to unlocking this mystery can be found by going back to Jewish Scripture and tradition and seeing the entire history of salvation, from Mount Sinai to Mount Calvary, as a divine love story between Creator and creature, between God and Israel, between Christ and his bride—a story that comes to its climax on the wood of a Roman cross. In the pages of Jesus the Bridegroom, dozens of familiar passages in the Bible—the Exodus, the Song of Songs, the Wedding at Cana, the Woman at the Well, the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, and even the Second Coming at the End of Time—are suddenly transformed before our eyes. Indeed, when seen in the light of Jewish Scripture and tradition, the life of Christ is nothing less than the greatest love story ever told.

The Greatest Love Story Ever Told

Jesus the Bridegroom

The bestselling follow-up to Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist. Includes a reader's guide and an excerpt from Pitre's The Case for Jesus. In Jesus the Bridegroom, Brant Pitre once again taps into the wells of Jewish Scripture and tradition, and unlocks the secrets of what is arguably the most well-known symbol of the Christian faith: the cross of Christ. In this thrilling exploration, Pitre shows how the suffering and death of Jesus was far more than a tragic Roman execution. Instead, the Passion of Christ was the fulfillment of ancient Jewish prophecies of a wedding, when the God of the universe would wed himself to humankind in an everlasting nuptial covenant. To be sure, most Christians are familiar with the apostle Paul's teaching that Christ is the 'Bridegroom' and the Church is the 'Bride'. But what does this really mean? And what would ever possess Paul to compare the death of Christ to the love of a husband for his wife? If you would have been at the Crucifixion, with Jesus hanging there dying, is that how you would have described it? How could a first-century Jew like Paul, who knew how brutal Roman crucifixions were, have ever compared the execution of Jesus to a wedding? And why does he refer to this as the "great mystery" (Ephesians 5:32)? As Pitre shows, the key to unlocking this mystery can be found by going back to Jewish Scripture and tradition and seeing the entire history of salvation, from Mount Sinai to Mount Calvary, as a divine love story between Creator and creature, between God and Israel, between Christ and his bride--a story that comes to its climax on the wood of a Roman cross. In the pages of Jesus the Bridegroom, dozens of familiar passages in the Bible--the Exodus, the Song of Songs, the Wedding at Cana, the Woman at the Well, the Last Supper, the Crucifixion, and even the Second Coming at the End of Time--are suddenly transformed before our eyes. Indeed, when seen in the light of Jewish Scripture and tradition, the life of Christ is nothing less than the greatest love story ever told.

Who did Jesus of Nazareth claim to be? What was his relationship to early Judaism? When and how did he expect the kingdom to come? What were his intentions? Though these key questions have been addressed in studies of the historical Jesus, Brant Pitre argues that they cannot be fully answered apart from a careful historical analysis of the Last Supper accounts. Yet these accounts, both by the Gospel writers and by Paul, are widely neglected by contemporary Jesus research. In this book Pitre fills a notable gap in historical Jesus research as he offers a rigorous, up-to-date study of the historical Jesus and the Last Supper. Situating the Last Supper in the triple contexts of ancient Judaism, the life of Jesus, and early Christianity, Pitre brings to light crucial insights into major issues driving the quest for Jesus. His Jesus and the Last Supper is sure to ignite scholarly discussion and debate.

Jesus and the Last Supper

Michael Barber

John Bergsma

Edward Sri

Nathan Eubank

Jeremy Holmes

Leroy Huizenga

Sean Innerst

Jeffrey Morrow

Promise and Fulfillment: The Relationship Between the Old and the New Testaments is the eight volume in the acclaimed series from Scott Hahn’s St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology. Letter & Spirit, the most widely read journal of Catholic Biblical Theology in English, seeks to foster a deeper conversation about the Bible. The series takes a crucial step toward recovering the fundamental link between the literary and historical study of Scripture and its religious and spiritual meaning in the Church’s liturgy and Tradition. This volume features an all-star lineup tackling one of the oldest questions in Christian biblical scholarship — the relationship between the Old and New Testaments. Highlights include Hahn’s essay on the meaning of covenant in Hebrews 9 and Brant Pitre’s reading of the parable of the Royal Wedding Feast (Matt 22:1-14) against the backdrop of Jewish Scripture and tradition.

Letter & Spirit, Vol. 8: Promise and Fulfillment: The Relationship Between the Old and New Testaments

Traducere de Tatiana NiculescuPostfaţă de Robert Barron, episcop auxiliar de Los Angeles „Această carte porneşte de la o singură mare întrebare: A pretins Isus Nazarineanul că e Fiul lui Dumnezeu? Trebuie să atrag atenţia de la început că nu e o pledoarie exhaustivă. Nu e nici o pledoarie adresată specialiştilor, deşi, în note, îi citez pe mulţi dintre ei. Creştini, evrei, musulmani, agnostici sau atei – indiferent de orientarea religioasă –, dacă aţi dorit vreodată să judecaţi singuri dovezile biblice şi istorice privitoare la Isus, atunci această carte vi se adresează.“ (BRANT PITRE) „Isus își întreabă la un moment dat prietenii apropiați: «Cine zice lumea că sunt Eu?» Și de atunci până în zilele noastre această întrebare primește nenumărate răspunsuri: un profet, un învățător remarcabil, o întruchipare a lui Ioan Botezătorul, Mesia, un vizionar, un făcător de minuni, o figură mitică... Teolog erudit, Brand Pitre își pune credința la încercare cu fiecare nouă carte. În Fiul lui Dumnezeu? Pledoarie pentru Isus, investigația sa în lumea iudaică a secolului întâi se construiește ca un roman polițist în jurul întrebării: Cine zice Isus că este El? Care sunt dovezile, motivele și argumentele care îi conferă identitatea de Fiu al lui Dumnezeu? Această carte scrisă de un om care-și trăiește credința deopotrivă cu neliniște și pasiune se citește pe nerăsuflate și se adresează oricui e curios să-l descopere (din nou) pe Isus. (TATIANA NICULESCU) Ilustraţia copertei: Marco Palmezzano, Salvator Mundi, ulei pe pânză, cca 1495-1498 (detaliu)

Pledoarie pentru Isus

Fiul lui Dumnezeu?

“This book will prove to be a most effective weapon… against the debunking and skeptical attitudes toward the Gospels that are so prevalent, not only in academe, but also on the street, among young people who, sadly, are leaving the Churches in droves.” – Robert Barron, author of Catholicism For well over a hundred years now, many scholars have questioned the historical truth of the Gospels, claiming that they were originally anonymous. Others have even argued that Jesus of Nazareth did not think he was God and never claimed to be divine. In The Case for Jesus, Dr. Brant Pitre, the bestselling author of Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist, goes back to the sources—the biblical and historical evidence for Christ—in order to answer several key questions, including: • Were the four Gospels really anonymous? • Are the Gospels folklore? Or are they biographies? • Were the four Gospels written too late to be reliable? • What about the so-called “Lost Gospels,” such as “Q” and the Gospel of Thomas? • Did Jesus claim to be God? • Is Jesus divine in all four Gospels? Or only in John? • Did Jesus fulfill the Jewish prophecies of the Messiah? • Why was Jesus crucified? • What is the evidence for the Resurrection? As The Case for Jesus will show, recent discoveries in New Testament scholarship, as well as neglected evidence from ancient manuscripts and the early church fathers, together have the potential to pull the rug out from under a century of skepticism toward the traditional Gospels. Above all, Pitre shows how the divine claims of Jesus of Nazareth can only be understood by putting them in their ancient Jewish context.

The Biblical and Historical Evidence for Christ

The Case for Jesus

Matthew Levering

John Kincaid

Ian Christopher Levy

Ben Blackwell

Daniel Keating

St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology

Benjamin Blosser

Andrew Swafford

Matthew Ramage

Letter & Spirit, Vol. 11: "Our Beloved Brother Paul" - Reception History of Paul in Catholic Tradition

Who did Jesus of Nazareth claim to be? What was his relationship with early Judaism? When and how did he expect the kingdom to come? What were his intentions? Though these key questions have been addressed in studies of the historical Jesus, Brant Pitre argues that they cannot be fully answered apart from a careful historical analysis of the Last Supper accounts. In this book Pitre offers a rigorous, up-to-date study of the historical Jesus and the Last Supper, filling a significant gap in current Jesus research. Situating the Last Supper in the triple contexts of ancient Judaism, the life of Jesus, and early Christianity, Pitre brings to light crucial insights into major issues driving the quest for Jesus. His Jesus and the Last Supper is sure to ignite discussion and debate.

Traducere de Tatiana Niculescu Care să fie cea mai frumoasă poveste de dragoste a tuturor timpurilor? O poveste care rezistă tuturor încercărilor, trădărilor și părăsirilor. Cine este acest Dumnezeu care ia chipul Mirelui mistic? Despre ce nuntă e vorba? La ce petrecere își invită Isus prietenii? În sfârșit, cum se poate trăi o viață religioasă cu bucuria și dăruirea unui ospăț nupțial? Brant Pitre este un maestru al aventurilor spirituale în textele consacrate ale creștinismului și un neîntrecut arheolog al secolului inaugurat de nașterea lui Cristos. Scrisă cu simplitatea înțelepciunii erudite, pe înțelesul oricui, această carte îl surprinde, îl încântă și îl pune pe gânduri pe cititorul dornic să înțeleagă Scripturile. Pe copertă: autor necunoscut, cca 1420, Isus și femeia samariteană la fântână (detaliu)

Isus Mirele. Cea mai frumoasă poveste de dragoste a tuturor timpurilor

Traducere de Monica Broșteanu „Mulți oameni se raportează cu încredere la «Maica Domnului». În ortodoxie e numită mai ales «Născătoare de Dumnezeu» și «Pururea Fecioara Maria». În catolicism, titlurile ei sunt mai multe, mai ales în litanii. Pentru protestanți, e doar mama lui Isus. Dar câți dintre aceia care o invocă – sau o ignoră – se străduiesc să o cunoască? Nici nu e ușor. Evangheliile ne spun foarte puțin, iar celelalte scrieri ale Noului Testament – aparent, mai nimic. Teologul american Brant Pitre, cunoscut la noi datorită celor trei cărți apărute la Humanitas (Misterul Cinei de pe urmă, Pledoarie pentru Isus și Isus Mirele), aplică și cercetării de față aceeași me­todă cu care ne-a obișnuit: o atentă explorare a Vechiului Testament, dar și a creștinismului antic, cu profunda lui înrădăcinare în iudaismul de secol I. Rezultă un studiu tipologic pasionant – figura Mariei se desprinde în toată complexitatea și frumusețea ei și devine de interes nu doar pentru creștinii de toate confesiunile, ci și pentru evrei și pentru musulmani.“ — MONICA BROȘTEANU Pe copertă: Giovanni Bellini, Madonna di Alzano (detaliu)

Isus si radacinile evreiesti ale Mariei

Although many Catholics are familiar with the four Gospels and other writings of the New Testament, for most, reading the Old Testament is like walking into a foreign land. Who wrote these forty-six books? When were they written? Why were they written? What are we to make of their laws, stories, histories, and prophecies? Should the Old Testament be read by itself or in light of the New Testament? John Bergsma and Brant Pitre offer readable in-depth answers to these questions as they introduce each book of the Old Testament. They not only examine the literature from a historical and cultural perspective but also interpret it theologically, drawing on the New Testament and the faith of the Catholic Church. Unique among introductions, this volume places the Old Testament in its liturgical context, showing how its passages are employed in the current Lectionary used at Mass. Accessible to nonexperts, this thorough and up-to-date introduction to the Old Testament can serve as an idea textbook for biblical studies. Its unique approach, along with its maps, illustrations, and other reference materials, makes it a valuable resource for seminarians, priests, Scripture scholars, theologians, and catechists, as well as anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the Bible.

Brant Pitre

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