Books by Christian A Eberhart

Tous les chrétiens savent que Jésus a institué une célébration avec du pain et du vin. Certains l'appellent le repas du Seigneur, d'autres l'appellent la cène, la communion ou l'eucharistie. Pourquoi les chrétiens participent-ils encore à cette célébration de nos jours? Quel en est le sens? Et qu'est-ce que cela nous apprend sur le ministère de Jésus Christ?Professeur Christian A. Eberhart répond à ces questions par l'étude des textes fondateurs. Il nous immerge tout d'abord dans les textes du Nouveau Testament qui font référence au dernier repas de Jésus. Puis la quête de sens nous mène dans l'Ancien Testament, où nous poursuivons la recherche sur les thèmes de la Pâque juive, des rituels sacrificiels et de l'expiation. Ces textes nous offrent des clés déterminantes pour la compréhension du pardon des péchés à l'œuvre durant la communion. Pr Eberhart montre aussi que cette célébration instituée par Jésus est un repas ritualisé. Par conséquent, il explore aussi les fonctions sociales des repas communautaires dans l'antiquité gréco-romaine. Au final, la communion apparaît tel un puissant symbole, encore pertinent de nos jours, qui transmet l'amour de Dieu et l'idéal d'une société inclusive.

Exploring nonviolent images of atonement--The ""sacrifice"" of Jesus is one of the most central doctrines in Christianity--and one of the most controversial, especially in contemporary debate (and after the appearance of films such as The Passion of the Christ). The implications of a violent parent and the necessity of innocent suffering are profoundly troubling to many people. Are they nevertheless necessary elements of Christian theology?Christian A. Eberhart makes a decisive contribution to these debates by carefully and clearly examining the Old Testament metaphors of sacrifice and atonement and the ways these metaphors were taken over by early Christians to speak of the significance of Christ. Eberhart shows that these New Testament appropriations have been misunderstood as requiring a logic of necessary violence; rather they speak to larger Christological themes concerning the whole mission and life of Jesus.Dr. Christian A. Eberhart is Professor and Program Director of Religious Studies at the University of Houston. He graduated from Harvard University, Divinity School (Cambridge, MA) and has a doctorate in Hebrew Bible studies from the University of Heidelberg (Germany) as well as a second doctorate (Habilitation) in Early Christian literature from the University of Mainz (Germany).Dr. Eberhart is a seminar founder and convener for the Society of New Testament Studies. He has published various books in English and German, among them What a Difference a Meal Makes: The Last Supper in the Bible and in the Christian Church (2016). He edited the volume Ritual and Metaphor: Sacrifice in the Bible (2011) and co-edited the volume Sacrifice, Cult, and Atonement in Early Judaism and Christianity: Constituents and Critique (2017).

"Biblical scholar Christian Eberhart unpacks the words of institution of Christian communion services by explaining how first-century Christians would have understood "This is my body, this is my blood." Using a conversational style, Professor Eberhart makes his extensive scholarship accessible to a non-academic audience. Readers will find their own experience of communion deepened after reading this book."Rev. Dr. Priscilla Eppinger, Professor of Religion, Community of Christ Seminary at Graceland University All Christians know that Jesus instituted a celebration with bread and wine. It has various different names, such as Last Supper, Lord's Supper, Communion, or Eucharist. Why do Christians today still participate in this celebration? What is its meaning? And what does it tell us about the ministry of Jesus Christ? This book answers these questions by looking closely at the foundational texts in the Bible. It is an invitation to first study relevant New Testament texts on the Last Supper of Jesus. From there the quest for meaning continues to the Old Testament where topics such as Passover, sacrificial rituals, and atonement are investigated. These texts offer decisive clues on how to comprehend forgiveness of sins that is effective during the Last Supper. Moreover, this book shows that the celebration which Jesus instituted was a ritualized meal. Therefore it explores social functions of communal meals in Greco-Roman antiquity. Thus the Last Supper emerges as a powerful symbol that is still relevant today, conveying the love of God and the ideal of an inclusive society.