George Smith, a twentieth-century American, moved into a house with a large vineyard in the Eastern Mediterranean during the first century AD, going back in time and space. He needed help on his land and requested that individuals interested in work be at his place at 9 a.m. on August 8. No one showed up. Why not? This is just one of the sixty fun-to-read vignettes Bruce Malina cleverly presents in this book that explains the customs and culture of the world in which Jesus lived and taught. Each adventure depicts a twentieth-century North American encountering puzzling practices while visiting Judea during ancient times. These vignettes offer quick and easy access to the first-century Mediterranean world and relate to segments of the New Testament and other passages from the same cultural area.
Bruce J. Malina is Professor of New Testament and Early Christianity of the Department of Theology at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska.