William L. Petersen, Professor
of Religious Studies and Classic and Ancient Mediterranean Studies 1990-2006, passed away on December 20, 2006.
For an appreciation of Petersen's life, published by the Society for Biblical Literature, click here.
Fields
The New Testament and the first centuries of Christianity (down to about 550 CE)
“My research focuses on the two areas. One is the text of the New Testament, especially as found in the writings of the earliest church fathers, and in apocryphal texts. The other is Judaic Christianity, that is, the earliest pre-Pauline Christians, and their understanding of Christianity.
“Currently I am completing a book on the genesis of the New Testament, as discerned through such early Christian writings as Second Clement (composed about 140 CE), and other early Christian authors. My research is often used by various groups and organizations as primary material for political, religious, and social discussion, for it is empirical, and concerns the Christian Bible, its transmission and change over time, and the history of its interpretation.”
Undergraduate Courses
New Testament Introduction
Early Christianity
Major Christian Thinkers
Graduate Courses
Issues of Gender in Early Christianity
Methodologies in the Study of Religion
The Genesis of the New Testament
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