Etienne Charpentier (1930–1981)

This is the New Testament companion to Charpentier's "Reading the Old Testament". Presented in the same conversational style, it is rich in graphic illustrations to help the student better grasp Paul's missionary journeys, the priestly aristocracy and the temple establishment and the geography of the Holy Land in the first century. The first book he talks about is not a gospel but the Acts of the Apostles so that we can understand the world in which the first Christians lived, how they celebrated and expressed the gift of faith in the Holy Spirit and how they brought the Good News to the farthest reaches of the Roman Empire.… (mere)

Charpentier's "Reading the Old Testament" is one of my favourite Bible study guides. Reading it is like having a very patient Bible Professor take you through the ancient near east world with its complex ever-changing political alliances which impacted Israel. It is great that Charpentier reminds us at the start that the writings in the Old Testament reflect the life of a people "seized with a passion for God" (p8). Hence the Old Testament is to be read as a people's reflection and "rereading" of its life as God's chosen people as they progress (and misstep) in their journey on earth.… (mere)