Helmut Koester
Encyclopedia
Helmut Koester is a German
-born American
scholar of the New Testament
and currently Morison Research Professor of Divinity
and Winn Research Professor of Ecclesiastical History
at Harvard Divinity School
. He teaches courses at both the Divinity School and at Harvard Extension School
, and was the president of the Society of Biblical Literature
. His Introduction to the New Testament is described as a "standard reference work."
Koester studied under Rudolf Bultmann
at the Philipps-University of Marburg
, Germany, after being released from a POW camp there in 1945. He later became an assistant of Günther Bornkamm
at the University of Heidelberg in 1954-1956. He was a visiting professor at Harvard in 1958, and became the John H. Morison Professor of Ecclesiastical History in 1963. Although now emeritus, he continues to teach at Harvard University and oversee (with Laura Nasrallah) the Harvard project Archeological Resources for the Study of the New Testament, which has been published by Fortress Press in CD-ROM format as "Cities of Paul: Images and Interpretations from the Harvard New Testament Archaeology Project."
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
-born American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
scholar of the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
and currently Morison Research Professor of Divinity
Divinity
Divinity and divine are broadly applied but loosely defined terms, used variously within different faiths and belief systems — and even by different individuals within a given faith — to refer to some transcendent or transcendental power or deity, or its attributes or manifestations in...
and Winn Research Professor of Ecclesiastical History
Ecclesiastical History
Ecclesiastical History or ecclesiastical history may refer to:*Ecclesiastical history *Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum by Bede*Church History , pioneer work on the Christian Church by Eusebius of Caesarea...
at Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University, located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the United States. The School's mission is to train and educate its students either in the academic study of religion, or for the practice of a religious ministry or other public...
. He teaches courses at both the Divinity School and at Harvard Extension School
Harvard Extension School
Harvard University Extension School, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of the thirteen degree-granting schools of Harvard University and is part of the Division of Continuing Education.-Origins:...
, and was the president of the Society of Biblical Literature
Society of Biblical Literature
The Society of Biblical Literature, founded 1880, is a constituent society of the American Council of Learned Societies , with the stated mission to "Foster Biblical Scholarship"...
. His Introduction to the New Testament is described as a "standard reference work."
Koester studied under Rudolf Bultmann
Rudolf Bultmann
Rudolf Karl Bultmann was a German theologian of Lutheran background, who was for three decades professor of New Testament studies at the University of Marburg...
at the Philipps-University of Marburg
Marburg
Marburg is a city in the state of Hesse, Germany, on the River Lahn. It is the main town of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district and its population, as of March 2010, was 79,911.- Founding and early history :...
, Germany, after being released from a POW camp there in 1945. He later became an assistant of Günther Bornkamm
Günther Bornkamm
Günther Bornkamm was a German New Testament scholar and Professor of New Testament at the University of Heidelberg.He was a student of Rudolf Bultmann with Ernst Käsemann , Ernst Fuchs and Hans Conzelmann ....
at the University of Heidelberg in 1954-1956. He was a visiting professor at Harvard in 1958, and became the John H. Morison Professor of Ecclesiastical History in 1963. Although now emeritus, he continues to teach at Harvard University and oversee (with Laura Nasrallah) the Harvard project Archeological Resources for the Study of the New Testament, which has been published by Fortress Press in CD-ROM format as "Cities of Paul: Images and Interpretations from the Harvard New Testament Archaeology Project."
Select bibliography
- With James M. RobinsonJames M. RobinsonJames McConkey Robinson is Professor Emeritus of Religion, Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, California. He is a member of the Jesus Seminar and arguably the most prominent Q and Nag Hammadi library scholar of the 20th century. He is also a major contributor to The International Q...
. Trajectories through Early Christianity. Philadelphia: Fortress, 1971. Reprinted, Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2006. (ISBN 159752736X) - Ancient Christian Gospels. Harrisburg: Trinity Press International, 1990. (ISBN 0334024501)
- Introduction to the New Testament. New York: DeGruyter, 1982. 2nd ed., 2002 (ISBN 3110146924)
- Introduction to the New Testament: History and Literature of Early Christianity, v. 2, 2000 http://books.google.com/books?id=qWflda5Erq4C&dq=%22helmut+koester%22+introduction+%22introduction+to+the+new+testament%22&pg=PP1&ots=WFCufAKeVC&sig=rQfGMFzJQ4SOCHx9B3SHDPZ4K4I&prev=http://www.google.com/search%3Fhl%3Den%26q%3D%2522Helmut%2BKoester%2522%2Bintroduction%2B%2522Introduction%2Bto%2Bthe%2BNew%2BTestament%2522%26btnG%3DSearch&sa=X&oi=print&ct=title&cad=one-book-with-thumbnail(preview).]
- Paul & His World: Interpreting the New Testament in its Context Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007. (ISBN 0800638905)
- From Jesus to the Gospels: Interpreting the New Testament in its Context. (ISBN 0800620933) Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007.