Best, Thomas F. "The Sociological Study of the New Testament: Promise and Peril of a New Discipline." SJT 36 (1983): 181-194.
Survey of the work done up to 1983 using this approach. Gives five steps which the author thinks are vital for the perfecting of the discipline.
BR1 .S3 v. 36

Elliott, John H. A Home for the Homeless: A Sociological Exegesis of 1 Peter, Its Situation and Strategy. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1981.
A combination of literary and sociological techniques so as to determine the situation and strategy of the epistle. BS2795.2 .E42

________. "Social-Scientific Criticism of the New Testament: More on Methods and Models." Semeia 35 (1986): 1-33.
Essay calls for greater emphasis on models, or "tools for transforming theories into research operations", and less on theory, and offers a critique of Theissen's work in the area, and gives a good bibliography.
BS410 .S45 v. 35

Fiorenza, Elisabeth S. In Memory of Her: A Feminist Theological Reconstruction of Christian Origins. New York: Crossroad, 1983.
A fine study which gives "a historical-critical reconstruction of women's history and women's contributions to early Christian beginnings."
BR129 .F56 1983

Harrington, Daniel. "Sociological Concepts and the Early Church: A Decade of Research."Theological Studies 41 (1980): 181-190.
Points out the pitfalls of the use of the sociological method. Sociological jargon as used here helps the beginner to get past the language barrier.
BX801 .T4 v. 41

Holmberg, Bengt. Sociology and the New Testament. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1990.
Clear presentation and analysis of important aspects of ongoing work in New Testament sociology.
BS 2545 .S55 H65 1990

Kee, Howard C. Christian Origins in Sociological Perspective. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1980.
This book is more a discussion of the usefulness of applying the sociological method of analysis to the NT than it is an application of the method.
BR129 .K43

________. Knowing the Truth: A Sociological Approach to New Testament Interpretation. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1989.
This slim book is what the author calls "a methodological prologue to a New Testament Theology" which is forthcoming. It is an improvement on Kee's earlier work in this area. Its starting point is the sociology of knowledge, thus the influence of such scholars as Weber, Schultz, Luckmann, and Berger is evident.
BS 2361.2 K44 1989

Malherbe, Abraham J. Social Aspects of Early Christianity. 2nd enlarged ed. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1983.
Author adds a chapter and epilogue to the 1977 publication of his Rockwell lec-tures given at Rice University. The addition takes into account advances made in the new discipline.
BR166 .M34 1983

Meeks, Wayne. The First Urban Christians: The Social World of the Apostle Paul. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1983.
A definitive work which uses the conventions of social historians to reconstruct the social world which lies behind the Pauline literature.
BR166 .M44 1983

Malina, Bruce. The New Testament World: Insights From Cultural Anthropology. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1981.
Cultural mores such as honor, shame, kinship, marriage, and taboos regarding cleanness and uncleanness, inform this analysis of the NT writings.
BS2361.2 .M15

________. Christian Origins and Cultural Anthropology: Practical Models for Biblical Interpretation. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1986.
Building on the work of sociologist, Mary Douglas, the author uses the "group/ grid" paradigm to interpret the NT documents.
BS661 .M34 1986

Schottroff, Luise. Let the Oppressed Go Free. trans. by Annemarie S. Kidder. Louisville: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1993
This book introduces the feminist social-historical method. The author's careful inquiry into hitherto neglected areas of historical research unearths a wealth of social-historical information.
BS 2445 .S3762513 1993

Sroggs, Robin. "The Sociological Interpretation of the New Testament: The Present State of Research." NTS 26 (January 1980): 164-79.
Surveys the discipline from its beginning with Comte up to 1978, touching even on Marxist analysis. Problems of the method are also outlined.
BS410 .N5 v. 26

Theissen, Gerd. Sociology of Early Palestinian Christianity. Trans. by John Bowden. Phila-delphia: Fortress Press, 1978. Published in Britain under the title The First Followers of Jesus. London: SCM Press.
Author gives a very innovative and well argued exegesis but does not specify what sociological theories he follows. NT students might be distressed by his division of synoptic tradition into "Hellenistic" and "Palestinian".
BR166 .T4713 1978

________. The Social Setting of Pauline Christianity: Essays on Corinth. Trans. by John H. Schutz. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1982.
These five essays, all on Corinth, place Theissen's work within the context of NT social world scholarship, and "comprise an internally coherent effort to understand the Pauline community in that city."
BR2675.2 .T4313 1982

Tidball, D. An Introduction to the Sociology of the New Testament. Exeter: Paternoster Press, 1983.
A balanced approach to the discipline, calling wary theologians to give up their suspicions, while at the same time pointing out the problems of the method.
BS2361.2 .T522 1983

NB. The nature of research in Biblical Studies, and NT in particular, necessitates incorporating into NT analyses the work of social scientists--sociology of religion, sociology of knowledge, cultural anthropology, etc. In this regard some important names may be mentioned with the hope that students familiarize themselves with the classic texts of Max Weber, Alfred Schutz, Emile Durkheim, Peter Berger, Thomas Luckmann, Mary Douglas, Gerhard Lenski, and Bryan Wilson. These names only sample the vast resource that presently exists, especially as new and younger scholars are adding.