Welcome to Westar Institute
Westar Institute is a non-profit, public-benefit research and educational organization that is dedicated to fostering and communicating the results of cutting-edge scholarship on the history and evolution of the Christian tradition, thereby raising the level of public discourse about questions that matter in society and culture.
I'm not someone who comments very often on politics. The reason I'm not is because politics creates enemies and I prefer friends. Sometimes, though, a situation is such that one must take a risk and speak up. Such is the case with the United States government which, for ideological reasons, moved its embassy to Jerusalem [...]
To uncover the origins of the tension between justice and mercy, we need to go back to the time when Israel split in two after Solomon’s death. Each of the kingdoms positioned itself as the most authoritative when it came to tradition and religious practice, which led to the writing of two significant documents. As a result, Jews of the first century CE could choose from their scripture and traditions two very different understandings of how to obtain God’s forgiveness.
In the spring of 2016 the Christianity Seminar focused its efforts on a renewed discussion of “origins” within the early Christian movement. The roots of this enterprise have been extensively researched in recent decades, yet the light of such work has yielded promising suggestions about the early Jesus movement that demand further consideration and exploration. As such, it seemed appropriate here to solicit additional comments and research data on this important [...]
Volume I of Roman Family Empires
Household, Empire, Resistance
In this first of two volumes of Roman Family Empires: Household, Empire, Resistance, Dr. Elliott examines the Roman household form as it was changing during the Augustan era.
Lloyd Geering forces us to respond to, rethink, and reinterpret Christian origins, institutions, and beliefs. He demands that we begin from a position of informed knowledge that includes a central engagement with science, religion, and scholarship. Geering came to prominence in an age when religion seemed to be losing its relevance. How do we explain his move from accused heretic to New Zealand’s foremost public intellectual? Through interviews, expansive notes, and an excellent introduction, Michael Grimshaw guides us through the life and times of Lloyd Geering.