Biblical scholars are increasingly draw on methods derived from the cognitive science of religion, memory studies, study of ritual as well as various social-scientific and social psychological approaches. This volume introduces and assesses a wide range of these methods, roughly in the chronological order they have been adopted in biblical studies, providing useful background information about their roots in the disciplines they were adopted from.
Each chapter includes an introduction and a critical discussion of closely related approaches, followed by one or two examples of their application. The methodological repertoire of the volume culminates in the final chapter, which provides a cultural-evolutionary explanation for the early survival and relative popularity of the canonical gospels.