dc.description.abstract | This study argues that presentations of economic issues in Luke¿s Gospel display aspects of a market economy and economic rationality within the context of the Roman imperial economy. In terms of ancient Roman economic history, this study is a continuation of decades-long scholarly debates concerning economic primitivism versus modernism and economic substantivism versus formalism. Especially, this study stands primarily in the position of economic modernism and formalism in order to redress and/or overcome some scholarly prejudices prevalent in New Testament scholarship that are caused by adopting primitivist and substantivist approaches. As far as methodologies are concerned, this study has utilized a mixture of historical and social scientific approaches. Specifically, this study has employed key categories and concepts of modern economics, so-called ¿neo-classical synthesis,¿ and methods from game theory. By doing so, this study helps to redress a somewhat biased understanding of the Roman imperial economy based upon primitivism and substantivism that has been prevalent in New Testament scholarship. Moreover, this study has shown that an economy as a social category may have exerted a more important role in the life of ancient Roman people than scholars of primitivism and substantivism circle have argued. Furthermore, this study has offered fresh insights into economic issues in Luke¿s Gospel and demonstrated how reading Luke¿s Gospel can be rich and diverse once we assume viewpoints that are different from primitivism and substantivism concerning the Roman imperial economy. | |