How different from ours was the world inhabited by the people of the New Testament? Were all the early Christians budding theologians? Slaves? Middle class? Did people perceive the early church as some sort of club? A new religion? A revolutionary movement? Most people realise that the study of history, archaeology and geography can enhance our understanding of the New Testament. The relevance of sociology has not been recognised until comparatively recently. The questions listed above are among those dealt with by Derek Tidball in this introduction to the sociological aspects of the New Testament. He surveys the Jewish world, Roman social institutions, the nature of the 'Jesus movement', the way in which the Church became institutionalized and much more.