I am excited to introduce my next book, Scripting the Son, which will be published in the Studies in Early Christology series by Cascade later this year. My last 18 months have been devoted to the research, writing, and editing of this book, and I am happy to share that the manuscript is now complete. By way of introduction, the back-cover summary and table of contents follow below. I look forward to sharing more about this new book in the months to come!

Summary

In Scripting the Son, Kyle R. Hughes analyzes how dialogical texts in the Old Testament presented early Christian exegetes with riddles that were best solved through a person-centered reading strategy known as prosopological exegesis. From the method’s roots in the pages of the New Testament through its increasingly careful application in the hands of church fathers such as Justin, Irenaeus, Tertullian, and Origen, this book traces how prosopological exegesis contributed to the development of Christology in the pre-Nicene period. By examining the origins and evolution of this approach to biblical interpretation, Hughes demonstrates how the very words of Scripture exerted a pressure for a Trinitarian understanding of God that was rooted in the Old Testament and aligned with the emerging rule of faith, exemplifying the dynamic interplay between biblical interpretation and doctrinal formulation in the early centuries of Christianity.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: The Trinity and the Old Testament
2. The New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature
3. Justin Martyr
4. Irenaeus of Lyons
5. Tertullian of Carthage
6. Later Developments in the West
7. Origen of Alexandria
8. Conclusion: Scripting the Son