Eric Brewer

Eric's dissertation examines the portrayal of friendships in the Gospel of Luke, comparing them to Greco-Roman literature and inscriptions. It highlights how Luke differentiates between superior and inferior friendships based on the gospel’s values, contrasting with the elite values of the Greco-Roman world. The dissertation argues that Luke views friendships that share resources with the marginalized as superior to those that hoard resources.  Eric has been writing chapters on Greco-Roman friendship and passages in Luke containing the term “philos” (friend) and is currently working on a chapter about friendship with Jesus. 

Additionally, Eric has worked on the Parables Database, a project that provides a searchable database of Greco-Roman and early Jewish texts related to the parables of Jesus. He has been responsible for designing the database’s user interface as well as testing and improving the accuracy of a custom algorithm that was developed to automatically tag texts based on their content. The database is now available for educators in both the academy and the church.

In the future, Eric hopes to write an article on friendship in the Acts of the Apostles and continuing to develop the Parables Database to make it more accessible for ministry professionals and students. He aims to introduce modern audiences to Greco-Roman literature and culture, enhancing their understanding of the New Testament.

What Faculty Say

Eric takes the well-known social custom of friendship and places it within its ancient cultural, rhetorical, and theological contexts. The results are stunning!  Especially insightful is his research into friendships among women in the ancient Greco-Roman world and the ways those friendships shed light on passages such as the Parable of the Lost Coin in Luke 15.  His written work is excellent, and his presence and oral presentation are
equally impressive.