Prayer in the Gospels—A Theological Exegesis of the Ideal Pray-er

In a revision of his 2010 PhD dissertation at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, Nygaard (biblical studies, Fjellhaug International U. College, Norway) proposes that it is possible to describe the experience of prayer to a non-believer by identifying patterns in the text of the New Testament. Traditionally religious experience has been held to be inaccessible outside of belief. Working through the gospels in turn, he considers such topics as the ministry narrative in Matthew, the passion narrative in Mark, the infancy and travel narratives in Luke, and the signs narrative in John. Annotation c2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Mathias Nygaard, PhD (2010), University of Aberdeen, is Associate Professor of Biblical Studies at Fjellhaug International University College, Norway. He is also engaged in lecturing and religious dialogue in Asia.