Michael T Cooper

The city of Ephesus was the site of the most significant church planting movement in the early church, with 40 percent of the New Testament texts relating to it. What made that city the epicenter of the movement? And how can we replicate sustained movements in a world that feels so different? This is not another methodology or attempt to re-contextualize evangelicalism. Rather, it is a journey from the launch of the church in Ephesus as it became a movement grounded in God's mission and led by those who multiplied generations of disciples. Michael T. Cooper focuses on Paul and John as missiological theologians who successfully connected Jesus's teaching with the cultural context and narrative of the people in Ephesus. Their ability to relate the God of all creation to a people who sought him in vain resulted in "the Way" transforming the religious, intellectual, economic, and social fabrics of the Ephesian society. Ephesiology offers a comprehensive view of the redemptive movement of the Holy Spirit in this city and compels us to ask the question: how can we effectively connect Christ to our culture? Through this study of a movement, discover how the Holy-Spirit still changes lives, cities, and the world.

Have you ever wondered about the origins of Christmas and the traditions celebrated in Western cultures? What about the myth of the jolly, old fellow who flies with incredible speed in a sleigh pulled by eight tiny reindeer? What about the story of St. Nicholas of Myra and his remarkable generosity? And, what about those remarkable events surrounding the Nativity? Are they trustworthy or just fanciful stories. Unwrapping the First Christmas is a little book that helps readers answer these questions and many more. Written for Christians around the world, Unwrapping the First Christmas shares the origins of many Western traditions and myths like the Christmas tree, mistletoe, and Santa Claus that have found their way into popular culture and often distract people from the very first Christmas. After explaining the American fascination with Santa Claus and the origins of traditional Christmas, Dr. Cooper explains the case for the date of the very first Christmas as well as answers the questions about the heavenly host and star of Bethlehem. In the end, he shares four Advent devotionals that will inspire you and your family to learn about the true story of the birth of Jesus. To challenge your understanding of the Christmas story, he provides a fun test that families and friends can use around the Christmas tree to test their knowledge of what is the most remarkable miracle in the history of humanity.Acclaim for Unwrapping the First Christmas"I knew I needed to read this book after I failed the 10 multi-choice questionnaire on the Christmas story facts that is at the beginning of the book I have been an Anglican minister here in New Zealand for 30 years. Anglicans really know how to do Christmas with the season of Advent, lots of 'nine lessons and carols' services, midnight Christmas services, etc. Somehow I had never thought about the facts that surround the season of Christmas and the traditions that have somehow attached themselves to the celebration of Jesus's birth. I think the wonder of this book is that it takes you back to what Christmas is really about - God becoming a man and living among us." -Rev. Gradon Harvey, National Director, North-SouthNew Zealand "Dr. Cooper has mixed real life and family-minded encouragement with thorough historical and scientific research in order to bring a rich and transformational turn on the implications of the incarnation. For the faithful and the skeptic, for the scholar and the parent, here is miracle and reality as our Father surely intended." -Dr. Neal F. Brower, Western District Superintendent, Evangelical Free Church of America "This book is a must read for every Christian. Dr. Michael Cooper, unwraps beautifully the true meaning of celebrating Christmas. It gives the clear understanding of the festival called Christmas to the lay people and an in-depth study to the theologians. It uncovers the myths associated with the Christmas and leads us to the true meaning of first Christmas in Bethlehem." -Pastor Vinod Abraham, Founder and President, SEWA Punjab, India"Dr. Cooper makes a convincing argument for the reliability of Christ's birth from a historical scientific perspective. I'm quite impressed."-Pastor Matt Till, Restoration Church, Chicago, USA

Written by leading evangelical scholars, Social Injustice, Volume I: What Evangelicals Need to Know about the World explores the Christian heritage of social justice from biblical, historical, and missiological perspectives.William Moulder and Michael Cooper have done us a great service in compiling these essays on justice from an evangelical perspective. The first three essays in this timely and important book lay out the biblical, theological and historical foundations of justice. The next seven essays address the practical application of biblical principles of justice to a wide range of issues in the global context: (1) human trafficking in India; (2) bioethics and exploitation in the global medical enterprise; (3) education and freedom in Ethiopia; (4) the care of Haitian orphans: (5) literacy in Afghanistan; (6) food production and our relationship to the land as a gift from God; and (7) membership rights.The ten chapters will challenge Christians to consider their role in stepping into social justice issues from a distinctly evangelical position. The topic is of considerable importance to the ongoing mission of God in the world. With increasing numbers of millennials and Gen Zs focused on their contribution to global change, Social Injustice provides a solid theological foundation for engaging some of the most important social issues of our day.

Michael T. Cooper's Contemporary Druidry: A Historical and Ethnographic Study is a profoundly sensitive account of a pagan identity from an evangelical Christian researcher. The work amounts to an interfaith breakthrough. Not only a sympathetic and enlightening understanding of Druidry itself, but Cooper also manages to open the possibilities of intellectual and empathetic exchange between a pagan position and a Christian one. Comfortably grounded with a balance of sociological tools and understandings, Cooper's remarkably human and informative narrative holds appeal to the insider as well as outsider, to the generally curious as well as those with specific interest.