Book excerpt: Explore the significance of maternal metaphors in the writings of a first-century male missionary and theologian Paul employed metaphors of childbirth or breastfeeding in four out of the seven undisputed epistles. In this book, McNeel uses cognitive metaphor theory and social identity analysis to examine the meaning and function of these maternal metaphors. She asserts that metaphors carry cognitive content and that they are central to how humans process information, construct reality, and shape group identity. Features: A focus on “identity” as the way in which people understand themselves in relation to one another, to society, and to those perceived as outsiders Examination of metaphor as part of Paul’s rhetorical strategy Integration of the work of philosopher Max Black with the work of cognitive linguists George Lakoff and Mark Johnson