The Rise Of Christianity

The rise of Christianity up to the victory of Constantine has often been studied and remains a puzzling phenomenon. In this valedictory lecture Jan N. Bremmer concentrates on the explanations adduced, focusing in particular on the works of three iconic figures from the last two hundred and fifty years: The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire of Edward Gibbon, the most famous ancient historian of all time, at the end of the eighteenth century; Die Mission und Ausbreitung des Christentums of Adolf von Harnack, the greatest historian of early Christianity of all time, around 1900, and The Rise of Christianity of Rodney Stark, the most adventurous sociologist of religion of our times, at the end of the twentieth century.Bremmer locates their concerns and explanations within their own times, but also takes them seriously as scholars, discussing their analyses and approaches. In this way he shows both the continuities and the innovations in the evolving view which scholarship presents of early Christianity. Bremmer's exceptional knowledge of the huge range of scholarship and his humane and balanced judgment make this lecture the ideal introduction to the many problems raised by Christianity's displacement of paganism

An outstanding resource for high school readers and first-year college students, this book explores early Christianity from its beginnings in the first century through the fourth century when Christianity went from a persecuted faith to the only legalized faith in the Roman Empire. • Provides readers with a broad understanding of early Christianity from the time of Jesus to the fall of Rome and an appreciation for how early Christian communities spread throughout the Empire • Examines a number of key topics that relate to the varied communities that made up early Christianity • Provides readers with multiple primary documents in order to better understand early Christianity and offer opportunities to apply their critical thinking skills • Supports NCHS World History content standards for Era 3, Standard 3B

An introduction to the history of early Christianity, this reference provides roughly 60 primary source documents from the first five centuries of the Christian Era, each accompanied by explanatory material. • Offers a guide that helps readers to understand how to study primary documents critically • Provides an introduction of the history of the early Christian Church • Highlights a timeline of key events in the early history of Christianity • Features sections on the first five centuries of the Christian Era that encompass primary source documents, accompanied by headnotes and suggestions for further reading

Reading Augustine is a new line of books offering personal readings of St. Augustine of Hippo from leading philosophers and religious scholars. The aim of the series is to make clear Augustine's importance to contemporary thought and to present Augustine not only or primarily as a pre-eminent Christian thinker but as a philosophical, spiritual, literary and intellectual icon of the West. Why did the ancients come to adopt monotheism and Christianity? On God, The Soul, Evil and the Rise of Christianity introduces possible answers to that question by looking closely at the development of the thought of Augustine of Hippo, whose complex spiritual trajectory included Gnosticism, academic skepticism, pagan Platonism, and orthodox Christianity. What was so compelling about Christianity and how did Augustine become convinced that his soul could enter into communion with a transcendent God? The apparently sudden shift of ancient culture to monotheism and Christianity was momentous, defining the subsequent nature of Western religion and thought. John Peter Kenney shows us that Augustine offers an unusually clear vantage point to understand the essential ideas that drove that transition.

Religious Rivalries in the Early Roman Empire and the Rise of Christianity discusses the diverse cultural destinies of early Christianity, early Judaism, and other ancient religious groups as a question of social rivalry. The book is divided into three main sections. The first section debates the degree to which the category of rivalry adequately names the issue(s) that must be addressed when comparing and contrasting the social “success” of different religious groups in antiquity. The second is a critical assessment of the common modern category of “mission” to describe the inner dynamic of such a process; it discusses the early Christian apostle Paul, the early Jewish historian Josephus, and ancient Mithraism. The third section of the book is devoted to “the rise of Christianity,” primarily in response to the similarly titled work of the American sociologist of religion Rodney Stark. While it is not clear that any of these groups imagined its own success necessarily entailing the elimination of others, it does seem that early Christianity had certain habits, both of speech and practice, which made it particularly apt to succeed (in) the Roman Empire.

Although once regarded as a time of uninterrupted ignorance, superstition, and social oppression, the Middle Ages are now understood as a dynamic period during which the idea of Europe as a distinct cultural unit emerged. This title dives into late antiquity and the early Middle Ages, a time when political, social, economic, and cultural structures were profoundly reorganized. As Roman imperial traditions gave way to those of the Germanic peoples who established kingdoms in the former Western Empire, new forms of political leadership were introduced, and the population of Europe was gradually Christianized.

This collection of essays by contemporary historians considers how after two centuries of scholarship we can best explain Christianity's rise to dominance.

Barnett's work is not so much a narrative of the "birth" and early years of Christianity as an argument that this birth can be documented by the usual methods of historical inquiry.

Comparing the spread of Christianity to the East to its more successful spread to the West, Montgomery illustrates the uneven diffusion of one of the world's most influential and successful religions. The analysis examines the causes for Christianity's success to the West and its relative failings in major societies to the east of Jerusalem, including India, Persia, and China. Montgomery provides a theory of the diffusion of religion in general, and of Christianity in particular. Groundbreaking in its attempt to establish a better understanding of religious diffusion, this work will be indispensable to those interested in the study of sociology of religions, religious studies, missionary studies, and Christianity.

John Dominic Crossan explores the lost years of earliest Christianity, the years immediately following Jesus' execution. He establishes the contextual setting through a combination of literary, anthropological, historical and archaeological approaches. He challenges the assumptions about the role of Paul and the meaning of resurrection, and forges a new understanding of the birth of the Christian church. Here is a vivid account of early Christianity's interaction with the world around it, and of the new traditions and communities established as Jesus' companions continued their movement after his death.

Paul Barnett not only places the New Testament within the world of caesars and Herods, proconsuls and Pharisees, Sadducee and revolutionaries, but argues that the mainspring and driving force of early Christian history is the historical Jesus.

Originally published in 1953, The Birth of Christianity analyses the development of Christian doctrine and the establishment of the Church. The book traces the history of the formation of the Church as a new religious society and considers its development both in the realm of thought as well as on a social level, in both emotional life and moral action. It explores how the Christian faith first found expression in society through a variety of forms that were gradually assimilated into one system of doctrine, and examines both how Christian theology and dogma were formed, and how the Church developed its constitution. The Birth of Christianity will appeal to those with an interest in the history of religion, the history of Christianity, theology, and the philosophy of religion.

The processes of modernization and globalization promise more wealth and health for many people. But they are also a threat to the stability and quality of marriage and family life. This new book -- at once sobering and constructive -- looks at the impact of these processes on marriage and asks what Christianity, in cooperation with other religions, can do to strengthen married life today. Among the deleterious effects of modernization and globalization on marriage are a worldwide drift of men away from the responsibility of parenthood and the tendency of mothers too readily to take on the task of childrearing alone. After looking at recent research on these and other problems, Don Browning suggests that the cure for modern marital disruption entails reforming and reconstructing the institution of marriage while also nurturing relevant forms of social support. Yet the effort to initiate a "world marriage revival" requires a complex cultural work, and Browning explores the key contributions that the religions of the world must make for such an effort to be successful.

A unique two-books-in-one product that unites marketplace leaders and pastors in the common goal of ministry.

A major history title, to accompany the TV series, 2000 years, presented by Melyvn Bragg. Spanning 20 episodes, Two Thousand Year will chart the progress of the Christian World and the development of western culture.

About this Book and this Book Series A Bible Story Called Easter and the Birth of Christianity: NLT - New Living Translation - English is an illustrated chronological Bible-excerpt story covering the events surrounding Jesus Christ's final Passover week through the following Pentecost observance. This second illustrated book in the series covers the most significant eight weeks of Christianity's beginnings. The events covered here comprise core components of Christian theology. The book-template source for each book in the series is the published and copyrighted Appendix A, which specifies how to integrate the 63 public domain watercolor images created in the 1890's by French artist James Tissot with 655 selected Bible verses recorded in the first century in the Greek language by the authors of the New Testament Gospels. The book template's matrix format, "Gospels' Comparative Text Alignment" [G'CTA], creates a single chronological story through the parallel alignment of the four Gospel authors' narratives. This matrix format is often referred to as a Harmony of the Gospels. This second illustrated book in the series, NLT - New Living Translation, is a derivative work compilation that presents the 655 Bible verses in English, using the NLT Bible translation [ version (c) 2015 ]. A "fair use" permission for publication using this Bible translation has been granted by Tyndale House Publishers. Negotiations are also in process to produce other series books in English using the NABRE (Catholic), the NIV (New International Version) and the NKJV (New King James Version) Bible translation.

Collection of previously published essays and lectures.