The First Christian Centuries: Perspectives on the Early Church

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Item specifics

Condition
Good: A book that has been read but is in good condition. Very minimal damage to the cover including ...
Release Year
2002
ISBN
9780830826773
Category

About this product

Product Identifiers

Publisher
InterVarsity Press
ISBN-10
0830826777
ISBN-13
9780830826773
eBay Product ID (ePID)
2135211

Product Key Features

Book Title
First Christian Centuries : Perspectives on the Early Church
Number of Pages
270 Pages
Language
English
Publication Year
2002
Topic
Ancient / Rome, Christian Church / History, Christianity / General
Genre
Religion, History
Author
Paul Mckechnie
Format
Trade Paperback

Dimensions

Item Height
9 in
Item Weight
13.6 Oz
Item Length
9 in
Item Width
6 in

Additional Product Features

Intended Audience
Trade
LCCN
2001-051564
TitleLeading
The
Dewey Edition
21
Dewey Decimal
270.1
Edition Description
Special edition
Table Of Content
Preface Introduction: Christians from a Distant Perspective Theology and History Who Was, or Was Not, Christian? Ways of Understanding Differences between Christians A Story of Both Centre and Periphery 1. First-Century Christianity: The Source Debate A Portfolio of Sources The New Testament Fragmented Discussion The Intracanonists' Dispute Resolved The Extracanonists' Case Delineated The Extracanonists' Case Disproved New Testament Insights on the Christian Movement 2. First-Generation Christianity Jesus' Church: A Sect Christians, the Synagogues and the Temple Jerusalem Christianity in the First Decade Simon Magus and His Sect The Jerusalem Church, 41--62 Paul and the Antioch Church The Pauline Churches, 46--62 3. Initial Growth, Incipient Persecution Persecution and Illegality A Threshold 4. The Second Christian Generation Second-Generation Church Order: the Didache Second-Generation Discipline: Clement of Rome Second-Generation Prophecy: Hermas Second-Generation Growth: Alexandria and Egypt The Second Generation in Jerusalem and the Jewish Churches Separation between Christianity and Judaism 5. Second- and Third-Century Christianity: Another Source Debate Memories and Apologia Apolgetic and Mission Apocryphal Stories Gnostic Writing Eusebius 6. Persecution and Anti-Christian Polemic Pliny and Trajan Hadrian: Deterring Informers Peregrinus: When Politics Dictated Tolerance Polycarp: The Crowd Demands a Victim Intellectual Attacks Where Persuasion Fails: Anti-Christian Violence The Decian Persecution 7. An Enclave: Caesar's Palace Government Officials The Second Generation An Unusual Arrest Christians: A Persistent Presence in the Palace Third-Century Purges The Shape of Things to Come 8. Gnosticism and Christian Diversity "False Teachers" in the New Testament Key Concepts in Gnosticism Divergent and Convergent Forces Ignatius of Antioch Who Was a Gnostic? Cosmopolitan Theologizing Sectarianism in the Development of Christianity The Great Church and Doctrinal Development A Case Where "No Sock Fell Off": Origen 9. Women and Christianity Feminist Readings of the Early Church Stark's The Rise of Christianity: A Bullish View? Feminists Adapt the New Consensus Leadership Given by Women The Pull of Gravity 10. The Great Persecution and Constantine The Calm before the Storm The Churches and Roman Society The Crisis of Empire and Anti-Christian Propaganda The Great Persecution Constantine's Rise to Power Constantine's Conversion Christianity Becomes the Official Religion Primary-Source Finding List Bibliography Index
Synopsis
The first three centuries of the early church were a period of struggle, transition and growth. Recent attempts by historians and social scientists to understand this era have produced various and conflicting accounts. Indeed, some have sought to overturn the former consensus regarding which texts provide reliable evidence and how they should be interpreted. In The First Christian Centuries, Paul McKechnie, a classical scholar, examines some key issues in the current debate. Which ancient sources are reliable? What was the social makeup of the early Christian movement? What can we determine about the growth rate and persecution of first-century Christians? What do we know about the second generation of Christians? How should we assess the reliability of our various sources from the second and third centuries? What were the nature and extent of persecutions in the second and third centuries? What were the long-term consequences of Paul's making converts within the household of Caesar? Can we gain historical perspective on the diversity that traveled under the name Christian in the early centuries? How were women regarded and what roles did they play? And how was it that a Roman emperor, Constantine, was converted--and what were the implications for the Christian movement? The value of McKechnie's study lies not in providing a comprehensive narrative of the origins and growth of the early church. Rather, it lies in critically examining key historical issues in sustained conversation with contemporary scholarship and the ancient sources. McKechnie will be valued by both students and scholars of early Christianity as an intelligent and informed companion who offers repeated and valuable insights into this critical era of Christian beginnings., Here is a scholarly examination by Paul McKechnie of select topics in understanding how early Christianity grew to become the religion of the Roman Empire by the fourth century. Topics include growth of the church, Christians in Caesar's palace, Gnosticism and more. The author examines the following key issues: Which ancient sources are reliable? What was the social makeup of the early Christian movement? What can we determine about the growth rate and persecution of first-century Christians? What do we know about the second generation of Christians? How should we assess the reliability of our various sources from the second and third centuries? What were the nature and extent of persecutions in the second and third centuries? What were the long-term consequences of Paul's making converts within the household of Caesar? Can we gain historical perspective on the diversity that traveled under the name Christian in the early centuries? How were women regarded and what roles did they play? And how was it that a Roman emperor, Constantine, was converted--and what were the implications for the Christian movement?, The first three centuries of the early church were a period of struggle, transition and growth. Recent attempts by historians and social scientists to understand this era have produced various and conflicting accounts. Indeed, some have sought to overturn the former consensus regarding which texts provide reliable evidence and how they should be interpreted.In The First Christian Centuries, Paul McKechnie, a classical scholar, examines some key issues in the current debate.- Which ancient sources are reliable?- What was the social makeup of the early Christian movement?- What can we determine about the growth rate and persecution of first-century Christians?- What do we know about the second generation of Christians?- How should we assess the reliability of our various sources from the second and third centuries?- What were the nature and extent of persecutions in the second and third centuries?- What were the long-term consequences of Paul's making converts within the household of Caesar?- Can we gain historical perspective on the diversity that traveled under the name Christian in the early centuries?- How were women regarded and what roles did they play?- And how was it that a Roman emperor, Constantine, was converted--and what were the implications for the Christian movement?The value of McKechnie's study lies not in providing a comprehensive narrative of the origins and growth of the early church. Rather, it lies in critically examining key historical issues in sustained conversation with contemporary scholarship and the ancient sources. McKechnie will be valued by both students and scholars of early Christianity as an intelligent and informed companion who offers repeated and valuable insights into this critical era of Christian beginnings., Here is a scholarly examination by Paul McKechnie of select topics in understanding how early Christianity grew to become the religion of the Roman Empire by the fourth century. Topics include growth of the church, Christians in Caesar's palace, Gnosticism and more.
LC Classification Number
BR162.3.M39 2002

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