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The Story of Christianity, Vol. 1: The Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation, by Justo L. Gonzalez
PDF Ebook The Story of Christianity, Vol. 1: The Early Church to the Dawn of the Reformation, by Justo L. Gonzalez
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In The Story of Christianity: Volume 1, Justo L. González, author of the highly praised three-volume History of Christian Thought, presents a narrative history of Christianity, from the Early Church to the Dawn of the Protestant Reformation. From Jesus’ faithful apostles to the early reformist John Wycliffe, González skillfully traces core theological issues and developments within the various traditions of the church, including major events outside of Europe, such as the Spanish and Portuguese conquest of the New World. This updated and expanded edition incorporates recent archaeological discoveries about the life of Early Christian Communities, as well as important contemporary research revealing the significant role of women throughout the history of the church. With lively storytelling, The Story of Christianity provides a fascinating and panoramic history of the dramatic events, colorful characters, and revolutionary ideas that shaped the first fifteen centuries of the church.
Product details
Paperback: 528 pages
Publisher: HarperOne; 2nd edition (August 10, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 9780061855887
ISBN-13: 978-0061855887
ASIN: 006185588X
Product Dimensions:
6 x 1.3 x 9 inches
Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review:
4.5 out of 5 stars
311 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
#26,544 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
1500 years is a lot of history to try to pack into one 500-page volume. Justo Gonzales does a very admirable job in this task. Although I’m a lover of history, the further back in time one goes, the more the enjoyment tends to slightly whither. In many cases, there simply isn’t as much reference material, and many important figures and events are left to some speculation.This book probably could have been ten times as large as it is, but the author knows when enough is enough. He traces the history of Christianity as far back as the Resurrection. He then focuses on the key figures – good and bad – that helped Christianity grow and flourish. It shouldn’t surprise us that, just like today, there was never complete agreement on how to interpret scripture, nor how one should live their life to obtain a status as “godlyâ€. We read about scholarly debates in meticulous detail. How could Jesus be totally man and totally God? If he was, what did this exactly mean, and how were we to treat such a figure? Where did the term “monk†come from? Why were so many so joyous to choose to live their lives in isolation and poverty?This book isn’t strictly linear. It simply can’t be. The author does a good job keeping his reader interested in the fascinating people and times. I confess, though, that not as many of the key people stuck with me after I completed this book. There were simply too many bishops, popes, and other key figures to keep track. A careful use of a notebook could have easily remedied this issue, though, and even though the people in the book were numerous, the author does a wonderful job of communicating the major events and feelings at the time.We learn of schisms between East (Greek) and West (Roman) over scripture interpretation. We also see how many used the church for nothing more than a selfish power grab. Without going into detail, I was left feeling strongly that separation of church and state is a wonderful concept, and one that we should never abandon. We see the church becoming more and more corrupt, and although the book stops before the official Protestant Reformation (which was mainly due to the ongoing corruption), we can see the beginnings of such a movement. Since the book isn’t linear, we do read about events that happened several centuries after the Reformation – specifically the missionaries to Central and South America as late as the 1800s. My guess is that these events helped extend the original narrative and weren’t affected nor relevant to the Reformation – so it probably makes more sense to include them in this volume.I’m eagerly awaiting reading the second, and final volume. Based on the author’s style and attitude (he has no problem pointing out mistakes of his faith throughout the years, and he’s no apologist), I’m fairly confident I’ll enjoy volume 2. I’m hoping that one will sink in more since, being from a later time period, they’ll be more familiar faces, figures, and facts that will allow my brain to latch onto and retain better.
This is a very brief but excellent overview of church history from the apostolic era to the end of the Middle Ages. The writer is unabashedly Protestant and this comes through in the book, but he presents the material without denigrating the Catholic or Orthodox churches.Anyone attempting to cover 1,500 years of history in 500 pages will have to select and sift his material very carefully. This is primarily a Euro-centric account of the Western church, with little attention given to the history of the Eastern Orthodox church or other offshoots of Christianity less familiar to Westerners, such as the Coptic and so-called Nestorian churches. This does not, however, detract from its value as an immensely useful and lucid introduction to church history. Gonzalez is an excellent and informative writer, and once you start reading, it will be difficult to put this book down.I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading Volume 2 when it arrives!
This book is not a theological treatise, but a history, told in story form, of Christianity. And while I do not identify with the Christian church, I am a very old student of life and the world and there can be little argument that Christianity has, since its beginning, been one of the most powerful institutional influences on the world. Understand how it evolved and you might have a better understanding how we, as a global humanity, got to where we are today.Mission accomplished. Justo Gonzalez’ incredibly well researched narrative, told in a matter of fact, neutral voice (or as close to neutral as one can get given the subject), was entertaining to read and enlightening to process. (And I will be processing it for a long time to come.)If you are interested in the theological side of the story I believe you would find it equally informative, although it will take an open mind. Gonzalez covers all sides of the story, warts and all.I daresay that the history of Christianity is one of the least studied histories outside of a narrow segment of the theological community. (Gonzalez is a retired professor of historical theology.) Non-Christians, perhaps, see it as strictly a theological story while Christians, perhaps, are inclined to see the study of theologies outside of that which they have been taught as somehow irrelevant or, at least, compromising.Having read the book, however, I am inclined to believe this is a book we should all read, regardless of religious identity. For starters, it’s fascinating. I am, above all else, a philosopher and found myself marveling at the philosophical implications of the story at every turn. (And there were more turns than you can imagine.) What were they thinking and how did they get to the point of such extreme conviction that they would lead impoverished, lonely lives in the desert?The writing is very good and the author clearly knows his subject. The names of people and places are not familiar to most of us. The timeline (i.e., 1500 years) is expansive for a 500-page book. And it is organized into topical chapters (e.g. The New Order, Eastern Christianity, Movements of Renewal), so the book does not follow a strict timeline. The resulting back and forth introduces, and then reintroduces, several characters. Taken together, these attributes are not conducive to a “quick read†although it is not laborious in the sense that many scholarly texts can be. Nonetheless, I found it helpful to keep an electronic tablet nearby for quick access to Google when I sensed I had lost the thread. (What was Neoplatonic mysticism again?)One of the things that struck me the most about the story is that the theological debates that occurred within the early church can seem a bit tortured by today’s “popular†theological standards. How does one reconcile the trinity? How can Jesus be both divine and human at the same time? How did he get that way? And how can we answer those questions without sacrificing the incarnation, the resurrection, and his saving of humankind? They aren’t the types of questions most Christians wrestle with today, but they are at the heart of what all Christian denominations now believe and teach.A related observation was the degree to which reason and philosophy was an integral part of the story of Christianity and popularly entertained and debated. Formal reason, of course, has been largely eliminated from public discourse today, and I have to wonder if that has not contributed to both the secularization of Western culture and the increasingly polarized and emotional nature of our politics and public discourse.As is always the case, the history of Christianity is not a one-dimensional story. It is a multi-faceted story that involves political power, vast amounts of wealth, more than a little corruption and scandal, lethal oppression, and, of course, faith and theology. And it is almost impossible to sort out what facet had what influence. Those influences, moreover, ebbed and flowed in importance over time.The Buddhists refer to “dependent originationâ€, the idea that nothing exists in isolation. We can understand many aspects of reality but can never know it completely, meaning that all reality must be interpreted in context. That is no less true of Christianity than anything else.That context, however, is fluid, more akin to energy than matter. That is both the reason we cannot always learn from history and the reason we must study history to fully understand where we are today.This book, in the end, is a book about context. And whether you are interested in Christianity or just understanding the world around you, the context it explores is important. It’s also a fascinating story. What else can a reader ask for?
A lot of information that helped with my understanding of how we have come to where we are with our faith. Sometimes the jumping around in time caused me some confusion but I don't know how else the author could give an overview of the culture as well as the events occurring that impacted Christianity. I had to keep my dictionary by my side (or available online) since some unfamiliar (not in day to day vernacular) words cropped up consistently.
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