Ancient Christianities: The First Five Hundred Years
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| Author | Paula Fredriksen |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | Origins of Christianity within Second Temple Judaism and Jewish-Christian relations; theological diversity and the development of heresy; persecution, martyrdom, and the cult of saints; the development of Christian eschatology; the relationship between Christology and imperial power; Christian approaches to the body and ascetic practices; and the formation of Christian identity in contrast to "pagan" culture, including popular religious practices. |
| Genre | Non-fiction |
| Publisher | Princeton University Press |
Publication date | October 15, 2024 |
| Pages | 288 |
| ISBN | 9780691157696 |
| Website | site |
Ancient Christianities: The First Five Hundred Years is a 2024 book by Paula Fredriksen that explores the origins, development, and diversity of Christianity from its beginnings within Second Temple Judaism through its establishment as the dominant religion of the Mediterranean Roman world.
The book examines key themes including the transformation of the concept of Israel, the emergence of theological diversity and heresy, persecution and martyrdom, Christian eschatology, early Jewish–Christian relations, the intertwining of theology and imperial power, attitudes toward the body and ascetic practices, and the formation of a distinct Christian identity alongside "pagan" culture. It traces the political, social, and cultural development of Christianity over five centuries, from its beginnings as a late Second Temple Jewish sect to its culmination in late antiquity as an institutionalized and imperial religion, in which one orthodox form, Nicene Christianity, emerged as dominant.
The book consists of seven thematic chapters. Each is organized roughly chronologically within its topic, but covering the full span of the first five centuries of the Common Era,[1] from the eras of Jesus and Paul to the emergence of Nicene Christianity as the orthodox form of the new faith.[2] Each chapter opens with a brief abstract summarizing its main points.[3]
Chapter 1, "The Idea of Israel," examines how the Christian movement originated within Second Temple Judaism and how the relationship between Jews and the emerging Christian communities evolved over five centuries.[4] The author traces how the gospel message, as it spread through the Greco-Roman world, gradually distanced the majority of Jesus's followers from the Jewish context in which the movement began. She argues that the understanding of "Israel" was so transformed over the period that the Constantinian church eventually claimed the title for itself.[5] The chapter also addresses the development of Christian anti-Judaism, stretching from intra-Jewish debates through to the ambiguous status of Jews within the Christianized Roman Empire.[6]
Chapter 2, "The Dilemmas of Diversity," addresses the process by which variation in Christian thought and practice came to be labeled "heresy."[4] Fredriksen surveys the second and third centuries as among the most theologically experimental in Christian history, exploring how neo-Platonic conceptions of God and materiality shaped disagreements.[7] She suggests that the hardening of boundaries around orthodoxy was partly due to the influence of classical argumentative rhetoric, in which most major figures were trained.[7] The chapter's main figures include Valentinus, Marcion, and Justin Martyr, followed by Mani and Pelagius and their detractors.[8]
Chapter 3, "Persecution and Martyrdom," treats the interactions between Christians and the Roman state, as well as the memory of those encounters preserved in martyrdom accounts and the cult of the saints.[4] Fredriksen stresses the ancient overlap between religion and politics, locating the discussion within classical ideas of the relationship between the divine and civic well-being.[8] After expanding on the persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire, the book delves into the mobilization of martyr-rhetoric for intra-Christian violence after Christianity became the dominant faith.[9]
Chapter 4, "The Future of the End," is a short chapter that examines Christian eschatology.[10] The author traces the development of apocalyptic expectation from Paul's belief in an imminent return of Christ through the gradual recession of end-time hopes, covering evolving ideas about last judgement, heaven and hell, and resurrection.[7]
Chapter 5, "Christ and Empire," covers the emergence of theology as a project intertwined with imperial power. The chapter situates the development of creeds, councils, and doctrines about Christ within the philosophical frameworks and political priorities of the era, in what the author describes as the imperialization of the church.[9] Lieu notes that this chapter is most interested in the course of imperial intervention during the latter part of the period.[8]
Chapter 6, "The Redemption of the Flesh," presents Christian approaches to the body, including ascetic practices such as fasting, sexual renunciation, and voluntary poverty.[7] Fredriksen traces these practices to their Roman, Platonic, and Jewish roots, while showing how they took on new force in Christian formulation.[7] The chapter also includes the views of Origen and others and their debates about the nature of the soul and the status of the flesh.[8]
Chapter 7, "Pagan and Christian," examines the construction of a consciously Christian identity alongside the idea that there existed a "pagan" culture that Christians had left behind.[4] Fredriksen argues that the category of "paganism" was largely a rhetorical creation by Christians seeking to define what made their own practices distinct.[9] In this chapter, Fredriksen develops her idea of a "second Church" as an everyday religion, making use of amulets, spells, feasting, and the celebration of the dead, existing alongside the institutional church of clerics, doctrines and ascetics.[10] Lieu notes that the actual experience and practices of ordinary Christians only really surface in this final chapter, which explores the core elements of popular religiosity, especially surrounding magic, daimones, and rituals, and the evidence of their persistence within Christian communities despite the efforts of authorities and councils.[8]
In her conclusion, Fredriksen addresses the question of why Christianity became the dominant religion of the Roman Mediterranean. She argues that its success was not attributable to any inherently superior religiosity. Instead, she points to the combination of Roman commitment to right religio as essential to the well being of the state with "a Jewish apocalyptic commitment to the exclusive worship of one God over all the nations."[11]
The book also includes a timeline, a glossary of specialist terminology, bibliographic essays recommending further reading per chapter, several maps, and indices of primary sources, modern authors, names and places, and topics.[12]
