In 313 c.e. says Yale University's Wayne A. Meeks, for The Rise of Christianity makes a compelling case for startling conclusions. 274-337) was a Roman emperor. Donata: Respect Caesar as Caesar, but fear God. Highly recommended, Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 6, 2018. Constantine allowed pagans freedom of religion, but he banned sacrifices and thereby inflicted great damage on the pagan cults, for sacrifices were vitally important for them. It also analyzes reviews to verify trustworthiness. The rise of Christianity and its overall importance characterized the Middle Ages. Saturninus, the proconsul, then said to the others: "Cease to adhere to this belief.". They looked forward to its final destruction and the Last Judgement. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. Saturninus, the proconsul, to Speratus: Will you persist in remaining a Christian? Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 15, 2020, Extremely useful background for any teacher/preacher. Christianity originated with the ministry of Jesus, a Jewish teacher and healer who proclaimed the imminent kingdom of God and was crucified c. AD 30–33 in the 1st century Roman province of Judea. The book is well structured and easy to follow and answers many of the questions on how an obscure Palestinian sect became the main religion of the Roman Empire. Speratus: We have never hurt anyone. Although this book is about 20 years old, it still has new and arresting things to say. Betty Radice (London, England: Penguin Books, 1969): 295. Studies of the rise of Christianity all stress the movement's rapid growth, but rarely are any figures offered. "The Rise of Christianity Encyclopedia.com. Christianity expressed a positive social ideal to be followed in mortal life as well as a doctrine to be fulfilled in the afterlife. Speratus: If you would only listen to me quietly, I would explain to you the mystery of simple belief. Nor is this limited to antiquity. The pagans were disheartened at the impotence of their god. We have never libeled anyone. Throughout this time, Jews, Christians, and Muslims would learn to live and tolerate each other. -- "Library Journal""This book raises, simply and brilliantly, just the kinds of questions anyone concerned with early Christianity should ask." . In chapter 2 we see that Stark suggests in the book that: “Abraham J. Malherbe analyzed the language and style of the early church writers and concluded that they were dressing a literate, educated audience” and “In short people must have a degree of privilege to have the sophistication needed to understand new religions and to recognize a need for them.” In chapters 4 and 5 Stark addresses the advantages Christianity had over paganism and the role of women that led to Christian growth. ["The Rise of Christianity" will] generate spirited argument." And, according to Acts 21:20, by the sixth decade of the first century there were "many thousands of Jews" in Jerusalem who now believed. The imperial cult did not die a sudden death. Shipped with USPS Media Mail. Therefore, it’s best to use Encyclopedia.com citations as a starting point before checking the style against your school or publication’s requirements and the most-recent information available at these sites: http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html. Rodney Stark is the Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences at Baylor University. Condition is "Good". the rise of the Papacy. The Romans had reason to be apprehensive. Stark suggests that during times of epidemics, Christian stayed in cities that were plagued by sickness. -- "Publishers Weekly""Compelling reading . Garth Fowden, "Bishops and Temples in the Eastern Roman Empire, 320–425," Journal of Theological Studies 29 (1978): 53–78. Yet it is one of many myths that must be discarded if we are to understand just how a tiny messianic movement on the edge of the Roman Empire became the dominant faith of Western civilization. Christianity - Christianity - The history of Christianity: Christianity began as a movement within Judaism at a period when the Jews had long been dominated culturally and politically by foreign powers and had found in their religion (rather than in their politics or cultural achievements) the … By the time of Constantine, Christianity had become a considerable force, with growth patterns very similar to those of modern-day successful religious movements. faced a Gothic invasion, the first of many that the empire would suffer. . Had Decius lived longer, he would have done Christianity serious damage, but he was killed in battle, and the persecution slowed. Combining his expertise in social science with historical evidence, and his insight into contemporary religion's appeal, Stark finds that early Christianity attracted the privileged rather than the poor, that most early converts were women or marginalized Jews--and ultimately that Christianity was a success because it proved those who joined it with a more appealing, more assuring, happier, and perhaps longer life (Andrew M. Greeley, University of Chicago). The suppression of the revolt was delayed by Nero's dethronement and a year of civil war before Vespasian took over as emperor in 69 c.e. An urban religion, Christianity initially spread to the Gentiles through the preachings of St. Paul, and it subsequently attracted convert… It was repeated again and again. For another, it is clear from early Christian writings that the Christians. Saturninus, the proconsul: [speaking to the others] Take no part in this business—it is madness. Later, in Acts 4:4, a total of 5,000 believers is claimed. If the law is repeated a number of times over a period of years, it can be assumed that there was widespread evasion. (And all the others were of the same mind.). says Yale University's Wayne A. Meeks, for The Rise of Christianity makes a compelling case for startling conclusions. Perhaps this reflects the prevalence among historians of the notion, recently expressed by Pierre Chuvin, that "ancient history remains wholly refractory to quantitative evaluations" (1990:12). Please try again. This is not the case. . Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 15, 2018. Stark makes an argument similar to the views and consensus that developed among modern New Testament historians which is that Christianity was mainly a religion practiced by the middle and upper classes. After suffering several national defeats by the Assyrians in 722 BCE and the Babylonians in 587 BCE, their prophets claimed that God … Therefore Pliny consulted the emperor Trajan to discover what course of action he should take regarding the Christian church and he received the following reply. In this way I can make sure that the social science is fully accessible to historians of the early church, meanwhile preventing social scientists from becoming lost amidst obscure historical and textual references. on charges of heresy. Stark's provocative report challenges conventional wisdom and finds that Christianity's astounding dominance of the Western world arose from its offer of a better, more secure way of life. were part of rhetorical exercises" (1977:7-8) and were not really meant to be taken literally. The emperor Decius (249–252 c.e.) ADVERTISEMENTS: After reading this article you will learn about the rise of Christianity with the fall of Roman Empire. The persecutions were sporadic until the middle of the third century c.e. The Pharisees were not just another sect, therefore; they were the people. In the worst disaster since the days of Hannibal the Roman army and the emperor Valens were wiped o…, The Rise of Biotechnology as Big Business, The Rise and Practice of Inoculation in the 1700s, The Rise and Fall of the Phlogiston Theory of Fire, The Rise of Falsafah: The Philosophical Tradition, The Rise of Monarchies: France, England, and Spain, The Rise of Probabilistic and Statistical Thinking, The Rise of Revolutionary Sentiment in France and Its Impact on the Theater, The Rise of Rome (3rd century bce to 2nd century ce, The Rise of the Appropriate Technology Movement, The Rise of the Phlogiston Theory of Fire, https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/culture-magazines/rise-christianity. As for Pliny's question, the reply was simple. During the Late Middle Ages, the power of the church started to decline and all three of … He approved of Pliny's actions. . The Rise of Christianity, is a book by the sociologist Rodney Stark, which examines the rise of Christianity, from a small movement in Galilee and Judea at the time of Jesus to the majority religion of the Roman Empire a few centuries later. Wayne A. Meeks, The First Urban Christians; The Social World of the Apostle Paul (New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1983). The chapters that follow will attempt to reconstruct the rise of Christianity in order to explain why it happened. Judaism developed into a religion of the Talmud, which was the collection of writings that constituted Jewish civil and religious law. The author uses modern Social Scientific Theory and relatively recent studies into religious conversion to explain the successful rise of Christianity in the Greco-Roman world after the death of Christ. Life of Christ, c. 7/4 BC – 29/33AD . I think not. It is also the primary inspiration … There were rumors of horrific Christian rituals including cannibalism, and the liturgy of the Eucharist that professes to offer the body and blood of Christ to Christian worshippers must have nourished this misconception. Learn vocabulary, terms, and more with flashcards, games, and other study tools. Stark's provocative report challenges conventional wisdom and finds that Christianity's astounding dominance of the Western world arose from its offer of a better, more secure way of life. the doctrines of which envisaged an ongoing struggle in this world between the forces of Good and the dark forces of Evil. Probably Paul and his followers would have lost the quarrel, except that a Jewish revolt intervened. : Harvard University Press, 1990). Pliny's policy towards the early Christian church was harsh in accordance with Rome's suspicious attitude towards these radical believers who neither adhered to Roman pagan gods nor worshipped the emperor. They believed in Torah and were even prepared to exchange Jewish national independence for the survival of the Jewish people and the Torah, if need be. In fact, many Christians at this point in history expected an imminent Second Coming of the risen Christ and may have imagined that the fire that consumed Rome was the opening scene in the destruction of an evil empire. The author also makes reference to the works of historians in the field and lists many works that can be sourced for future reference. Saturninus, the proconsul: We Romans are also a religious people. ." Arnaldo Momigliano, The Conflict between Paganism and Christianity in the Fourth Century (Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1963). If they were Roman citizens, they had a right to a trial at Rome, and Pliny entered them on the list of persons to be sent to Rome to have their cases judged there. Although W.H.C. Indeed, as Robert M. Grant pointed out, "one must always remember that figures in antiquity . The Early Middle Ages saw the rise of Islam and the effects it would have on Christianity. Pliny arrived in Bithynia in 111 c.e. Swear, instead, by the genius of our Lord the emperor. The proportion of the empire that was Christian at the time of his conversion is a matter of conjecture, but it is generally agreed that it was a minority and perhaps a small minority at that. The book suggests that during these times of epidemics, the people were having a crises of faith and this led to many being converted and becoming Christians. The gods seemed to be angry with Rome, and Decius insisted that everyone sacrifice to them and present certificates to that effect. © 2019 Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. This is a refreshing piece of scholarship. I pay taxes on everything I buy. As Hans Conzelmann noted, these numbers are only "meant to render impressive the marvel that here the Lord himself is at work" (1973:63). 21 Dec. 2020 . This fresh, blunt, and highly persuasive account of how the West was won--for Jesus (Newsweek) is now available in paperback. The definitive text in early church history, Frend's The Rise of Christianity offers a vast, panoramic sweep of Christianity's first six centuries, from the dust of Palestine to the court of Justinian and the parting of Eastern and Western Christianity. They create the worst sort of precedent and are quite out of keeping with the spirit of our age. He wanted to reach out to the Gentiles, and he considered the dietary restrictions of Mosaic law and circumcision unimportant. "The Rise of Christianity These items are shipped from and sold by different sellers. Please try again. Very interesting indeed. This shopping feature will continue to load items when the Enter key is pressed. Finally, unlike the ancient religion of Judaism, Christianity was a new sect, and it was founded by a man who had been crucified by the Romans on a charge of high treason. Christianity began with a group of Jews who followed the teachings of Jesus, a Jewish carpenter who attracted many followers during his three-year ministry which began in 30 c.e. The pagans expected the god to show his anger by refusing to let the Nile flood and water the fertile fields of Egypt, but the Nile flooded as usual. You're listening to a sample of the Audible audio edition. must read it." The Roman rule caused some conflicts and unrest in Judaea. Having established a plausible growth curve for the rise of Christianity, I will review sociological knowledge of the process by which people convert to new religions in order to infer certain requirements concerning social relations between Christians and the surrounding Greco-Roman world. But pamphlets circulated anonymously must play no part in any accusation. The exceptions were astrologers, magicians, and Manichaeans—the last a sect on the fringes of Christianity which actually had its roots in Zoroastrianism, the national religion of Persia before the rise of Islam, The chapter concludes with a discussion of the legitimate uses of social scientific theories to reconstruct history in the absence of adequate information on what actually occurred. Stark received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. After viewing product detail pages, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in. The Rise Of Christianity : Christianity 733 Words | 3 Pages. Our religion is very simple: we swear by the genius of our Lord the emperor and pray for his well-being. But when Irving Hexham, Raymond F. Currie, and Joan B. Townsend (1985) checked on the matter, they found that the correct total was 80. -- "The Christian Century""Anyone who has puzzled over Christianity's rise to dominance in the Roman Empire . When Constantine received a request from a town in Italy to erect a temple to him, he gave permission, provided that they did not offer him sacrifices. No sacrilege is entailed in the search to understand human actions in human terms. For example, in order for Christianity to have achieved success in the time allowed, must it have grown at rates that seem incredible in the light of modern experience? Arts and Humanities Through the Eras. Christianity had spread rapidly, partly because Christian preachers were welcome in the synagogues of the Diaspora. Had there been that many converts in Jerusalem, it would have been the first Christian city, since there probably were no more than twenty thousand inhabitants at this time--J. C. Russell (1958) estimated only ten thousand. Pierre Chuvin, A Chronicle of the Last Pagans (Cambridge, Mass. Within the “Cite this article” tool, pick a style to see how all available information looks when formatted according to that style. Encyclopedia.com. They had not supported the Jewish revolt, and their lack of support was not forgotten. Saturninus, the proconsul: What do you have as the documents in your case? Frend's "The Rise of Christianity" is approaching its 30th birthday (and while there has been an immense proliferation of scholarship on Early Christianity and Late Antiquity in the interim), this is still an authoritative and fundamental survey of the first 7 centuries of the Christian Church. How did a tiny and obscure messianic movement from the edge of the Roman Empire dislodge classical paganism and become the dominant faith of Western civilization? Pliny sought of Trajan the legal basis for punishing the Christians, asking if Christianity was a crime per se, or whether it was the actions of Christians that were recognized as crimes by Roman law. Therefore, be sure to refer to those guidelines when editing your bibliography or works cited list. . . His thirty books on the history and sociology of religion include The Rise of Christianity, Cities of God, For the Glory of God, Discovering God, and The Victory of Reason: How Christianity Led to Freedom, Capitalism, and Western Success. But when we were mistreated, we showed our thanks, because we reverence our own emperor. Speratus: The sacred writings, and the epistles of a saint named Paul. Since the killing off of infants was normally female newborns, early Christians had a higher percentage of women that could have children as opposed to the pagans. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Then, copy and paste the text into your bibliography or works cited list. -- Kenneth Woodward, "Newsweek""Stark uses contemporary social-scientific data about why people join new religious movements and how religions recruit members to investigate the formative history of Christianity . He also helped himself to the wealth of the pagan temples. . These people are not to be hunted out; if they are brought before you and the charge against them is proved, they must be punished, but in the case of anyone who denies that he is a Christian, and makes it clear that he is not by offering prayers to our gods, he is to be pardoned as a result of his repentance however suspect his past conduct may be. Then, too, there was misunderstanding at fault. Although the religion initially faltered after Jesus' death, reports that Jesu… Finally, all questions concerning the rise of Christianity are one: How was it done? Saturninus, the proconsul—that is, the former consul who was acting as governor of the province—presided. As far as Pliny could ascertain, all the Christians did was to meet before dawn on a fixed day to chant verses antiphonally in honor of Christ "as if to a god" and to bind themselves by an oath, in Latin, a sacramentum. Your recently viewed items and featured recommendations, Select the department you want to search in, No Import Fees Deposit & $7.98 Shipping to Italy. The Rise of Christianity shares some great insight into the rapid growth of Christians. At the beginning of the fourth century c.e. Straddling Senate and Pulpit, Warnock Highlights Religious Left's Rise in the U.S. By Reuters , Wire Service Content Jan. 10, 2021 By Reuters , Wire Service Content Jan. 10, 2021, at 7:05 a.m. Yet only six decades later, Christians were so numerous that Constantine found it expedient to embrace the church. What we need is at least two plausible numbers to provide the basis for extrapolating the probable rate of early Christian growth. "Compelling reading" (Library Journal) that is sure to "generate spirited argument" (Publishers Weekly), this account of Christianity's remarkable growth within the Roman Empire is the subject of much fanfare. The laws recorded in the Roman law codes mark paganism's retreat. Rome's change of attitude towards Christianity began with the conversion of the emperor Constantine to Christianity in 312 c.e. Most online reference entries and articles do not have page numbers. says Yale University's Wayne A. Meeks, for The Rise of Christianity makes a compelling case for startling conclusions. Although the persecution resulted in death, torture, imprisonment, or dislocation for many Christians, the majority of the empire’s Christians avoided punishment. and died there two years later. (December 21, 2020). Constantine's new gold and silver coinage that helped stabilize the runaway inflation of earlier reigns used bullion from the pagan temples. They did this to care for the sick and afflicted which was opposed to the pagans who left cities with epidemics. allowed it to flourish in the eastern Mediterranean. The significant question is how it became the official religion of the Roman empire and an agency of the Roman imperial government. The Rise of Christianity is a book by Rodney Stark wherein he looks at Christianity’s rise to prominence from a sociological perspective. This has caused many scholars to think that something really extraordinary, in terms of growth, happened in the latter half of the third century (cf. His efforts to elicit information about the Christian sect, however, revealed nothing that might endanger the state. To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Then they would disperse and meet later to eat. Compelling reading (Library Journal) that is sure to generate spirited argument (Publishers Weekly), this account of Christianity's remarkable growth within the Roman Empire is the subject of much fanfare. Here is theoretical brashness combined with disarming common sense, a capacious curiosity, and a most uncommon ability to tell a complicated story in simple prose." And this because I recognize my Lord, the king of kings, and emperor of all mankind. You have followed the right course of procedure, my dear Pliny, in your examination of the cases of persons charged with being Christians, for it is impossible to lay down a general rule to a fixed formula. In 1984 a Toronto magazine claimed that there were 10,000 Hare Krishna members in that city. Combining his expertise in social science with historical evidence, and his insight into contemporary religion's appeal, Stark finds that early Christianity attracted the privileged rather than the poor, that most early converts were women or marginalized Jews—and ultimately "that Christianity was a success because it proved those who joined it with a more appealing, more assuring, happier, and perhaps longer life" (Andrew M. Greeley, University of Chicago). An exercise such as this could lead one to conclude that Stark is using sociology to disregard or dismiss the role of the divine nature of Christianity. Christian is the name of the central character of the first part of Bun…, EBIONITES is the name given to a Jewish Christian sect that flourished during the early history of the Christian church. If so, then we may need to formulate new social scientific propositions about conversion. Start studying The Rise of Christianity. Having achieved such a rate and used it to project the number of Christians in various years, we can then test these projections against a variety of historical conclusions and estimates. As late as the middle of the third century, Origen admitted that Christians made up "just a few" of the population. ), but how many would that have been? Cite this article Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. The Victory of Reason: How Christianity Led to Freedom, Capitalism, and Western Success, Church History, Volume One: From Christ to the Pre-Reformation: The Rise and Growth of the Church in Its Cultural, Intellectual, and Political Context, How the West Won: The Neglected Story of the Triumph of Modernity, The Rise of Christianity: A Sociologist Reconsiders History, Bearing False Witness: Debunking Centuries of Anti-Catholic History, God's Battalions: The Case for the Crusades, The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity, The Story of Christianity, Vol. Navigate to the Gentiles, and the Last Judgement writings, and more with flashcards, games, it... System considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon of. Puzzled over Christianity 's rise to prominence from a sociological perspective emperors, particularly Constantine, some interesting analyzes. 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