Early Christian World

Philip F. Esler is the Portland Chair in New Testament Studies and Director of the International Centre for Biblical Interpretation in the University of Gloucestershire, Cheltenham, UK. His previous positions include Chief Executive of the Arts and Humanities Research Council (2005-2009) and Principal of St Mary’s University College, Twickenham, London (2010-2013). His research focus lies primarily in the social-scientific of biblical and extra-biblical texts and ancient legal papyri, and he also writes on the Bible and the visual arts and on New Testament theology. His latest monograph is Babatha’s Orchard: The Yadin Papyri and An Ancient Jewish Family Tale Retold (2017) and before that he published Sex, Wives and Warriors: Reading the Old Testament With Its Ancient Audience (2011).

• DedicationList of IllustrationsPrefaceList of AbbreviationsI THE CONTEXT1. The Mediterranean Context of Early Christianity Philip F. Esler2. Emperors, Armies and Bureaucrats 68-430 CE Jill Harries3. Greek and Roman Philosophy and Religion Luther Martin4.Jewish Tradition and Culture James Aitken II CHRISTIAN ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT5. Jesus in His World Douglas Oakman6. Early Jewish Christianity Edwin Broadhead7. Paul and the Development of Gentile Christianity Todd Klutz8. The Jesus Tradition: The Gospel Writers’ Strategies of Persuasion Richard Rohrbaugh 9. The Second and Third Centuries Jeffrey S. Siker10. From Constantine to Theodosius and Beyond Bill Leadbetter11. Jewish and Christian Interaction from the First to the Fifth Centuries Anders Runesson III COMMUNITY FORMATION AND MAINTENANCE12. Mission and Expansion Thomas Finn13. The Development of Office in the Early Church Mark Edwards14. Christian Regional Diversity David Taylor15. Monasticism Columba StewartIV EVERYDAY CHRISTIAN EXPERIENCE16. Reading the New Testament in Roman Britain Richard Cleaves17. Sex and Sexual Renunciation I Teresa Shaw 18. Sex and Sexual Renunciation II: Developments in Research since 2000 Elizabeth Castelli19. Women, Children and House Churches Mona LaFosse 20. Worship, Practice and Belief Max Johnson21. Ritual and the Rise of the Early Christian Movement Risto Uro22. Communication and Travel Blake LeyerleV CHRISTIAN CULTURE23. Christian Realia: Books, Papyri and Artefacts Giovanni Bazzana24. Scriptures in Early Christianity Outi Lehtipuu and Hanne von Weissenberg 25. Saints and Hagiography Mark Humphries 26. Translation and Communication across Languages Malcolm ChoatVI THE INTELLECTUAL HERITAGE27. The Apostolic Fathers Carolyn Osiek28. The Apologists Anders-Christian Jacobsen29. Early Theologians Gerald Bray 30. Later Theologians of the Greek East Andrew Louth31. Later Theologians of the West Ivor Davidson32. Creeds, Councils and Doctrinal Development Piotr Ashwin-Siejkowski33. Biblical Interpretation Oskar SkarsauneVII THE ARTISTIC HERITAGE34. Early Christian Architecture: The First Five Centures L. Michael White35. Art Robin Jensen36. Music John Arthur Smith37. Imaginative Literature Richard BauckhamVIII EXTERNAL CHALLENGES38. Political Oppression and Martyrdom Candida R. Moss39. Graeco-Roman Philosophical Opposition Michael Simmons40. Popular Graeco-Roman Responses to Christianity Craig de VosIX INTERNAL CHALLENGES41. Internal Renewal and Dissent in the Early Christian World Sheila McGinn42. Gnosticism Alistair Logan43. Montanism Christine Trevett44. Donatism Jakob Engberg45. Arianism David Rankin46. Manichaeism Jason BeDuhn X PROFILES 47. Origen Thomas Scheck48. Tertullian Geoffrey D. Dunn49. Perpetua and Felicitas Shira L. Lander and Ross S. Kraemer 50. Constantine Bill Leadbetter51. Antony the Great Columba Stewart52. Pachomius the Great James E. Goehring53. Athanasius David Gwynn54. John Chrysostom Wendy Mayer and Pauline Allen55. Gregory of Nyssa Elena Ene D-Vasilescu 56. Jerome Dennis Brown57. Ambrose Ivor Davidson58. Augustine Carol Harrison59. Ephrem the Syrian Kathleen McVey60. Julian the Apostate Michael Simmons

"This new edition is a goldmine of up-to-date information for anyone interested in the development of early Christianity. The contributors represent an international collection of top-flight scholars, and the range of topics covered is expansive; yet the essays are written in an accessible style and could certainly be used in a classroom setting at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Of particular note is the way in which the essays situate Christianity within its broader cultural contexts, rather than treating it as if it developed in a 'holy vacuum'. You will want this book on your shelf as a standard reference work for the study of early Christianity."- Professor David Eastman, Ohio Wesleyan University, USA"The second edition of this valuable collection will be welcomed even by those who already own the first edition. This thoroughly updated edition preserves the structure and comprehensiveness of the first, as well as its important focus on social history and everyday experience. It also adds both depth and breadth through the inclusion of new topics and current approaches. This volume will be a boon to instructors looking for current and provocative readings to challenge their students, and indeed to anyone interested in early Christianity in its historical, social and cultural contexts."- Professor Adele Reinhartz, University of Ottawa, Canada"The second edition of the Early Christian World successfully manages a difficult task. It not only updates the existing contributions in the first edition of this highly useful tool for studying early Christianity, it also includes new directions in scholarship. Thus it promises to be an valuable part of the libraries of students, academics, and any reader interested in the first five centuries of Christianity alike."- Dr Jutta Leonhardt-Balzer, University of Aberdeen, UK"The Early Christian World is and remains an enormously useful reference work. It is highly accessible to specialist and non-specialist readers, with essays written in an accessible style, rich illustrations, indices of biblical, classical, Jewish references and patristic references as well as a subject index. These indices make it somewhat easier to navigate through its almost 1200 pages of text. Each article is followed by an extensive and up-to-date bibliography, encouraging and facilitating further research."- Dr Ine Jacobs, University of Oxford, UK, Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2018"The analysis demonstrates that by silencing slaves and using a rhetoric of violence, the authors of these texts contributed to the construction of myths in which slaves functioned as a useful trope to support the combined power of religion and empire."- A Journal of Bible and Theology"This new edition fully reflects these developments and provides the reader with authoritative, lively, and up-to-date access to the early Christian world. A quarter of the text is entirely new and the remaining essays have all been carefully revised and updated by their authors.This book gives a detailed view on Early Christianity from many different angles which are indispensable in studying and comprehending the genesis and further developments in Late Antiquity. "- Mark Beumer, Kleio-Historia