For information on the church in Rome, how it started, of whom was it comprised, and what were
some of the issues in the church, use the following search queries in the Powell Library Discovery Catalog. Like this:
The "nu:" tells the search engine to look for items in call number field; "su:" tells the search engine is to look for the terms in the Subject field.
For articles search ATLA Religion, Christian Periodical Index and ProQuest Religion with these search queries:
Backgrounds of Early Christianity by
Having long served as a standard introduction to the world of the early church, Everett Ferguson's Backgrounds of Early Christianity has been expanded and updated in this third edition. The book explores and unpacks the Roman, Greek, and Jewish political, social, religious, and philosophical backgrounds necessary for a good historical understanding of the New Testament and the early church. New to this edition are revisions of Ferguson's original material, updated bibliographies, and fresh discussions of first-century social life, of Gnosticism, and of the Dead Sea Scrolls and other Jewish literature.
The Earliest History of the Christian Gathering by
Using recent insights into the nature of early Christian communities as religious associations, this book offers a new reconstruction of the origins and development of the weekly Christian gathering and its constitutive elements; based on an analysis of all available evidence from the first three centuries.
Paul and the Roman House Churches by
Reta Halteman Finger takes readers back to the bustling streets and tiny apartments of ancient Rome in an innovative simulation/study of Romans. Like the early Christians, participants will hear Phoebe proclaim and interpret Paul's letter. Each person will take on a role of Jew, Gentile, slave, conservative, or liberal, experiencing the apostle Paul's message of Jesus' gospel like never before.
Paul Between Synagogue and State by 
Paul's Idea of Community by
Robert Bank's widely read "Paul's Idea of Community: The Early House Churches in their Cultural Setting" is once again available to laypeole, pastors and scholars alike. In this extensively revised edition Banks has rewritten chapters for clarity, taken into account recent scholarship on Paul's writings, updated and expanded the bibliography, and added an index. This new edition retains, however, all the freshness and vitality of the original. "The book draws fully upon the wealth of recent scholarly analysis of the New Testament churches, but in such a skilled way that the picture is not buried in learning, but brought to life for present-day readers. . . . People will be startled to find how much of modern church life has departed form the New Testament spirit. And yet the modern communities still possess in the New Testament, as illuminated through a book like this, the sources from which church life can be reawakened to the community consequences of accepting the Pauline gospel." " EdwinA. Judge, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia "It is good news that Robert Banks's "Paul's Idea of Community" is once more available, now in a thoroughly revised, expanded edition. Convinced that Paul's distinctive contribution to Christianity is his idea of community, Banks demonstrates how this notion informs Paul's instruction to his churches. . . . [I]t is striking how naturally discussions of such topics as Paul's teaching on freedom and on eschatology fall within the purview of this stimulating book." " Abraham J. Malherbe, Yale University
The Message and the Kingdom by
Two thousand years ago, in a tiny land on the fringes of the Roman Empire, Jesus spoke to people who were suffering under the tyranny of Rome and the crushing Temple tax in Jerusalem. His message was not unlike that of the prophets who came before him, but it ignited his listeners and infuriated the Roman imperial establishment. Some years after the death of Jesus, Saul of Tarsus has a vision that convinced him to carry the message throughout the empire. This well-known story changed the world.Now, in The Message and the Kingdom, two distinguished scholars reveal how the message of Jesus and Paul was profoundly shaped by the down-to-earth history of their time and by the circumstances of the congregations to whom they preached. The incredible wealth of new information unearthed by archaeology and provided by social history allows them to place Jesus? message squarely in its social and historical context.What emerges is a radical interpretation of the historical Jesus and of Paul as men of great faith and passion who were moved by the suffering caused by the dominion of Rome and who offered a renewed religion'a Kingdom in which no earthly power would reign. Set against the background of Rome and its client states, The Message of the Kingdom offers a vision of continuity, providing an extraordinarily vivid picture of the earliest Christian communities. A fresh interpretation of the lives of Jesus and Paul and the earliest Christians, it is certain to challenge and excite.
SS. Peter and Paul in Rome: an archaeological rhapsody by
Oxford University Press
Table of Contents:
In Rome -- A rash resolve -- Ad Catacumbas -- Peter versus Paul -- Peter and Paul.
Christianizing the Roman Empire A. D. 100-400 by
How did the early Christian church manage to win its dominant place in the Roman world? In his newest book, an eminent historian of ancient Rome examines this question from a secular--rather than an ecclesiastical--viewpoint. MacMullen's provocative conclusion is that mass conversions to Christianity were based more on the appeal of miracle or the opportunity for worldly advantages than simply on a "rising tide of Christian piety." "Provocative to the Christian religious scholar and the nonreligious historian alike. . . . MacMullen's style is lucid, and the story of a period with its own innate interest is narrated with compelling feeling. . . . It is an important book, and highly recommended for the general reader of history as well as the Christian who wonders how the 'Jesus movement' came, by Constantine's time, to be the church we know--Choice "Written in a fresh and vigorous style, . . . [this book] offers an admirable survey of some major aspects of the history [of the early Christian church]."--Robert M. Grant, New York Times Book Review "Gently provocative. . . . MacMullen has written an instructive and enjoyable book on a great theme."--Henry Chadwick, Times Literary Supplement "A carefully argued and well-written study."--Jackson P. Hershbell, Library Journal
The Final Pagan Generation by
The Final Pagan Generation recounts the fascinating story of the lives and fortunes of the last Romans born before the Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity. Edward J. Watts traces their experiences of living through the fourth century's dramatic religious and political changes, when heated confrontations saw the Christian establishment legislate against pagan practices as mobs attacked pagan holy sites and temples. The emperors who issued these laws, the imperial officials charged with implementing them, and the Christian perpetrators of religious violence were almost exclusively young men whose attitudes and actions contrasted markedly with those of the earlier generation, who shared neither their juniors' interest in creating sharply defined religious identities nor their propensity for violent conflict. Watts examines why the "final pagan generation"--born to the old ways and the old world in which it seemed to everyone that religious practices would continue as they had for the past two thousand years--proved both unable to anticipate the changes that imperially sponsored Christianity produced and unwilling to resist them. A compelling and provocative read, suitable for the general reader as well as students and scholars of the ancient world.
The Religious Context of Early Christianity by
Klauck's is a uniquely well-informed and comprehensive guide to the world of religion in the Graeco-Roman environment of early Christianity. Drawing on the most up-to-date scholarship, his volume paints a carefully nuanced portrait of the Christians' religious context. Besides describing ordinary domestic and civic religion and popular belief (including astrology, divination and "magic"), there is extended discussion of mystery cults, ruler and emperor cults, the religious dimensions of philosophy, and Gnosticism. An authoritative work, Klauck's will become a new standard for reference and teaching.
The Graeco-Roman Context of Early Christian Literature by
In this volume of essays the Graeco-Roman background and context of early Christianity are explored for significant parallels. From the athlete metaphor in 1 Corinthians 9 to the role of Aphrodite as the goddess of love and sexuality, the important cultural symbols and terminology that the first Christians employed are examined. Garrison maintains that the Graeco-Roman setting of early Christianity is essential to our understanding of the New Testament and the Apostolic Fathers.
The Triumph of Christianity by
From the bestselling authority on early Christianity, the story of how Christianity grew from a religion of twenty or so peasants in rural Galilee to the dominant religion in the West in less than four hundred years. Christianity didn't have to become the dominant religion in the West. It easily could have remained a sect of Judaism fated to have the historical importance of the Sadducees or the Essenes. In The Triumph of Christianity, Bart Ehrman, a master explainer of Christian history, texts, and traditions, shows how a religion whose first believers were twenty or so illiterate day laborers in a remote part of the empire became the official religion of Rome, converting some thirty million people in just four centuries. The Triumph of Christianity combines deep knowledge and meticulous research in an eye-opening, immensely readable narrative that upends the way we think about the single most important cultural transformation our world has ever seen--one that revolutionized art, music, literature, philosophy, ethics, economics, and law.
Inculturation of the Jesus Tradition by
Rather than asking the typical question about how Greco-Roman culture impinged on the Jesus tradition and altered it, this book turns the question around and demonstrates how the Jesus tradition altered both Jewish and Roman cultures.
Empire to Commonwealth by
In this bold approach to late antiquity, Garth Fowden shows how, from the second-century peak of Rome's prosperity to the ninth-century onset of the Islamic Empire's decline, powerful beliefs in One God were used to justify and strengthen "world empires." But tensions between orthodoxy and heresy that were inherent in monotheism broke the unitary empires of Byzantium and Baghdad into the looser, more pluralistic commonwealths of Eastern Christendom and Islam. With rare breadth of vision, Fowden traces this transition from empire to commonwealth, and in the process exposes the sources of major cultural contours that still play a determining role in Europe and southwest Asia.
Rome in the East by
This new edition of Rome in the Eastexpands on the seminal work of the first edition, and examines the lasting impact of the near Eastern influence on Rome on our understanding of the development of European culture. Warwick Ball explores modern issues as well as ancient, and overturns conventional ideas about the spread of European culture to the East. This volume includes analysis of Roman archaeological and architectural remains in the East, as well as links to the Roman Empire as far afield as Iran, Central Asia, India, and China. The Near Eastern client kingdoms under Roman rule are examined in turn and each are shown to have affected Roman, and ultimately European, history in different but very fundamental ways. The highly visible presence of Rome in the East - mainly the architectural remains, some among the greatest monumental buildings in the Roman world - are examined from a Near Eastern perspective and demonstrated to be as much, if not more, a product of the Near East than of Rome. Warwick Ball presents the story of Rome in the light of Rome's fascination with the Near East, generating new insights into the nature and character of Roman civilisation, and European identity from Rome to the present. Near Eastern influence can be seen to have transformed Roman Europe, with perhaps the most significant change being the spread of Christianity. This new edition is updated with the latest research and findings from a range of sources including field work in the region and new studies and views that have emerged since the first edition. Over 200 images, most of them taken by the author, demonstrate the grandeur of Rome in the East. This volume is an invaluable resource to students of the history of Rome and Europe, as well as those studying the Ancient Near East.
Coming Out Christian in the Roman World: How the Followers of Jesus Made a Place in Caesar's Empire by
The supposed collapse of Roman civilization is still lamented more than 1,500 years later--and intertwined with this idea is the notion that a fledgling religion, Christianity, went from a persecuted fringe movement to an irresistible force that toppled the empire. The "intolerant zeal" of Christians, wrote Edward Gibbon, swept Rome's old gods away, and with them the structures that sustained Roman society.
Not so, argues Douglas Boin. Such tales are simply untrue to history, and ignore the most important fact of all: life in Rome never came to a dramatic stop. Instead, as Boin shows, a small minority movement rose to transform society--politically, religiously, and culturally--but it was a gradual process, one that happened in fits and starts over centuries. Drawing upon a decade of recent studies in history and archaeology, and on his own research, Boin opens up a wholly new window onto a period we thought we knew. His work is the first to describe how Christians navigated the complex world of social identity in terms of "passing" and "coming out." Many Christians lived in a dynamic middle ground. Their quiet success, as much as the clamor of martyrdom, was a powerful agent for change. With this insightful approach to the story of Christians in the Roman world, Douglas Boin rewrites, and rediscovers, the fascinating early history of a world faith.
The Fall of the Roman Household by
Edward Gibbon laid the fall of the Roman Empire at Christianity's door, suggesting that 'pusillanimous youth preferred the penance of the monastic to the dangers of a military life ... whole legions were buried in these religious sanctuaries'. This surprising study suggests that, far from seeing Christianity as the cause of the fall of the Roman Empire, we should understand the Christianisation of the household as a central Roman survival strategy. By establishing new 'ground rules' for marriage and family life, the Roman Christians of the last century of the Western empire found a way to re-invent the Roman family as a social institution to weather the political, military, and social upheaval of two centuries of invasion and civil war. In doing so, these men and women - both clergy and lay - found themselves changing both what it meant to be Roman, and what it meant to be Christian.