Pseudo-Dionysius is the name given to the author of an influential body of theological texts, dating from around 500 C.E. For centuries, the works were falsely attributed to "Dionysius the Areopagite", the biblical name chosen by the pseudonymous author - that of the Athenian who was converted to Christianity by St. Paul in Acts 17. Written some five hundred years later than the biblical account, The Celestial Hierarchy, The Ecclesiastical Hierarchy, The Divine Names, and the Mystical Theology offer a synthesis of biblical interpretation, liturgical spirituality and Neoplatonic philosophy. Their central motif, which has made them the charter of Christian mysticism, is the upward progress of the soul toward God through the spiritual interpretation of the Bible and the liturgy. Dionysius continually reminds his readers, however, that all human concepts fall short of the transcendence of God. In this book, Rorem provides a commentary on all of the Dionysian writings, chapter by chapter, paying special attention to their complex inner coherence. The Dionysian influence on medieval theology is introduced in essays on specific topics: hierarchy, biblical symbolism, angels, Gothic architecture, liturgical allegory, the scholastic doctrine of God, and the mystical theology of the western Middle Ages. Rorem's book makes these important texts more accessible to both scholars and students and includes a comprehensive bibliography of secondary sources.

A monumental work bringing together in an accessible and digestible form the current status of scholarship on the writings of the Eastern Fathers in the period between the Council of Chalcedon and the death of John of Damascus. The book covers an era in which pagan ideas still existed and in which the symbiosis between Empire and Church was so close as to make them seem almost one, with the Emperor in the East often playing a dominant role in religious matters, while in the West the authority of the emperors had faded, allowing the papacy to assume increasing authority. The domination of the East - reflected in the triumph of Greek over Latin as the language of administration - meant that Rome itself, and the Western provinces, were seen as rather provincial. The East faced different challenges, most conspicuously the range of theological ideas. Nestorian and Monophysite doctrines had not been suppressed by the Council of Chalcedon. New disputes arose, and in particular differences over the value of imagery. In the seventh century Islam became a major threat to the Empire, while Islamic ideas also carried weight in religious matters. The literature of the period can conveniently be divided linguistically and regionally. Following an introduction, major sections cover Constantinople and Asia Minor; the Greek Literature of Syria; Palestinian Writers; Alexandrian and Egyptian writers; Syriac Literature; Coptic Writers; Armenian Writers; Greek Exegetical Catenae; and Canonical and Liturgical Literature. While descriptions of major writers and their work is very extensive, most entries are much shorter. There are lengthy bibliographies, and the work is indexed. The Patrology is designed to follow the general approach taken by Quasten. The book is a fundamental work of reference, and makes a major contribution to patristic scholarship. The Editor, Angelo di Berardino, is Director of the Institutum Augustinianum in Rome and Editor of the Encyclopedia of the Early Church. Other contributors are: Pauline Allen (Catholic University, Brisbane) Maria Antonietta Barbara (University of Messina) Paulo Bettiolo (University of Padua) Filippo Carcione (University of Cassino) Danilo Ceccarelli Morolli (Pontificio Istituto Orientale, Rome) Camillo Curti (University of Catania) Salvatore Lilla (Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, Istituto Patristico Augustinianum, Rome) Andrew Louth (University of Durham) Gianfranco Lusini (Istituto Universitario di Napoli) Adele Monaci Castagno (University of Vercelli) Manel Nin (Pontificio Ateneo S. Anselmo, Rome) Tito Orlandi (Universita La Sapienzia, Istituto Patristico Augustinianum, Rome) Lorenzo Perrone (University of Pisa) Paul Rorem (Princeton University) Manlio Simonetti (Universita La Sapienzia, Istituto Patristico Augustinianum, Rome) Basilio Studer (Pontificio Ateneo S. Anselmo and Istituto Patristico Augustinianum, Rome) Karl-Heinz Uthemann (University of Utrecht) Sever J. Voicu (Istituto Patristico Augustinianum, Rome).

Originally published in 2000, In Search of First Century Christianity contends that Christianity in the first century had no founder but rather evolved as a convergence of many forces: political disillusionment, cultural mutations, religious and theological motifs, psychosocial losses and new expectations. Moving on from an examination of the foundations of historical and literary criticism in the Renaissance, and a detailed study of two writers in antiquity,Thucydides and Chariton, to examine writings in the period between Plato and the Gospel of Mark, the authors then explore the writing of Paul and the stories told in the Gospels. With the early Christians drawing from both Greek and Hebrew sources, Barnhart and Kraeger propose that, like Plato, Paul and other Christians generated an "anti-tragic theatre" gospel with the Jesus figure being the creation of a culture steeped in an anthropomorphic, metaphysical view of the world. Focusing on Paul's letters and other Christian writings, and the political, intellectual, moral and emotional conflicts they addressed and their formulation of early views of Christ, this book explores the difficult question of whether Jesus was an historical figure or an image who first emerged within developing communities of visionaries. Through an exploration into how Christology developed in the early first century, the authors seek to show that Christianity's emerging theology was a venture in human problem solving and both Paul and the Gospels sought to relate a story in which goodness would ultimately triumph, in the person of Christ. Joe.E.Barnhart is Professor of Philosophy and Religious Studies at the University of North Texas, USA; Linda T. Kraeger is Lecturer in the Department of Literature and Language at Grayson County College, USA.

The Early Church: An annotated Bibliography of Literature in English is designed for students and interested laypersons, providing them with a non-technical, informed survey of recent scholarly debate on major topics important to an understanding of the early church. Divided into twenty-six chapters, each with an introductory essay of 2-3 pages, the bibliography contains abstracts of about one thousand books and major articles dealing with the church from the beginning of the second century roughly to the end of the sixth. Specific chapters deal with the development of the cannon, conversion and missions, persecution and martyrdom, monasticism, church office, church and state, creeds, orthodoxy and heresy, regional forms of Christianity, church and society, Constantine and the Christian empire, Christology, women, ethice, Gnosticism, Jewish-Christian relations, Roman society and empire, art and architecture, theology, worship and the liturgy, and patristic exegesis. More general chapters introduce the reader to the basic reference works, including dictionaries, atlases, serials, patristic texts and general histories. The entries are extensively cross-referenced, and user-friendly codes direct the reader to introductory works, survey articles, bibliographies, and collections of primary texts. Each abstract indicates the number of pages of bibliography, indexes, maps, charts, etc., and most abstracts are followed by a list of book reviews, enabling the user to gain access to a wider evaluation of the work in question. Almost forty pages of indexes (general and modern authors) complete the volume, making this a key tool for those interested in the early church.

Theodore, bishop of Mopsuestia, (c.350-428) stands out as the pre-eminent exponent of the School of Antioch's literal, historical and rational emphases in exegesis and of its staunch defence of Christ's humanity. At his death, he was hailed as one of the outstanding, prolific biblical theologians of his time. However, after his works and person were later condemned at the Second Council of Constantinople in 553, he is known today primarily as the "Father of Nestorianism." This addition to the Early Church Fathers series provides in one place new extensive translations of Theodore's major extant works that have not been available in English up unto the present. It also summarizes the secondary literature and discusses at length the fundamental features of his theological thinking, especially regarding his method of exegesis and his functional stress on the union of Christ's natures as occurring in 'one common prosopon.' Frederick G. McLeod presents passages from Theodore's major works 'On the Incarnation' and his 'Cathechetical Homilies;' his commentaries on Psalm 8, Adam's creation, John, Philippians 2, Galatians, Ephesians, and Colossians; and his rejection of the allegorists and Apollinaris, as well as providing all the anathemas of Constantinople II against Theodore's works and person. This book will be invaluable to any scholar who wishes to read firsthand what this influential and controversial figure has actually written.

The anonymous theologian known as Pseudo-Dionysius, who was responsible for arranging the angelic hierarchy into nine orders, had a significant influence on mediaeval European mysticism. This book places him in his religious and political context in sixth century Syria, and uncovers the hidden agenda which lies behind his writings. New evidence is presented to establish the dating of the corpus more accurately than has been done before. Rather than analysing the minutiae of Dionysius' thought, Rosemary Arthur focuses on his sources for, and treatment of, the Angelic Hierarchy and the Dazzling Darkness, with a view to ascertaining his motive for writing, his relationship with his opponents and his need to hide his identity.

This significant study provides the first English translation of two important ancient Christian commentaries on St. Paul's letter to the Ephesians. Origen's Commentary on Ephesians was written in the third century and may have been the first commentary on Ephesians. It survives only in some Greek fragments. Jerome's Latin Commentary on Ephesians was written in the fourth century and is extant in its entirety. Jerome's commentary appears to be dependent on Origen for most of its exegesis. The translation is accompanied by Heine's illuminating commentary and a substantial introduction sets the works in their historical context.

Regarded as one of the three hierarchs or pillars of orthodoxy along with Gregory of Nazianzus and John Chrysostom, Basil is a key figure in the formative process of Christianity in the fourth century. While his role in establishing Trinitarian terminology, as well as his function in shaping monasticism, his social thought and even his contribution to the evolution of liturgical forms have been the focus of research for many years, there are few studies which centre on his political thought. Basil played a major role in the political and religious life between Cappadocia and Armenia and was a key figure in the tumultuous relationship between Church and State in Late Antiquity. He was a great religious leader and a gifted diplomat, and developed a 'special relationship' with Emperor Valens and other high imperial officials.

For more than five hundred years the life and work of John of Damascus (c. 655-c.745) have been the subject of a very extensive literature, scholarly and popular, in which it is often difficult to get one's bearings. Through the studies included here (of which 6 appear in a translation into English made specially for this volume), Vassa Kontouma provides a critical review of this literature and attempts to answer several open questions: the author and date of composition of the official Life of John, the philosophical significance of the Dialectica (a study which has its first publication here), the original structure of the Exposition of the Orthodox faith, the identity of ps.-Cyril, the authenticity of the Letter on Great Lent, and questions of Mariology. She also opens new vistas for research along four main lines: the life of John of Damascus and its sources, Neochalcedonian philosophy, systematic theology in Byzantium, and Christian practices under the Umayyads.

St Katherine of Alexandria was one of the most popular saints in both the Orthodox and Latin Churches in the later Middle Ages, yet there has been little study of how her cult developed before c. 1200. This book redresses the balance, providing a thorough examination of the way the cult spread from the Greek-speaking lands of the Eastern Mediterranean and into Western Europe. The author uses the full range of source material available, including liturgical texts, hagiographies, chronicles and iconographical evidence, bringing together these often disparate sources to map the way in which the cult of St Katherine grew from its early stages in the Byzantine Empire up to c.1100, its transmission to Italy, and the introduction and development of the cult in Normandy and England up to c.1200. The book also includes appendices listing early manuscripts containing Katherine's Passio and including key original texts on St Katherine of the period. This study will be welcomed by scholars of medieval history and the history of medieval art, and as a case-study for all those with an interest in the development of medieval saint's cults.

This history of the Eastern Church covers the period from A.D. 451 to the 1920s. It describes the Sees of Rome, Constantinople, Antioch, Alexandria, and Jerusalem, bringing to life the faith, government and politics which surrounded the church, its leaders, and its followers.

An Ecofeminist Perspective on Ash Wednesday and Lent develops a conversation between classical historical Lenten practices and contemporary Christian ecofeminism. Building on David Tracy's definition of a religious classic, it includes a historical examination of the development of Lent and the Ash Wednesday rites beginning from wellsprings in the early church traditions of penance, catechumenal preparation, and asceticism through medieval and reformation expressions of the rite to their twentieth-century Episcopal iteration in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. In the discussion of ecofeminism, women's death experiences and current ecofeminist writings are used to develop an ecofeminist hermeneutic of mortality.

"But the Bible says" is a common enough refrain in many conversations about Christianity. The written verses of the four canonical Gospels are sometimes volleyed back and forth and taken as fact while the apocryphal and oral accounts of the life of Jesus are taken as mere oddities. Early thinkers inside and outside the community of Jesus-followers similarly described a contentious relationship between the oral and the written, though they often focused on the challenges of trusting the written word over the spoken-Socrates described the written word an illegitimate "bastard" compared to the spoken word of a teacher. Nevertheless, the written accounts of the Jesus tradition in the Gospels have taken a far superior position in the Christian faith to any oral tradition. In The Gospel as Manuscript, Chris Keith offers a new material history of the Jesus tradition's journey from voice to page, showing that the introduction of manuscripts played an underappreciated, but crucial, role in the reception history of the gospel. From the textualization of Mark in the first century CE until the eventual usage of liturgical readings as a marker of authoritative status in the second and third centuries, early followers of Jesus placed the gospel-as-manuscript on display by drawing attention to the written nature of their tradition. Many authors of Gospels saw themselves in competition with other evangelists, working to establish their texts as the quintessential Gospel. Reading the texts aloud in liturgical settings and further establishedthe literary tradition in material culture. Revealing a vibrant period of competitive development of the Jesus tradition, wherein the material status of the tradition frequently played as important a role as the ideas that it contained, Keith offers a thorough consideration of the competitive textualization and public reading of the Gospels.

Gregory's life culminated in his holding the office of pope (590 - 604). He is generally regarded as one of the outstanding figures in the long line of popes, and by the late ninth century had come to be known as 'the Great'. Along with Ambrose, Jerome and Augustine, he played a critical role in the history of his time, while during the middle ages his intellectual influence was second only to that of Augustine.
This volume provides a biographical and intellectual context to Gregory the Great, and new translations of his most influential writings.

Gregory's life culminated in his holding the office of pope (590 - 604). He is generally regarded as one of the outstanding figures in the long line of popes, and by the late ninth century had come to be known as 'the Great'. Along with Ambrose, Jerome and Augustine, he played a critical role in the history of his time, while during the middle ages his intellectual influence was second only to that of Augustine.
This volume provides a biographical and intellectual context to Gregory the Great, and new translations of his most influential writings.

This classic biography was first published forty-five years ago and has since established itself as the standard account of Saint Augustine's life and teaching.

Magnus Zetterholm uses theoretical insights from the social sciences to deal with the complex issues raised by the parting of Judaism and Christianity, and the accompanying rise of Christian anti-Semitism in ancient Antioch.

Unlike previous attempts to solve this problem have focused mainly on ideology, Zetterholm's excellent study emphasizes the interplay between sociological and ideological elements.

For students of religious studies, classical studies, history and social science, this will give leverage and knowledge in the pursuit of their course studies.

The first lasting schism in Christian history was that between the Monophysites and orthodox Christianity. The late Professor W.H.C. Frend's original, well-established and integrated study examines the social historical background to this significant two hundred year period from the council of Ephesus in 431 to the expulsion of the Byzantines from the Monophysite provinces. Contemporary critics' views that Monophysitism can be considered as a 'quarrel about words' or as a symbol of the separatist movements in Syria, Egypt and Armenia are viewed as limiting in this authoritative survey, which moves beyond such criticisms. Frend shows that regional identity does not have to imply separatism and examines this claim in detail. The work does not limit its scope to the history of the Christian doctrine either. The issues raised by the councils of Ephesus and Chalcedon affected all areas of life beyond the political sphere in the east Roman provinces in the fifth and sixth centuries. Through this study, the reader can uncover how religion was the medium through which the harmony between government and the governed was mediated in this period. Through nine extensive chapters, Frend provides an examination of the doctrinal issues relating to the Early Church, which are essential to a deeper understanding of the history of the fifth and sixth centuries. W.H.C. Frend was Professor of Ecclesiastical History at the University of Glasgow, and the author of many important books on the Early Church, including 'Martyrdom and Persecution in the Early Church'.

This book presents the fundamental elements of Athanasius' response to the central questions of the identity of Jesus and the nature of his relationship with God.

Providing a useful introduction on his life and work, the book focuses on the tumultuous doctrinal controversies of the day in which he was a central figure.

Key selections from his writings, newly translated, have all been chosen with a view to presenting the rationale for Athanasius' fundamental theological positions: the divinity and humanity of Christ, human redemption, the divinity and work of the Holy Spirit, the logic of Christian worship, and the scriptural basis for the doctrinal formulations of the Council of Nicaea.

Students of history and classical studies, and even students of religious studies will find this an essential part of their course reading.

The Canon of the Bible and the Apocrypha in the Churches of the East features essays reflecting the latest scholarly research in the field of the canon of the Bible and related apocryphal books, with special attention given to the early Christian literature of Eastern churches. These essays study and examine issues and concepts related to the biblical canon as well as non-canonical books that circulated in the early centuries of Christianity among Christian and non-Christian communities, claiming to be authored by biblical characters, such as the prophets and kings of the Old Testament and the apostles of the New Testament.

Debate about church order has gone on for centuries within Christianity, and an end is nowhere in sight. Perhaps that is good, since the debate shows the weaknesses of many ideas that need correction. Corporate Decision-Making in the Church of the New Testament examines church order from a careful exegetical perspective, with particular attention to the social world of the New Testament. While most works about church government address structure and qualities of leadership, Jeff Brown deals with the interaction of the people of the church, both with their leaders and with one another, in setting policy. In brief, though all believers in the young church of the New Testament revered Christ and his Word as authoritative, not all church decisions were "from the top down" from earthly leaders. On the contrary, many were "from the bottom up". This should come as no surprise to those familiar with Jesus' admonition in the Gospels, "You have one teacher, and you are all brothers".

What was the relationship of ancient education to early Christianity? This volume provides an in-depth look at different approaches currently employed by scholars who draw upon educational settings in the ancient world to inform their historical research in Christian origins. The book is divided into two sections: one consisting of essays on education in the ancient world, and one consisting of exegetical studies dealing with various passages where motifs emerging from ancient educational culture provide illumination. The chapters summarize the state of the discussion on ancient education in classical and biblical studies, examine obstacles to arriving at a comprehensive theory of early Christianity's relationship to ancient education, compare different approaches, and compile the diverse methodologies into one comparative study. Several educational motifs are integrated in order to demonstrate the exegetical insights that they may yield when utilized in New Testament historical investigation and interpretation.

How did Christian mission happen in the early church from AD 100 to 750? Beginning with a brief look at the social, political, cultural, and religious contexts, Mission in the Early Church tells the story of early Christian missionaries, their methods, and their missiology. Edward L. Smither explores some of the most prominent themes of mission in early Christianity, including suffering, evangelism, Bible translation, contextualization, ministry in Word and deed, and the church. Based on this survey, modern readers are invited to a conversation that considers how early Christian mission might inform global mission thought and practice today.

First published in 1919, From Tradition to Gospel introduced and established Form Criticism in New Testament scholarship, and it remains the classic description of the field. Dibelius outlines the twofold object of Form Criticism, firstly to explain the origin of the tradition about Jesus, and secondly to uncover with what objective the earliest Churches learnt, recounted and passed on the stories and sayings of Jesus, which gradually developed into the Gospel narratives. In doing so, he begins to answer questions as to the nature and trustworthiness of our knowledge of Jesus. As new sources come to light and new critical techniques are developed, the original investigation into the Gospels along Form-Critical lines is as relevant as ever.