Christianity is commonly held to have introduced an entirely new and better morality into the ancient world, a new morality that was decidedly universal, in contrast to the ethics of the philosophical schools which were only concerned with the intellectual few. Runar M. Thorsteinsson presents a challenge to this view by comparing Christian morality in first-century Rome with contemporary Stoic ethics in the city.
Thorsteinsson introduces and discusses the moral teaching of Roman Stoicism; of Seneca, Musonius Rufus, and Epictetus. He then presents the moral teaching of Roman Christianity as it is represented in Paul's Letter to the Romans, the First Letter of Peter, and the First Letter of Clement. Having established the bases for his comparison, he examines the similarities and differences between Roman Stoicism and Roman Christianity in terms of morality.
Five broad themes are used for the comparison, questions of Christian and Stoic views about: a particular morality or way of life as proper worship of the deity; certain individuals (like Jesus and Socrates) as paradigms for the proper way of life; the importance of mutual love and care; non-retaliation and 'love of enemies'; and the social dimension of ethics. This approach reveals a fundamental similarity between the moral teachings of Roman Christianity and Roman Stoicism. The most basic difference is found in the ethical scope of the two: While the latter teaches unqualified universal humanity, the former seems to condition the ethical scope in terms of religious adherence.

The Pelagian controversy - whether man is saved through predestination or by his own free will - has proved one of the most enduring and fiercely contended issues of the Christian church, and has secured Pelagius a lasting place within its history. Few of Pelagius' writings, however, have been preserved, and until recently none was available in English translation. This volume presents Pelagius' commentary on Paul's Letter to the Romans for the first time in English. The commentary, one of thirteen on the Pauline Epistles, dates from the time when Pelagius was active in Rome, before he became embroiled in controversy. But already there are adumbrations of the later debate and signs of different currents of thought in Italy and beyond. In his introduction Theodore de Bruyn discusses the context in which Pelagius wrote the commentary and the issues which shaped his interpretation of Romans. He also takes up questions about the edition of the commentary. The translation is annotated with references to Pelagius' contemporaries. A new recension of Pelagius' text of Romans is presented in an appendix.

This revealing history examines the controversies, maneuvering, and political wrangling that occupied the Christian Church for the first four centuries of its existence. Drawing from primary texts, Early Controversies and the Growth of Christianity reveals how the religion was formed through a series of conflicts that occurred primarily between Christian groups. Presenting a close examination of the first four centuries of Christian history through the lens of the controversies that animated, disturbed, and finally formed the Church, the book will enable readers to become familiar with the lives and writings of the early Christians and to better understand the fascinating history of early Christianity. The book focuses on several major early controversies. These include controversies surrounding the apostle Paul; controversies concerning the apostolic fathers, especially the idea of a pope and the role of the bishop/priest; Marcion and his influence; Manichaeism and Gnosticism; persecution and the Dontatists; Arianism; the rise of the bishop in the late 4th century; and power struggles between church and state. Each chapter focuses on the primary texts and key players in the battle over what would finally become orthodox Christianity, demystifying many poorly understood events that ultimately helped define today's Church. Maps of Paul's journeys, of the cities that Ignatius of Antioch visited, and of the Roman and Persian Empires Photographs including Caravaggio's Conversion of Paul, the Chi-Rho symbol, the Arian Baptistry in Ravenna Italy, the Arch of Constantine, the Altar of Victory, and Van Dyck's Ambrose An overall chronology and a separate chronology for each chapter

Disciplining Christians reconsiders several of Augustine's most well-known letter exchanges, including his famously controversial correspondence with Jerome and his efforts to engage his Donatist rivals in a letter exchange. It reads these letters with close attention to conventional epistolary norms and practices, in an effort to identify innovative features of Augustine's epistolary practice. In particular, it notes and analyzes Augustine's adaptation of the traditionally friendly letter exchange to the correction of perceived error in the Christian community. In transforming the practice of letter exchange into a tool of correction, Augustine draws on both the classical philosophical tradition and also scripture. His particular innovation is his insistence that this process of correction can-and often must-be done in the potentially public form of a letter exchange rather than in the privacy of a face-to-face conversation. This is particularly true when the perceived error is one that has the potential to jeopardize the salvation of the entire Christian community. In offering epistolary correction, and requesting reciprocal correction from his correspondents, Augustine treats his practice of letter exchange as a performance of Christian caritas. Indeed, in his view, the friendliest correspondence was that which was concerned solely with preserving the salvation of the participants. In recognizing Augustine's commitment to the corrective correspondence and thus reading his letters with attention to their corrective function, we gain new insights into the complicated dynamics of Augustine's relationships with Jerome, Paulinus of Nola, the Donatists, and Pelagius.

St Symeon the New Theologian (949-1022) is regarded as one of the most significant figures in Byzantine mysticism. Though a very controversial figure in his own lifetime, he is now revered both in Orthodox and other Christian traditions. After beginning his monastic life while still comparatively young, he became hegumen of the monastery of St Mamas, and held that position for several years. Many of his writings, including the Discourses and Hymns, have appeared in print, but his four epistles have not been published in their entirety until now.
In these four letters, besides criticising those contending against him, Symeon writes as a pastor, concerned to give practical moral guidance. He focuses on confession, repentence, and the role of the spiritual father. H. J. M. Turner details the biographic and textual context of this scholarly annotated edition. He uses the previously unpublished Greek text established by Joseph Paramelle to provide an authoritative basis for his translation. Clearly and accessibly presented, these letters serve to reinforce our understanding of Symeon's life and work.

Hilary of Poitiers (c300-368), Bishop and Theologian, was instrumental in shaping the development of pro-Nicene theology in the West. Carl Beckwith engages the extensive scholarship on the fourth-century Trinitarian debates and brings new light on the structure and chronology of Hilary's monumental De Trinitate.
There is a broad scholarly consensus that Hilary combined two separate theological works, a treatise on faith (De Fide) and a treatise against the 'Arians' (Adversus Arianos), to create De Trinitate. In spite of this the question of when and why Hilary performed this task has largely remained unanswered. Beckwith addresses this puzzle, situating Hilary's De Trinitate in its historical and theological context and offering a close reading of his text. He demonstrates that Hilary made significant revisions to the early books of his treatise; revisions that he attempted to conceal from his readers in order to give the impression of a unified work on the Trinity.
Beckwith argues that De Fide was written in 356 following Hilary's condemnation at the synod of Beziers and prior to receiving a decision on his exile from the Emperor. When Hilary arrived in exile, he wrote a second work, Adversus Arianos. Following the synod of Sirmium in 357 and his collaboration with Basil of Ancyra in early 358, Hilary recast his efforts and began to write De Trinitate. He decided to incorporate his two earlier works, De Fide and Adversus Arianos, into this project. Toward that end, he returned to his earlier works and drastically revised their content by adding new prefaces and new theological and exegetical material to reflect his mature pro-Nicene theology. Beckwith provides a compelling case for the nature of these radical revisions, crucial textual alterations that have never before been acknowledged in the scholarship on De Trinitate."

The doctrine of the Trinity has been central to Christian faith since the fourth century, but it is often the cause of more confusion than understanding. The author here overcomes this by looking at it from the point of view of one who vehemently rejected it. Eunomius of Cyzicus was condemned as a heretic during his lifetime in the fourth century and after. Richard Paul Vaggione uses Eunomius' life to examine how the whole Christian community, including ordinary men and women, helped determine how this often abused doctrine was - and is - understood.

Scriptural interpretation was an important form of scholarship for Christians in late antiquity. For no one does this claim ring more true than Origen of Alexandria (185-254), one of the most prolific scholars of Scripture in early Christianity. This book examines his approach to the Bible through a biographical lens: the focus is on his account of the scriptural interpreter, the animating centre of the exegetical enterprise. In pursuing this largely neglected line of inquiry, Peter W. Martens discloses the contours of Origen's sweeping vision of scriptural exegesis as a way of life. For Origen, ideal interpreters were far more than philologists steeped in the skills conveyed by Greco-Roman education. Their profile also included a commitment to Christianity from which they gathered a spectrum of loyalties, guidelines, dispositions, relationships and doctrines that tangibly shaped how they practiced and thought about their biblical scholarship. The study explores the many ways in which Origen thought ideal scriptural interpreters (himself included) embarked upon a way of life, indeed a way of salvation, culminating in the everlasting contemplation of God. This new and integrative thesis takes seriously how the discipline of scriptural interpretation was envisioned by one of its pioneering and most influential practitioners.

This book brings the Cappadocian Fathers to life and explores their contributions to subsequent Christian thought. Melding together a thematic and individualized approach, the book examines Cappadocian thought in relation to Greek philosophy and the musings of other Christian thinkers of the time. The volume is unique in that it details the Cappadocian legacy upon the three central divisions of Christianity, rather than focusing on one confession. Providing a multifaceted assessment of the spirituality and beliefs of the fourth-century Church, contributors interweave historical studies into their philosophical and theological discussions. The volume draws together an international team of scholars from a variety of academic backgrounds including philosophy, theology, and Classics. The contributors bring their unique perspectives to bear on their analysis of the Cappadocians' theological contributions. Special attention is given to the Cappadocians' influence on pneumatology, Christology, and ethics. The Ecumenical Legacy of the Cappadocians sets the Cappodocians' theoretical views in relief against the political and historical background of their day, enlivening and vivifying the analysis with engaging biographical sketches.

The contributors to this volume address the key institutions of the first and second Church, considering the development of rituals and sacraments, and the development of Church leadership, and of the Church itself. The first part of the book looks at the offices of the Church - the Apostolate and the development of other religious authorities - as well as the notion of Apostolic Tradition. The second part looks at the sacraments, with in-depth consideration of the Eucharist, and of Baptismal texts from the early Church. The essays are of interest to scholars researching the development of the early Church and of Church rituals and practices.

In this national bestseller, John Dominic Crossan, the world's leading expert on the historical Jesus, reveals how Christianity emerged in the period following Jesus' death. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, Crossan shines new light on the theological and cultural contexts from which the Christian church arose. He argues powerfully that Christianity would have happened with or without Paul and contends that Jesus' "resurrection" meant something vastly different for his early followers than it does for many traditional Christians today--what mattered was Christina origins finally illuminates the mysterious period that set Western religious history in its decisive course.

Pierre de la Palud was a friar of aristocratic birth who was appointed Patriarch of Jerusalem in 1329. This biography follows the course of his eventful life, and exploits his copious writings to build up a vivid picture of the man and the world he inhabited. Lawyer, advocate, preacher, reformer, theologian, politician, encyclopedist, crusader - Pierre was all of these; and the voice of each can be heard in his writings. Jean Dunbabin's scholarly and penetrating study traces the career of Pierre de la Palud from his early reflections on contemporary moral issues, including papal prerogatives, contraception, and usury, to his political and diplomatic activities as Patriarch of Jerusalem. From Dominican friar to French courtier, the variety of Pierre's experience and the range of his writings reflect the turbulence of the fourteenth-century Christian church.

This volume is an original and important contribution to the study of the earliest Palestinian Jewish Christianity. For the first time all the evidence for the role which relatives of Jesus played in the early church is assembled and assessed. Dr. Bauckham discusses a wide range of evidence, not only from the New Testament but also from the Church Fathers, the New Testament Apocrypha, rabbinic literature and Palestinian archaeology. The letter of Jude, in particular, proves to have much to teach us about the theology of the brothers of Jesus and their circle. It illuminates their exegetical methods and their Christology and shows both to have been influential contributions to the development of early Christianity. This study shows that this neglected New Testament book is far more important for the study of early Christianity than has hitherto been recognized. By setting the letter of Jude within the context of the evidence for the role of relatives of Jesus in the early church, new insights can be revealed into the letter and early Jewish Christianity.

Several view of martyrdom co-existed in the early Church. The orthodox position, generally accepted by scholars, was that a Christian should choose martyrdom rather than deny the Faith, but should not, on any account, court death. Although it has been recognised that some in the early Church did seek a glorified death, by giving themselves over to arrest, most scholars have dismissed such acts as differing from the accepted attitude to martyrdom in the early Church. Therefore, instances of volitional, or radical martyrdom, have been largely overlooked or sidelined in scholarly investigations into the theology and origins of Christian martyrdom. Paul Middleton argues that, far from being a deviant strand of early Christianity, radical martyrdom was a significant, and widely held idealised form of devotion in the late first to early third centuries. Christian martyrdom is placed within the heritage of Jewish War tradition, with each martyr making an important contribution to the cosmic conflict between Satan and God. Radical Martyrdom re-examines the presentation, theology, and origins of Christian martyrdom up to the beginning of the Decian persecutions in the light of new perspectives on the subject.

Baptism for the early Christians was a subject of crucial importance, and its symbolism fired the imagination of writers throughout the Christian world. Arator, the Roman sub-deacon who wrote a verse-commentary on the Acts of the Apostles in A.D. 544, was no exception. The Historia Apostolica is a work of historical importance. Written at a time of crisis, politically and theologically, it is of interest as propaganda for a papacy under threat from Constantinople. But Arator's concentration on baptismal themes offers vital evidence of the transmission of exegetical ideas in late antiquity. This book is the first major work on Arator in English and the first ever to study the Historia Apostolica as biblical commentary. Passages of particular baptismal importance are presented both in the original Latin and in a new translation, and are considered in the context of the writings of earlier Christian commentators. Hillier's study is a wide-ranging study of the popularity and potency of baptismal symbolism in the first six centuries A.D.

The first comprehensive introduction to the Orthodox Church in the United States from 1794 to the present, this book includes a succinct picture of the distinctive history of Orthodoxy and its particular perspectives on the Christian faith. Attention is given to the contacts between the Orthodox Church and other Christian churches, as well as its contributions to the ecumenical movement. Over 80 biographies of major Orthodox leaders in America also are included along with an annotated bibliography of the writings of the major Orthodox theologians. The book begins with a review of the historical characteristics and distinctive faith affirmations of Orthodoxy, which has a history that is quite different from Roman Catholicism and Protestantism. Subsequent chapters examine the historical development of the Orthodox Church in this country, with special attention being paid to the early mission in Alaska, the effects of immigration, the organizational developments of parishes and dioceses, the effects of old world politics, the movement toward greater unity, and the distinctive features of American Orthodoxy today. The material is fresh and inclusive, covering all major branches and treating them with an irenic spirit. The biographies are thoughtful and informative, and there is a tremendous amount of bibliographic and reference material. Scholars, practitioners in every faith, and laypersons will find this volume indispensable.

The letters of Paulinus of Nola and his correspondents show an early Christian 'web' of ideas in action. Catherine Conybeare examines how messages carried between members of a far-flung community helped to tie that community together. The letters reveal the profound impact Paulinus had in shaping the new Christian Church.

A detailed study of one theological concept (divine mediation) that was central to the Christological controversy of the early fourth century. By analysing the views of three participants at the Council of Nicaea (325), Jon M. Robertson demonstrates the variety of perspectives in a way that questions popular approaches to the period that see the controversy as having only two sides. His analysis constitutes a new approach to the early Arian controversy, as well as showing the theological backdrop of Athanasius' insight on Christ as mediator. It further demonstrates the contemporary relevance of the issue by giving an Athanasian critique of the modern Christology of Roger Haight.

St Maximus the Confessor is one of the giants of Christian theology. His doctrine of two wills gave the final shape to ancient Christology and was ratified by the Sixth Ecumenical Council in AD 681. This study throws new light upon one of the most interesting periods of historical and systematic theology. Its focus is the seventh century, the century that saw the rapid expansion of Islam, and the Empire's failed attempt to retain many of its south-eastern provinces by inventing and promoting the heresy of Monothelitism (only one will in Christ) as a bridge between the Byzantine Church and the anti-Chalcedonian Churches which prevailed in some of these areas. From the point of view of systematic theology, the book examines the meaning of the terms person/hypostasis, nature/essence, and will in the context of Christology after the Council of Chalcedon (AD 451), with special reference to Maximus. It also explores the complex question of the human will of Jesus Christ and its relation to his person and natures. The Byzantine Christ enhances our understanding of Eastern Orthodox theology and of some of the reasons that still separate it both from Western Christianity and from the so-called Oriental Orthodox Churches.

Augustine of Hippo, indisputably one of the most important figures for the study of memory, is credited with establishing memory as the inner source of selfhood and locus of the search for God. Yet, those who study memory in Augustine have never before taken into account his preaching. His sermons are the sources of memory's greatest development for Augustine. In Augustine's preaching, especially on the Psalms, the interior gives way to communal exterior. Both the self and search for God are re-established in a shared Christological identity and the communal labors of remembering and forgetting. This book opens with Augustine's early works and Confessions as the beginning of memory and concludes with Augustine's Trinity and preaching on Psalm 50 as the end of memory. The heart of the book, the work of memory, sets forth how ongoing remembering and forgetting in Christ are for Augustine are foundational to the life of grace. To that end, Augustine and his congregants go leaping in memory together, keep festival with abiding traces, and become forgetful runners like St. Paul. Remembering and forgetting in Christ, the ongoing work of memory, prove for Augustine to be actions of reconciliation of the distended experiences of human life-of praising and groaning, labouring and resting, solitude and communion. Augustine on Memory presents this new communal and Christological paradigm not only for Augustinian studies, but also for theologians, philosophers, ethicists, and interdisciplinary scholars of memory.

Some early Christians used water, not wine, in the cup of their Eucharist, and avoided eating meat. This kind of avoidance, more common than previously imagined, reflected a more radical stance towards the wider society than that taken by the Christian mainstream. The discussion here throws new light on early Christianity and the ways eating and drinking have often reflected deeply-held beliefs and values.

Self-restraint or self-mastery may appear to be the opposite of erotic desire. But in this nuanced, literary analysis, Diane Lipsett traces the intriguing interplay of desire and self-restraint in three ancient tales of conversion: The Shepherd of Hermas, the Acts of Paul and Thecla, and Joseph and Aseneth. Lipsett treats "conversion"--marked change in a protagonist's piety and identity--as in part an effect of story, a function of narrative textures, coherence, and closure. Her approach is theoretically versatile, drawing on Foucault, psychoanalytic theorists, and the ancient literary critic Longinus. Well grounded in scholarship on Hermas, Thecla, and Aseneth, the closely paced readings sharpen attention to each story, while advancing discussions of ancient views of the self; of desire, masculinity, and virginity; of the cultural codes around marriage and continence; and of the textual energetics of conversion tales.

In the centuries following his death, Jerome (c.347-420) was venerated as a saint and as one of the four Doctors of the Latin church. In his own lifetime, however, he was a severely marginalized figure whose intellectual and spiritual authority did not go unchallenged, at times not even by those in his inner circle. His ascetic theology was rejected by the vast majority of Christian contemporaries, his Hebrew scholarship was called into question by the leading Biblical authorities of the day, and the reputation he cultivated as a pious monk was compromised by allegations of moral impropriety with some of his female disciples.
In view of the extremely problematic nature of his profile, how did Jerome seek to bring credibility to himself and his various causes? In this book, the first of its kind in any language, Andrew Cain answers this crucial question through a systematic examination of Jerome's idealized self-presentation across the whole range of his extant epistolary corpus. Modern scholars overwhelmingly either access the letters as historical sources or appreciate their aesthetic properties. Cain offers a new approach and explores the largely neglected but nonetheless fundamental propagandistic dimension of the correspondence. In particular, he proposes theories about how, and above all why, Jerome used individual letters and letter-collections to bid for status as an expert on the Bible and ascetic spirituality.

Richard Finn OP examines the significance of almsgiving in Churches of the later empire for the identity and status of the bishops, ascetics, and lay people who undertook practices which differed in kind and context from the almsgiving practised by pagans. It reveals how the almsgiving crucial in constructing the bishop's standing was a co-operative task where honour was shared but which exposed the bishop to criticism and rivalry. Finn details how practices gained meaning from a discourse which recast traditional virtues of generosity and justice to render almsgiving a benefaction and source of honour, and how this pattern of thought and conduct interacted with classical patterns to generate controversy. He argues that co-operation and competition in Christian almsgiving, together with the continued existence of traditional euergetism, meant that, contrary to the views of recent scholars, Christian alms did not turn bishops into the supreme patrons of their cities.