The New York Times bestseller and definitive history of Christianity for our time—from the award-winning author of The Reformation and SilenceA product of electrifying scholarship conveyed with commanding skill, Diarmaid MacCulloch’s Christianity goes back to the origins of the Hebrew Bible and encompasses the globe. It captures the major turning points in Catholic, Protestant, and … points in Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox history and fills in often neglected accounts of conversion and confrontation in Africa, Latin America, and Asia. MacCulloch introduces us to monks and crusaders, heretics and reformers, popes and abolitionists, and discover Christianity’s essential role in shaping human history and the intimate lives of men and women. And he uncovers the roots of the faith that galvanized America, charting the surprising beliefs of the founding fathers, the rise of the Evangelical movement and of Pentecostalism, and the recent crises within the Catholic Church. Bursting with original insights and a great pleasure to read, this monumental religious history will not soon be surpassed.
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A well written history of Christianity which is not an easy accomplishment: Informative with just enough humor to keep the “history “ interesting and moving without descending into mockery. Some of the squabbles between the different churches becomes a little clearer. Well worth the effort to read & infornative enough to keep on hand for future reference.
You might imagine that 1,016 pages of history (plus 168 pages of notes and index) might make for some dry reading. You would imagine wrongly. It reads more like an action novel. The characters are far more important than the dates and places. The theology (and there is plenty of that) comes out of the lives and witness of the huge cast of characters. The greatest surprise comes from seeing the simple humanity of all the people that have shaped this 3,000 years of history. It’s by no means an easy read. I paced myself to read it over the course of 9 months, and I wouldn’t have wanted to go any faster. I was also able to share this with a small group of fellow readers/students. As an Episcopalian/Anglican, it was also rewarding to finally read an accurate telling of the origins of “The Church of England”.
An accessible work on a monumental topic. Very informative.
This book answered so many questions for me.
Solid scholarship. Well organized.
Tedious and simultaneously superficial. If you live in Tibet and have heard of Christianity, this is the book for you.
Amazing that such a long book could be so captivating. Important read if a person wants to understand how Christianity became a dominant religion, and why there is so much variation in beliefs and practices.
Very informative. Answered lots of questions I have had since I was a child. Incredible attention to detail. Definitely not a “fast read” but well worth the effort.
As an Episcopalian with an M.D. church history, I have a similar outlook as the author. I read this book as a refresher after more than forty years since graduate school. I thoroughly enjoyed it and plan to read it again. The author is obviously well educated and has an excellent grasp of the complexity and subtleties of this very complicated history. I especially appreciated the inclusion of eastern Christian groups that I had almost no knowledge.
It is not a light read although the author’s style, while straight forward, is easy to follow. For people wanting an excellent broad understanding, and willing to look up subjects briefly mentioned, this history is excellent. I highly recommend also purchasing the audio which is great especially with pronunciation and language.
Very broad yet comprehensive survey of Christian history, warts and all. Although conventional wisdom begins Christian history with the ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth the author had chosen to begin with Classical Greek and Roman influences as well as Hebrew culture in the millennium prior to the eruption of the “people of the way” as Christians were first referred to. Only a short thereafter to be “little Christs” or Christians.
There are some flaws: for example that Pope Benedict 1st was a “shadowy character who quickly attracted a good deal of legend”. Actually quite a bit is known – he was a pope after all and a recent cardinal elected pope chose t him as a namesake.
Africa is accurately described as a continent where Christianity was on the defensive and overrun by the armies of Islam. True as described in the early going; Africa could now be justly described as the center of gravity of the Christian universe with an estimated 630+ million Christians. The growth of Christianity in Africa, South America and to a lesser extent China has been dramatic.
McCulloch does not accept the resurrection narratives as true (as far as i know), but otherwise gives the faith its due. He has no axes to grind but presents history fairly, with wit and verve. Definitely worth reading for anyone interested in Christian history from a big picture perspective.
Excellent and through history of Christianity going back to our Jewish roots
Challenging, sad in places, profound, and erudite. Synthesis of many threo