The Popular Encyclopedia of Church History


Book Description

Announcing the newest release in our well-received Popular Encyclopedia series—The Popular Encyclopedia of Church History, an ideal resource for anyone who want a clear, user-friendly guide to understanding the key people, places, and events that shaped Christianity. General editors Ed Hindson and Dan Mitchell have extensive experience with producing reference works that combine expert scholarship and popular accessibility. Together with a broad range of well-qualified contributors, they have put together what is sure to become a standard must-have for both Bible teachers and students. With nearly 300 articles across 400 pages, readers will enjoy... a comprehensive panorama of church history from Acts 2 to today a clear presentation of how the church and its teachings have developed concise biographies of major Christian figures and their contributions fascinating overviews of key turning points in church history This valuable resource will enrich believers’ appreciation for the wonderful heritage behind their Christian faith.




A People's History of Christianity


Book Description

For too long, the history of Christianity has been told as the triumph of orthodox doctrine imposed through power and hierarchy. In A People's History of Christianity, historian and religion expert Diana Butler Bass reveals an alternate history that includes a deep social ethic and far-reaching inclusivity: "the other side of the story" is not a modern phenomenon, but has always been practiced within the church. Butler Bass persuasively argues that corrective—even subversive—beliefs and practices have always been hallmarks of Christianity and are necessary to nourish communities of faith. In the same spirit as Howard Zinn's groundbreaking work The People's History of the United States, Butler Bass's A People's History of Christianity brings to life the movements, personalities, and spiritual disciplines that have always informed and ignited Christian worship and social activism. A People's History of Christianity authenticates the vital, emerging Christian movements of our time, providing the historical evidence that celebrates these movements as thoroughly Christian and faithful to the mission and message of Jesus.




A Peculiar People


Book Description

Rodney Clapp asks and answers the question, How can the church provide a significant alternative to the culture in which it is embedded?




God's Timeline


Book Description

Featuring pull-out, colour timelines Illustrated throughout Introduce your children to God's timeline




Church History for Young Readers


Book Description

God always intended to have a people to love: a church Jesus said nothing could destroy (Matthew 16:18). Simonetta shows how God has kept this promise for two thousand years.




Exploring Church History


Book Description

Christianity's roots, distinctiveness, and cultural implicationsare highlighted in this multi-dimensional resource, providing anintroductory understanding of the richness of the faith andchurch.




Church History, Volume One: From Christ to the Pre-Reformation


Book Description

Church History, Volume One offers a unique contextual view of how the Christian church spread and grew from its development in the days of Jesus to the years leading up to the Reformation. Looking closely at the integral link between the history of the world and that of the church, Church History paints a portrait of God's people within its setting of times, cultures, and events that both influenced and were influenced by the church. FEATURES: Maps, charts, and illustrations spanning the time from the first through the thirteenth centuries. Overviews of the Roman, Greek, and Jewish worlds and how they developed or declined. Insights into the church's relationship to the Roman Empire, with glimpses into pagan attitudes toward Christians. Explanations of the role of art, architecture, literature, and philosophy—both sacred and secular—in the Church. Details on the major theological controversies of the periods. Each chapter also contains callout passages from Scripture to assist in understanding the narrative of the Church, even to the present day, as part of the greater narrative of the Bible. AUTHOR'S PERSPECTIVE: Scholar and writer Everett Ferguson wrote this history of the church from the perspective that such a history is the story of the greatest movement and community the world has known. It's a human story of a divinely called people who wanted to live by a divine revelation. It's a story of how they succeeded and how they failed or fell short of their calling. From the Apostle Paul to the apologists and martyrs of the second century to Martin Luther, the historical figures detailed are people who have struggled with the meaning of the greatest event in history—the coming of the Son of God—and with their role in that event and in the lives of God's people.




Church History, Volume Two: From Pre-Reformation to the Present Day


Book Description

Church History, Volume Two chronicles the events, the triumphs, and the struggles of the Christian movement from the years leading up to the Reformation through the next five centuries to the present-day. Looking closely at the integral link between the history of the world and that of the church, Church History paints a portrait of God's people within the context of the times, cultures, and developments that both influenced and were influenced by the church. FEATURES: Maps, charts, and illustrations spanning the time from the thirteenth century to today. Explanations of all the major denominational movements, traditions, and schisms during and after the Reformation. Overviews of the Christian movement in Africa, eastern Europe, Asia, and Latin America to cover the scope of the ecumenical environment of the twenty-first century. Insights into the role and influence of politics, culture and societal norms, and technology on the Western church. Unbiased details on the major theological controversies and issues of each period. AUTHORS' PERSPECTIVE: Authors John D. Woodbridge and Frank A. James III wrote this history of the church from the perspective that such a history is the story of the greatest movement and community the world has known—as imperfect as it still is. It's a human story of a divinely called people who want to live by a divine revelation. It's a story of how they succeeded and how they failed and of how they are still trying to live out their calling. From the Reformation theologians in Europe to the revivalists, apologists, and Christian thinkers all over the world, the historical figures detailed are people who have struggled with the meaning of the greatest event in history—the coming of the Son of God—and with their role in that event and in the lives of God's people.




The Early Church


Book Description

Chadwickʹs Early Church covers, as the book cover suggests, "the story of emergent Christianity from the apostolic age to the dividing of the ways between the Greek East and the Latin West." The story unfolds with the Jewish and Roman background within which the beginning church was nourished. It then goes on to show how important it is for the church to establish order and unity amidst threats of persecution and heresy. The emergence of apologists helps not only the expansion of the church but also the construction of Christian doctrine. At the same time, controversies abound as the church encountered many different cultural and sociological challenges while trying out in reaction a variety of ideas. With chapter seven, the relation between church and state changes, resulting in a stronger influence of the state upon the church while accelerating the split between the Latin West and the Greek East. The Arian controversy shows a period of instability between state and church, and also deepens the split of East and West. But within the turmoil, ascetic practice, papacy, liturgy, and art are established, helping to transmit a common European culture while the Roman Empire begins to degenerate.




A People's Church


Book Description

'A masterly, vivid and original sketch, not just of the history but of the culture (or cultures) of the Church of England across nearly five centuries.' Rowan Williams, poet and former Archbishop of Canterbury It is hard to comprehend the last 500 years of England's history without understanding the Church of England. From its roots in Catholicism through to the present day, this is the extraordinary history of a familiar but much-misunderstood institution. The Church has frequently been divided between high and low, Evangelical and Anglo-Catholic. For its first 150 years people sacrificed their lives to defend it; the Anglican Church is and has always been defined by its complicated relationship to the state and power. As Jeremy Morris shows, the story of the Church - central to British life - has never been straightforward. Weaving social, political and religious context together with the significance of its music and architecture, A People's Church skilfully illuminates a complex and pre-eminent institution.