Christianity: A Global History - Hardcover

Chidester, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0713994339 ISBN 13: 9780713994339

Publisher: Allen Lane, 2000

Synopsis

A brilliant assessment of 2000 years of faith. Leading authority David Chidester examines the key doctrines and developments, from the ancient origins of Christian beliefs and practices, through the upheavals of the medieval and Byzantine era, to the global transformations of Christianity in the modern world. Chidester examines the culture clashes that occurred when Christianity was taken to Russia, Asia, the Americas and the Pacific Islands by missionaries and through colonial activities. He also examines the churches' tangled relations with other faiths, and Christian complicity in anti-Semitism and the Holocaust. A final section deals with how Christianity has been affected by the Cold War, consumerist society, and the Internet.

About this title

Review:

David Chidester is an American academic who teaches in South Africa. He is modest enough to use an old joke against himself: when Chidester told Archbishop Tutu he taught comparative religion, Tutu twinkled, "Ah, comparative religion--that is the religion for those who are comparatively religious." The objectivity and modesty which allows Chidester to poke fun at his own profession enlightens his monumental history of the Christian Church on every page.

Chidester tells the Christian story from its beginnings as a persecuted sect in the Roman Empire up to its present day international diversity. It is a rich and complex tapestry and Chidester handles his huge subject with rigorous scholarship, copious but unobtrusive notes, and a clear and readable style. He keeps track of the big historical trends while focusing on the fascinating personalities who have both dragged the Christian Church into scandal and schism as well as those who have lifted it to the heights of inspiration and holiness.

Chidester splits the Christian era into three chunks: the opening ten chapters deal with the first five hundred years, the next ten deal with the middle millennium and the third section covers the world wide expansion of Christianity since the Reformation. Those who like their Church history to be a disguised religious pep talk won't like this book because Chidester is expert at not taking sides; but for anyone who wants to study the majestic procession of Christianity through the history of the last 2000 years, this big book is worth every penny. --Dwight Longenecker

Review:

"'A model of condensation without simplification' - J.M Coetzee 'Clear and balanced. A triumph of compression... invaluable as a work of reference for students' - Karen Armstrong, Times 'A new and ambitious concept in presenting Christian history...a triumph. Never before, I suspect, has this cavalcade of thinkers been presented in a manner which so successfully combines depth, breadth, and succinctness' - Gerard Noel, Catholic Herald"

About this edition

• Publisher: Allen Lane
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0713994339
• ISBN 13: 9780713994339
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 704