Beginning as a marginal group in Galilee, the movement initiated by Jesus of Nazareth became a world religion within 100 years. Why, among various religious movements, did Christianity succeed? This major work by internationally renowned scholar Udo Schnelle traces the historical, cultural, and theological influences and developments of the early years of the Christian movement. It shows how Christianity provided an intellectual framework, a literature, and socialization among converts that led to its enduring influence. Senior New Testament scholar James Thompson offers a clear, fluent English translation of the successful German edition.

The starting point for the book is the following anomoly: If Jesus lived as has been supposed at the beginning of the 1st century AD, the only NT documents written by a near contemporary, the Epistles of St Paul, make no mention of him as an historical figure, neither do they record any of his sayings, but rather they talk of him as a vision or mystical experience of the risen Christ. Further, the same is true of the earliest Christian non-NT texts, such as the Epistles of St Clement, roughly contemporary with Paul. Furthermore, contemporary records of the region from non-Christian sources, such as those by the Jewish historian Josephus, fail to mention Jesus at all where we would expect them to; the mentions that there are have recently been shown to be later interpolations by medieval Christian apologists - the gospel accounts of Jesus and his millieu are inaccurate in all major respects e. g. the relative dates of Herod and Pilate, if contemporary Roman and Jewish historians, who had no theological axe to grind, are taken as measure. By comparative textual studies, the author shows that the gospel accounts of Jesus' life and sayings were written approximately 100 years after Jesus is supposed to have lived, and so 100 years later than alleged contemporaries such as Paul, Clement, Josephus etc.

Eminently readable historical treatment of the Jesus Movement in First Century context. Vividly describes the life and death of Jesus and how his charismatic teaching became a worldwide religion; how Jesus the man became Jesus the Christ. Plus the heroic Jewish fight against despotic Roman rule and the violent separation of Christianity from Judaism. The reader encounters the ancient land of Palestine, King Herod’s incestuous family, fascinating legends surrounding Christianity’s birth, the wanderings and violent deaths of the 12 apostles, the mysterious Cross Gospel and Secret Gospel of Mark and a strange writing called Q. Separate chapters spotlight two shames of Christianity. Christian Sexism portrays the denigration of women from co-equal disciples of Jesus to permanent second-class status. Christian Anti-Semitism begins with the Gospels of Mark and John and the letters of Paul and highlights centuries of conflict between the Jewish people and the Roman Catholic Church. An appendix sorts out today’s confusing proliferation of versions of the New Testament, explaining their origins and detailing both serious and humorous textual differences. Helps answer the question of which version to use.

Describes the first 1,000 years of Christian history, from the early practices and beliefs through the conversion of Constantine as well as documenting its growth to communities in Ethiopia, Armenia, Central Asia, India and China.

From a prize-winning author, this book charts the course of Christianity from ancient history onwards.

The final book of the Bible, Revelation prophesies the ultimate judgement of mankind in a series of allegorical visions, grisly images and numerological predictions. According to these, empires will fall, the "Beast" will be destroyed and Christ will rule a new Jerusalem. With an introduction by Will Self.

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