Christian History in Seven Sentences: A Small Introduction to a Vast Topic

2021 ◽  
Vol 133 (2) ◽  
pp. 86-87
Author(s):  
Daniel K. Eng
Keyword(s):  
2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 27-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dorina Miller Parmenter

Despite Christian leaders’ insistence that what is important about the Bible are the messages of the text, throughout Christian history the Bible as a material object, engaged by the senses, frequently has been perceived to be an effective object able to protect its users from bodily harm. This paper explores several examples where Christians view their Bibles as protective shields, and will situate those interpretations within the history of the material uses of the Bible. It will also explore how recent studies in affect theory might add to the understanding of what is communicated through sensory engagement with the Bible.


Author(s):  
Mark Goodacre

The so-called Protevangelium of James is perhaps the most historically significant of all the non-canonical gospels. In prefacing its account of the birth of Jesus with an account of the birth and childhood of Mary, it has directly or indirectly shaped beliefs about the ‘holy family’ throughout Christian history. It is beyond doubt that the author is familiar with Matthew and Luke’s birth narratives and that he uses them extensively. Yet his use of source texts is seldom predictable, often creative, and almost always in the service of forging a compelling narrative that serves his idiosyncratic take on the tradition. The Protevangelium is a masterpiece of creative synthesis that reveres its source materials while being unafraid to plough its own furrow. This chapter investigates how the Protevangelium interprets and rewrites synoptic narratives, paying special attention to the author’s rewriting of the stories of the annunciation and the birth of Jesus.


Vox Patrum ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 65 ◽  
pp. 497-521
Author(s):  
Mieczysław Celestyn Paczkowski

The article focuses the story of the martyrdom of 60 Christian soldiers in Gaza who were executed for their refusal to convert to Islam during the Muslim inva­sion of Palestine. It is a final episode of varied Christian history of that region. Christian history of Gaza appears as complex and fascinating. In this region in the 4th century paganism was still strong but the monastic life developed in the vicinity of Gaza. Literary sources annotated the anti-Chalcedonian resistance of monastic circles in the wake of the council of Chalcedon. Christian history of the Gaza region ended dramatically with the Arab conquest in the 7th century. Just at that time a group of Christian soldiers refused the offer of the commander of the winners Muslims. The narrative of their martyrdom was preserved in a Latin translation of a Greek original. According to the text of the Passio, the Christian soldiers were executed in two groups: at Jerusalem and at Eleutheropolis. Bi­shop Sophronius of Jerusalem intervened in favor of these Martyrs and comforted them. He also gained the palm of martyrdom. The Passio in two different Latin recensions reveals a relatively neglected aspect in the history of the Holy Land during the period of heightened religious tension.


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