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24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
NOT FOR BEGINNERS, June 9, 2003
This review is from: Athanasius and Constantius: Theology and Politics in the Constantinian Empire (Paperback)
I put myself on a summer reading course of important Late Roman/Early Byzantine Emperors. I started with Diocletian and hope to stop with Maurice. After reading Constantine the Great by Micheal Grant I began to cast around for a book on his successors. Of Constantine's three sons, this is the only major work in the past ten years that deals with any of them, the eventual victor in their succession struggle, Constantius. This book focuses on the Christian Bishop Athanasius' struggle for legitimacy within the late Empire. Barnes discusses, in overwhelming detail, the multitude of early Christian squabbles and power-struggles that sought to define Christian orthodoxy within the Christian Roman Empire. Little is known of Athanasius as a person but his religious impact is enormous and Barnes dives into this and drags his reader down with him. There are too many names, councils and conflicts for anyone other than a true expert to keep straight. One important idea I learned, though, was the absolute power the Emperors truly had. Most books give you an idea of this when they say, "Emperor So-And-So ordered the deaths of 10000 people." This book explains Imperial power in a new way. When Constantius wrote condemning letters about Athanasius, you can sense the man's panic as he tried to explain his way back into the Emperor's good graces. This is what saves the book. You begin to root for Athanasius to survive (which he did as the Bishop of Alexandria for 45 years) as conspiracy after conspiracy strives to destroy his reputation and anathemize him and his teachings. Don't try this book unless you have a good grasp of early Christian history or late Roman history.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Definitive History, January 28, 2006
I will state for the record that the previous reviewer's remarks are absolutely correct. Barnes is writing an academic monograph for other academics, students of the period, and well informed readers of Late Antiquity and Church History. However, with this as a given, the book covers its topic with verve, clarity, and extreme depth. Barnes' knowledge of the sources for the period and his adept use of them in elucidating this most important period in the development of Church-State history is breathtaking.
Just how important the issues addressed in this book were and are to Roman Christianity is attested to by the Catholic Enclyclopedia. Anthanasius of Alexandria is styled by this official Church organ as the "most important man of the 4th Century" and the "founder of orthodoxy." Was he greater than Constantine the Great? One can see the importance the Roman Church places on the issues covered in this book and its central character. And indeed, Athanasius's influence was pivotal in defining Trinitary orthodoxy as we know it today. Without Athanasius, it is indeed possible and might even be probable that Roman Catholic orthodoxy on the Trinity would be Arian in nature. The story itself is engrossing - The fight of one man, allbeit with plenty of support, against the Roman Emperors of the time and the vast majority of the bishops of the east in an era when religion and the State were one.
It should be noted that Athanasius's trinitarian concerns were only one of the many areas in which his influence was pervasive and lasting. Richard Rubenstein's, "When Jesus Became God," far underestimates the man. Here Barnes gives Athanasus his due as to this aspect of his career. This is undoubtly the definitive work on this topic and goes a long way to explain the triumph of Athanasian orthodoxy on the topic of the Trinity at the First Council of Constantinople within twenty years of his death.
That being said, the price of this book is outrageous. However, there is no replacement. Nor is it likely that any other work will surpass it or even approach its level of excellence. If you need it, buy it. If not get it from the library and read it if you are at all interested in this period and 4th Century Trinitarian evolution. Also please note, the books of Barnes on Amazon.com for some wrongheaded reason are listed under T.D. Barnes, Timothy D. Barnes, and Timothy David Barnes each separately with no cross reference. By whatever name he goes by, Barnes is a historian of the first rank and deserves to be read by a wide audience.
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2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A tale of incredible religious hardball in the 300s, March 14, 2008
This review is from: Athanasius and Constantius: Theology and Politics in the Constantinian Empire (Paperback)
This well documented study focuses on the career of Archbishop Athanasius of Alexandria during the 300s AD. But beyond that, Barnes illuminates the surrounding age with its assumptions, passions, and realities. Behind the official statements of a winner in church history, Barnes shows us the evidence of a fallible, ambitious, vindictive man, striving to defeat his rivals by almost any means necessary. The ups and downs of this man's career are close to breathtaking. Barnes' careful research reveals a saga of disturbing political hardball over the future of power in Rome's new imperial religion.
--author of Correcting Jesus
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