Customer Reviews

The Christians

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Bamber Gascoignes irreverant study of the christians never fails to entertain while at the same time being informative as well as accurate. This study succeeds because of the scrupulous attention that Gascoigne pays to small details, such as when he examines the pennitance that monks must pay, while at the same time Gascoigne does not lose sight of the overall historical theme. This study is a must for the non-christian reader interested in the more wordly aspects of the church.

"There are two ways of writing... One is the potted survey, where everyone appears in the index but very little is added about them in the text. The other is a more impressionistic approach." B. Gascoigne, Preface

In thirteen themes:

A Chinese proverb says, 'A Picture Is Worth One Thousand Words,' and with Bamber Gascoigne, the author of the Encyclopedia of Britain (1993), set out to define general knowledge in a British context; One Picture Can Express Ten Thousand Words. Given he is a talented artist, he has selected an impressionist approach, choosing photographs that suggest a significant view best suited to the issues tackled in thirteen themes of the historical text.

His chapters open with, A peculiar people, through 'Faith and Fear', 'In search of tolerance', 'Politeness and enthusiasm', and treats the 'Roots of disbelief', inquiring about 'The Godless State,' from the French revolution to Soviet Russia.

The Book:

This study, which he calls 'a short book on a vast subject,' remains a classic for readers interested in the social aspects of Christianity, and the historical development of the institutional church.

Expert Review:

"So far, every time I have had a genuine enquiry, he has provided the answer. It is like having a good-natured friend available on the telephone." Auberon Waugh, the Telegraph

Bamber Gascoigne:

Born in London, 1932, he studied English at Magdalene College, Cambridge from 1955, during which time he wrote a musical, which became a West End production in 1957. For 25 years he was the presenter of University Challenge, a weekly quiz game in Britain for university students, he has also presented Cinema, The Christians, Man and Music, Victorian Values, and The Great Moghuls. Since 1994 Bamber has been developing the history web site HistoryWorld which won the 2002 New Statesman Media award for the best education web site.

By far the worst attempt at a history of Christianity I have ever read. This book is more a semi-detailed list of the iniquities of various individual Christians over the last 2000 years than any kind of real historical research. Even many of the apparent iniquities of Christian individuals which the book lists are exaggerated and based on just plain bad history, much of it outdated and no longer in currency amongst decent scholars. Then there's the closing chapter of the book, written even as Eastern European Christians suffered and died at the hands of the atheist communists, in which the author thinks it decent to dare to compare Christianity with communism, even suggesting that the two are entirely compatible and naturally complimentary partners. I would recommend this book for the top of the trash heap. I was very disappointed.