The End of Ancient Christianity (Canto original series) [Paperback]

R. A. Markus (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521625106 | ISBN-13: 978-0521625104 | Publication Date: March 28, 1998

This book is concerned with one central historical problem: the nature of the changes that transformed the intellectual and spiritual horizons of the Christian world from its establishment in the fourth century to the end of the sixth. The End of Ancient Christianity examines how Christians, who had formerly constituted a threatened and beleaguered minority, came to define their identity in a changed context of religious respectability in which their faith had become a source of privilege and power.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'With careful attention to detail, and with a truly delightful ability to restore the integrity of the past, Professor Markus takes the reader through the uneven processes of change ...' Church Times

'The appearance of this book, by one of the most distinguished scholars in the field, is an event to be welcomed ...' Journal of Religious History

Book Description

This book is concerned with the nature of the changes that transformed the intellectual and spiritual horizons of the Christian world from its establishment in the fourth century to the end of the sixth.

Product Details

• Paperback: 276 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (March 28, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521625106
• ISBN-13: 978-0521625104
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,064,705 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars penetrating discernment of layers in Christian tradition, February 15, 2008

By 

Brian Griffith (Toronto, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The End of Ancient Christianity (Canto original series) (Paperback)

Markus traces the historic shifts which marked a transformation of the Christian movement, from the popular primitive church of the first centuries, into a great bulwark of the medieval social order. He shows how the Christian community slowly divided into three orders -- of lay people, the all-male clergy, and the celibate monastics. And then the question emerged as to which order ranked highest. At first, the lay people were most important, since they chose and supported all church leaders from among themselves. Later, professional clergymen established themselves as state-backed supervisors over the laity. But by early medieval times it was the celibate monks who emerged as the Christians of highest rank. With their isolation from the world and from sex, the monastics seemed holier than either the local clergy (who were still mainly married), or lay families. In both the West and East, bishops, patriarchs, and popes were increasingly drawn from the ranks of male monks. It was a momentous trend. Markus claims, "The ascetic take-over [roughly in the time of Pope Gregory the Great (590-604)] signals the end of ancient Christianity". (p. 17)

I think Markus does the church a service, helping us distinguish layers of Christian tradition as they were added, and to see how these differed from the original Jesus movement.

-author of Correcting Jesus

12 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very good book..., February 8, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The End of Ancient Christianity (Paperback)

Markus' treatment of the culture of early Christianity is fascinating. More than any other scholar I have read, he is adept at showing the broader significance of various parts of Early Christianity.