The Medieval Church: A Brief History [Paperback]

Joseph H. Lynch (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0582494672 | ISBN-13: 978-0582494671 | Publication Date: August 1992 | Edition: 1

The Church was the central institution of the European Middle Ages, and the foundation of medieval life. Professor Lynch's admirable survey (concentrating on the western church, and emphasising ideas and trends over personalities) meets a long-felt need for a single-volume comprehensive history, designed for students and non-specialists.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'This is a judicious, entirely manageable account of the first fifteen hundred years of the Church's existence, written with admirable clarity and brevity for those with little previous knowledge of its history.'

The Innes Review (Journal of the Scottish Catholic Historical Association)

'Has no modern rival as an introduction to the subject and will inform and stimulate those who are beginning the study of medieval church history'.

English Historical Review

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Longman; 1 edition (August 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0582494672
• ISBN-13: 978-0582494671
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #271,799 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, readable introduction to the subject, April 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Medieval Church: A Brief History (Paperback)

This is an excellent introduction to medieval Church history that assumes an interest but little background in the subject. The deatils on any specific subject are necessarily limited, but a thorough bibliography is included. Unlike many authors in the field, Lynch's writing style is entertaining and readable without sacrificing content. He remembered that no one goes to the ball game to watch the umpire, and the resulting book is informative, clear, and understandable.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great intro book, April 3, 2006

By 

kate - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Medieval Church: A Brief History (Paperback)

This is a primary course text for a church history class I am currently taking. Lynch's explanations of different major movements and figures are clear, articulate, and informed. This book isn't an exciting read, but is one of the most informative and least trying upper-level history course books I've read.
Considering the range and breadth of the topic, Lynch does not do justice to many medieval religious topics, but with this book he provides a good starting point for further research.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Captivating Glance into the Medieval Church History, December 16, 2008

By 

Betty Vattakunnel (Houston, TX) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Medieval Church: A Brief History (Paperback)

Book Review
The Medieval Church: A Brief History by Joseph H. Lynch
Reviewed by Betty Vattakunnel

Lynch, Joseph H. The Medieval Church: A Brief History. London: Longman, 1992.

Joseph H. Lynch is a Professor of History at Ohio State University and is also the author of the following books: Early Christianity: A Brief History, Christianizing Kinship: Ritual Sponsorship in Anglo-Saxon England, and many other books.Through the reading of his book, The Medieval Church, Lynch's passion to teach the history of Christianity is evident in his writings. Lynch's books provide readers an in depth, yet readable glance into the history of Christianity. He provides his readers a captivating viewpoint of the history that took place and changed the world and the growth of the church. The importance of studying the history of Christianity is illustrated through Lynch's books that display the necessity to learn about our church history in order to understand where we are today.

The book, The Medieval Church, provides readers a chronological and fairly detailed look into the medieval era of the history of Christianity. Lynch does an excellent job in setting out the facts without providing a stale encyclopedia historical outlook, but uses a language that entices the readers interest by bringing to life the realities of the history of Christianity. From Ancient Christianity to the eve of the Reformation, Lynch descriptively introduces his readers to what the world was like for the church during this era. Lynch divides his book up into twenty sections that are divided by time periods and also important events that took place. This book provides good historical facts with a timeline that guides readers through the history of the church and at the same time introduces readers to the various movements that took place that affected the overall growth of the church. Lynch does an outstanding job in exploring all areas of the medieval era including monasticism, missions, growth of the schools, details in regards to the church structure, and illustrates details of the challenges faced by the church from opposition outside of the church and even within the church.

As the medieval era is the precursor for the reformation, Lynch does a beautiful job in building up the climax of this era towards the eve of the Reformation era. The use of clear and concise language throughout the book grasps readers attention and sustains their interest in learning about the medieval era. When reading this book, readers should have some background of the early church history to completely understand the language and conflicts that arise during this time period. Lynch provides his readers in the preface a list of books to reference while reading this book as it uses language and refers to events that the reader should have some knowledge of. Taking this into consideration, The Medieval Church: A Brief History is a book that should not be read individually. As this book is historically built upon other historical facts about the history of the church, it is necessary for readers to have basic knowledge of early Christian history.

For myself, a student of the study of the history of Christianity, Lynch's book has provided me a comprehensive and chronological study of the development of the church including details of contributors to the growth of the church, the events that took place, and the events that foreshadowed the events to come.

Lynch's book The Medieval Church is a book that would be suitable for students who already have a basic background on the early church history. As a seminary student, I would highly recommend this book to those in seminary. This book should not be read on its own, but should be read with prior and post historical information from the medieval church era.

Overall, Joseph H. Lynch presents a book that is a great historical book that provides a clear and concise outlook on the medieval church era and provides readers a diverse look at the all aspects that contributed to the development and growth of the church towards the eve of Reformation.

Betty Vattakunnel
Houston Graduate School of Theology, Houston, Texas