Backgrounds of Early Christianity (Paperback)

by Everett Ferguson (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"The vast scope of the book and the labor involved reflect the author's commendable erudition.... Imaginatively and painstakingly executed." --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description
This revision of a popular textbook provides an analytical and systematic introdution to the Roman, Greek, and Jewish political, social, literary, and religious backgrounds necessary for a historical understanding of the New Testament and the early church.

Product Details

• Paperback: 632 pages
• Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; 2nd edition (September 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802806694
• ISBN-13: 978-0802806697
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #312,698 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

55 of 57 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Accurate, honest, easy to read, February 3, 2002

By A Customer

I bought this one on a whim, thought it might have an interesting section or two. I ended up reading the thing cover to cover.

In a field where lots of books are hard to read because they're poorly written, this one is exceptionally well organized, clearly written and easy to read.

It also covers all the subject, from Greco-Roman political history, through Hellenistic-Roman religions and philosophies, on to an excellent section on Judaism and another on early Christianity. Even if you're not an early Church buff, the book is a good introduction to ancient culture.

It's honest. It's written by a proff at a Christian university, but it doesn't slant the scholarship. For eg it gives a good accounting of both sides of the modern scholarship on the contributions of pagan Mystery Religions to the Church, and the _testimonium Falvianum_ is treated fairly -- and dismissed as a later interpolation.

Each section lists a number of books for further reading -- very useful.

A great book!!

38 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great survey of what the world was like when Christ came, November 16, 1999

By	Marc Axelrod (Potter, Wi USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This isn't the easiest reading book in the world. But it is a wonderful bird's eye view of the cultural, political, religious, and social world in which Christianity came into being. You learn about the Romans, the Greeks, the Jewish people, and a myriad of other peoples who populated the Roman empire. This book is essential toward an understanding of the backgrounds of early Christianity.

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Comprehensive and Understandable, May 26, 2003

By A Customer

This book is an excellent introduction to the historical, cultural, social, economic, and political backgrounds of the times before, during, and after the beginnings of Christianity, i.e., from 330 B.C. to A.D. 330, from Alexander the Great to Constantine. It superbly complements the study of the New Testament. It has helped me attempt to make concepts in the Gospels concrete which, at first, seemed to be abstact.