EH2A: Christianity in the Pluralistic Roman World (ECHS08007) Essay o!ics 1.

Ho" #e"ish "as second$ and third$century Christianity% You should consider questions such as the level of Jewishness of Christian worship and of Christian leadership and organisation, as well as the conscious attitudes of Christians to Jews past and present, of Jews to Christians and of Romans towards the distinctiveness of the two groups. Besides the works on the Week Texts: #he Didache $Teaching of the Twelve Apostles% $numerous translations, including one &! 'irsopp (ake in the edition of The Apostolic Fathers in (oe& Classical (i&rar!% Secondary reading: Jean )ani*lou, The Theology of Jewish Christianity ( = A History of Early Christian Doctrine before the Council of icaea, +ol. 1%, tr. J.,. Baker $(ondon" )arton, (ongman and #odd,, 1-./% 0. &id Celsus understand Christianity% 1ow much did Celsus know a&out Christianit!2 its people, its &eliefs, its writings, its organi3ation, and its divisions4 1ow accurate was his information4 )id he understand what the point of it was4 ,nd if not, wh! not4 Texts: 5rigen, Contra Celsu!, tr. 1enr! Chadwick $Cam&ridge" Cam&ridge 6niversit! 7ress, 1-8 % Celsus, "n the True Doctrine# A Discourse against the Christians, tr. R. Joseph 1offmann $9ew York" 567, 1-:;% Secondary reading: <tephen Benko, =7agan Criticism of Christianit! during the >irst #wo Centuries ,.).?, in Aufstieg und iedergang der r$!ischen %elt, @@.0 .0, ed. Wolfgang 1aase, pp. 1A88B111: <tephen Benko, &agan 'o!e and the Early Christians $(ondon" Batsford, 1-:8% Jeffre! W. 1argis, Against the Christians# The 'ise of Early Anti(Christian &ole!ic $9ew York" 7eter (ang, 1---% Ro&ert (. Wilken, The Christians as the 'o!ans )aw The! $9ew 1aven" Yale 6niversit! 7ress, 1-:/% reading list, !ou ma! want to consult"

. &id #ustin 'artyr understand !a(anism% #his essa! calls for a close reading of Justin?s Apologies, set against the &ackground of what !ou know a&out the pagan world. )o !ou think that, if the emperors ,ntoninus 7ius or Carcus ,urelius had read Justin?s Apologies, the! would have felt that he understood their world, and that his criticisms of it had an! &asis4 What might the! have recognised and agreed with in his worldBview, and what would the! have found strange or laugha&le4 )id he understand their world &etter than the! might have thought, or less than he himself thought4 Texts: #he translation of Justin in #he ,nteB9icene >athers series is rather woodenl! +ictorian, &ut quite relia&le and is availa&le online. #here is a more recent translation, with occasionall! helpful notes, &! (.W. Barnard in the Ancient Christian %riters series $9ew York" 7aulist 7ress, 1--;%, and one &! )enis Cinns and 7aul 7arvis, with eDtensive introduction and commentar! $5Dford" 567, 0AA-% Secondary reading: (.W. Barnard, Justin *artyr# His +ife and Thought $Cam&ridge" C67, 1-.;% 1enr! Chadwick, Early Christian Thought and the Classical Tradition $5Dford" Clarendon 7ress, 1-..%, chapter 1 EEEEEEEEEEEE, =Justin Cart!r?s )efence of Christianit!?, ,ulletin of the John 'ylands +ibrary /; $1-.8%F reprinted in Chadwick, History and Thought of the Early Church $(ondon" +ariorum Reprints, 1-:0% G.R. Hoodenough, The Theology of Justin *artyr $Jena" >rommann, 1-0 % Ro&ert C. Hrant, -ree. Apologists of the )econd Century $7hiladelphia" Westminster, 1-::%, especiall! chapters .B: Ramsa! CacCullen and Gugene 9. (ane, eds, &aganis! and Christianity /001234 C5E56 A )ourceboo. $Cinneapolis" >ortress, 1--0% Richard.,. 9orris, -od and %orld in Early Christian Theology $9ew York" <ea&ur!, 1-.8%, chapters 1 and 0 Gric >rancis 5s&orn, Justin *artyr $#I&ingen" J.C.B. Cohr $7aul <ie&eck%, 1-; % EEEEEEEEEEEE, The E!ergence of Christian Theology $Cam&ridge" C67, 1-- % <ara 7arvis and 7aul >oster, eds, Justin *artyr and His %orlds $Cinneapolis" >ortress, 0AA;%

/. )*t is *renaeus+ and not ,ri(en+ "ho is the -oundation o- a healthy Christian theolo(y. ( heodor /ahn)0 Why mi(ht /ahn ha1e "anted to ar(ue this+ and "as he ri(ht% #his is the most difficult of all the essa!s on this course, &ut if !ou can answer it well, !ou will understand one of the ke! questions that has preoccupied modern scholars in addressing the theolog! of this period. Jahn $and other influential Herman scholars% argue that 5rigen &orrowed too much from Ciddle 7latonism, and his influence on Christianit! was so strong that he essentiall! poisoned it with too much philosoph! right up to the time of the Reformation, when a properl! &i&licall!B&ased Christianit!

&egan to &e recovered. #his is hugel! influential on the wa! 7rotestants have traditionall! read this period. @s Jahn right to think that 5rigen essentiall! =polluted? a previousl! &i&licall!B&ased Christianit! &! rel!ing too much on philosoph!4 ,nd what is there in @renaeus that is so important for Christianit!4 Texts: #here is a full translation of @renaeus? Against the Heresies in the ,nteB9icene (i&rar! $availa&le on the we&%, and a selection of passages, with introduction, &! Ro&ert C. Hrant $(ondon" Routledge, 1--;" unfortunatel!, generall! the least theologicall! important ones%. Be guided &! )enis Cinns on which passages to read. #he most important single teDt of 5rigen for the purposes of this essa! is "n First &rinciples, of which there is a good translation &! H.W. Butterworth $(ondon" <7C', 1- .%. But !ou will find the teDts in John Grnest (eonard 5ulton and 1enr! Chadwick, Ale7andrian Christianity# )elected Translations of Cle!ent and "rigen $(ondon" <CC, 1-8/% ver! useful. <ee also the eDtracts in <tevenson, A ew Eusebius. Secondary reading: 1enr! Chadwick, Early Christian Thought and the Classical Tradition $5Dford" Clarendon 7ress, 1-..%, Chapter R.,. 9orris# -od and %orld in Early Christian Theology $9ew You" <ea&ur!r, 1-.8% Charles Bigg, The Christian &latonists of Ale7andria $5Dford" Clarendon, 1-1 % 1enri Crou3el, "rigen, tr. ,.<. Worrall $Gdin&urgh" #. K #. Clark, 1-:-% Jean )ani*lou, -ospel *essage and Hellenistic Culture $ L , History of Early Christian Doctrine before the Council of icea# +olume 0%F (ondon" )arton, (ongman and #odd, 1-; % )enis Cinns, 8renaeus6 An 8ntroduction $M(ondonN" Continuum, 0A1A%" a much eDpanded version of the edition of 1--/ 20 Who in1ented Christian martyrdom and "hy% Texts: @gnatius of ,ntioch, +etter to the 'o!ans $a good edition is availa&le in the (oe& edition of The Apostolic Fathers, ed 'irsopp (ake% 1er&ert Cusurillo, The Acts of the Christian *artyrs $5Dford" Clarendon 7ress, 1-;0%, especiall! the mart!rdoms of &olycarp, &tolo!y and +ucius, the )cillitan !artyrs, the mart!rs of +yons and 9ienne, and &erpetua and Felicity $most of which are in !our course teDt&ook%. Secondary reading: #imoth! ). Barnes, Early Christian Hagiography and 'o!an History $#I&ingen" Cohr <ie&eck, 0A1A%

EEEEEEEEEEEE, =7reB)ecian Acta *artyru!?, Journal of Theological )tudies n.s. 1$1-.:%, 8A-B8 1, reprinted in Barnes, Early Christianity and the 'o!an E!pire $(ondon" +ariorum Reprints, 1-:/% H.W. Bowersock, *artyrdo! and 'o!e $Cam&ridge" C67, 1--8% W.1.C. >rend, *artyrdo! and &ersecution in the Early Church $5Dford" Blackwell, 1-.8% Ro&in (ane >oD, &agans and Christians $M(ondonN" +iking, 1-:.% The classic discussion of the causes of persecution and the 'o!an ad!inistrative procedures involved is that between -5E5*5 de )te5 Croi7 and A5 5 )herwin(%hite. Three articles are bound together under de )te5 Croi7 and )herwin(%hite, Wh! Were the Garl! Christians 7ersecuted4 in ew College +ibrary5 Four articles by de )te5 Croi7 and )herwin(%hite are reprinted in Everett Ferguson# ed., Church and <tate in the Garl! Church ( ew :or.6 -arland# /;;<=5 30 Why "ere the 'ontanists condemned% Texts: @mportant original documents are quoted in Book 8 of the Church History of Guse&ius of CaesareaF eDtracts from these can &e found in !our course teDt&ook. But !ou will pro&a&l! need to read some secondar! literature to make sense of them. Secondary reading: Christine #revett, *ontanis!6 -ender# Authority and the ew &rophecy $Cam&ridge" C67, 1--.% William #a&&ernee, False &rophecy and &olluted )acra!ents6 Ecclesiastical and 8!perial 'eactions to *ontanis! $(eiden" Brill, 0AA;% >>>>>>>>>>>, *ontanist 8nscriptions and Testi!onia6 Epigraphic )ources 8llustrating the History of *ontanis! $Cacon" Cercer 6niversit! 7ress, 1--.% EEEEEEEEEEE, &rophets and -ravestones6 An 8!aginative History of *ontanists and "ther Early Christians $7ea&od!, Cass." 1endrickson, 0AA:% 70 o "hat e4tent "as Christianity o- the 2nd and 5rd centuries )a reli(ion osla1es and "omen%. Texts: most of the mart!rdom accounts $see essa! 8 for &i&liograph!% are good sources of teDts which involve &oth slaves and women. <ee also =Celsus on Christian propaganda?, teDt 11. in !our course hand&ook. Secondary reading: Ramsa! CacCullen, Christiani?ing the 'o!an E!pire $9ew 1aven" Yale 6niversit! 7ress, 1-:/%

Rodne! <tark, Cities of -od6 The 'eal )tory of How Christianity ,eca!e an @rban *ove!ent and ConAuered 'o!e $M<an >ranciscoN" 1arper<an>rancisco, 0AA.% EEEEEEEEEE, The 'ise of Christianity6 A )ociologist 'econsiders History $7rinceton" 7rinceton 6niversit! 7ress, 1-..%

80 &oes it ma6e sense to tal6 o- Christian orthodo4y 7e-ore Constantine% Secondary reading: Walter Bauer, "rthodo7y and Heresy in Earliest Christianity, tr. R. 'raft et al. $7hiladelphia" >ortress, 1-;1% Bart Ghrmann, +ost Christianities 6 The ,attle for )cripture and the Faiths %e ever Bnew $9ew York" 567, 0AA %