Church History: An Essential Guide
One of the chief difficulties in studying the history of Christianity is the lack of prior exposure to the subject that students often bring with them. Struggling to keep up with the large numbers of names, dates, and places presented to them, it is easy for students to lose sight of the "big picture," the broad sweep of movement and change that instructors most wish to communicate. Justo Gonzalez has written this book to help students gain just such a quick and basic grasp of the main periods and issues in the history of Christianity. Drawing upon his own extensive experience and that of others, he contends that having been introduced to the essentials of church history in a brief and accessible form, students are far better able to understand and appreciate what they encounter in more detailed lectures and reading.
Gonzalez provides a comprehensive opening chapter that summarizes major issues and concerns of each of the principal eras of church history. Subsequent chapters focus on the ancient church, the Christian empire, the Middle Ages, the Reformation, the seventeenth through nineteenth centuries, and the twentieth century and the end of modernity.
Top Highlights
“the worst persecution took place under Diocletian (284-305) and his immediate successors” (source)
“The most important of these heresies was Gnosticism. Gnosticism was a whole conglomerate of ideas and schools that differed among themselves on many points, but which however had certain elements in common. Among those common elements were the following: First, a negative attitude toward the material world, so that "salvation" consisted in escaping from matter. Second, a notion that such salvation was attained through a special knowledge or "gnosis," through which the believer could escape from this material world and ascend to the spiritual.” (source)
“Baptism, the rite of initiation and grafting into the Christian community, was the other central act of worship. It usually took place on Easter Sunday, after a long period of preparation for those who were to be baptized. During the last weeks before this great event on Easter, those who were already baptized also prepared themselves for the renewal of their own baptismal vows. This is the origin of the season of Lent.” (source)
“Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, and Gregory of Nazianzus. Macrina” (source)
“John Chrysostom ("the golden-mouthed") was one of the most famous preachers of all times” (source)
Product Details
- Title : Church History: An Essential Guide
- Author: González, Justo L.
- Publisher: Abingdon Press
- Publication Date: 2010
- ISBN: 9781426722240
Justo L. Gonzalez has taught at the Evangelical Seminary of Puerto Rico and Candler School of Theology, Emory University. He is the author of many books, including Church History: An Essential Guide and To All Nations From All Nations, both published by Abingdon Press.
Justo L. Gonzalez es un ampliamente leido y respetado historiador y teologo. Es el autor de numerosas obras que incluyen tres volumenes de su Historia del Pensamiento Cristiano, la coleccion de Tres Meses en la Escuela de... (Mateo... Juan... Patmos... Prision... Espiritu), Breve Historia de las Doctrinas Cristianas y El ministerio de la palabra escrita, todas publicadas por Abingdon Press.
Reviews
1 rating
Thinh Nguyen
1/5/2022
The book is excellent, Justo Gonzalez is one of my favorite author. Straight to the point and clearly presented little to no bias.
Vaughan Smith
12/17/2021
This is a wonderful introduction to Church History! When I taught Church History to undergrads I assigned this book along with Bruce Shelley's Church History in Plain Language. When I was a seminary student Gonzalez's much longer The Story of Christianity (2 vols.) was among the several books we had to read. This much shorter Essential Guide does a marvelous job of sketching the major periods and movements. It's uniquely helpful as an introduction or as a review.Vaughan Smith
12/17/2021
This is a wonderful introduction to Church History! When I taught Church History to undergrads I assigned this book along with Bruce Shelley's Church History in Plain Language. When I was a seminary student Gonzalez's much longer The Story of Christianity (2 vols.) was among the several books we had to read. This much shorter Essential Guide does a marvelous job of sketching the major periods and movements. It's uniquely helpful as an introduction or as a review.
