100 must-read books about Christianity
Someone posted this list of 100 must-read books about Christianity. I had a look at the list, and most of the titles I had never heard of, much less read. I had only heard of about 8-9 of them, and had read about 4 or 5. So what makes them “must-read”?
100 Must-Read Books About Christianity:
According to Pew Research, Christianity is the world’s largest religious group, so it’s worth knowing something about it, whether you’re a Christian or not. And if you’re interested in learning more about the Christian faith, there’s no lack of books out there. It’s hard to know where to start! I’m here to help with enough recommendations to keep you reading for a long time.
So I thought there really needs to be a better list
As an Orthodox Christian, I also thought that it was a bit inadequate that there were only two books by Orthodox Christians on the list. Not that such a list should be composed entirely of Orthodox books, but there should be more than were included on that list.
[image error]So if I were compiling a list of such books for someone who knew little or nothing about Christianity, what would I include?
My starting point would be The Lion Handbook of the History of Christianity as the best introduction for someone who wanted to get the big picture, an idea of how Christianity has developed and spread and changed over the centuries.
After that it should be possible for the reader to decide which strands to follow next.
The original list was divided into various categories, and I haven’t done that, and I suppose most of my recommendations would fall into the categories of theology and history.
I can’t think of 100 books, but here are some I think should be included, which were not on the other list:
Anderson, Allan. 2014. An Introduction to Pentecostalism.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
ISBN: 978-1-107-66094-6
Bowden, John. 2007. A Chronology of World Christianity. London:
Continuum.
ISBN: 978-0-8264-9633-1
Dalrymple, William. 1997. From the Holy Mountain: a journey in
the shadow of Byzantium. London: Flamingo.
ISBN: 0-00-654774-5
A travel writer follows in the footsteps of St
John Moschos, who described his own journey
through the Christian Near and Middle East in
AD 578, over 14 centuries earlier, shortly
before much of it was conquered by the Muslim
Arabs. For most of those 14 centuries, the
Christian communities have survived, if
somewhat precariously. Now, in the 20th
century, they are in danger of disappearing
altogether, as they face the greatest threat
to their survival in 20 centuries.
Hopko, Thomas. 1981. The Orthodox Faith: Volume 1 - Doctrine. New
York: Department of Christian Education.
ISBN: 0-86642-036-3
Hopko, Thomas. 1984. The Orthodox Faith: Volume 4 - Spirituality.
New York: Department of Christian Education.
Hopko, Thomas. 1997. The Orthodox Faith: Volume 2 - Worship. New
York: Department of Christian Education.
ISBN: 0-86642-012-6
Hopko, Thomas. 1998. The Orthodox Faith: Volume 3 - Bible and
church history. New York: Department of Christian
Education.
Huddleston, Trevor. 1971. Naught for your comfort. London:
Fontana.
The death of Archbishop Trevor Huddleston in
April 1998 was the prompt for re-reading his
book after 40 years. Huddleston was a
missionary priest of the Community of the
Resurrection who ministered in Sophiatown, a
black township near the centre of
Johannesburg, whose inhabitants were forcibly
removed in the name of apartheid.
Hughes, Philip. 1976 [1924] A history of the church to the eve of
the Reformation. London: Seed & Ward.
ISBN: 0-7220-7663-0
History of the church from a Roman Catholic
point of view
Jones, Alexander (ed) 1974. The Jerusalem Bible. London: Darton,
Longman & Todd.
Schmemann, Alexander. 1973. For the life of the world: sacraments
and orthodoxy. Crestwood, NY: St Vladimir's
Seminary Press.
ISBN: 0-913836-08-7
Dewey: 264.019 SCHM
Orthodox sacramental and mission theology.
Schmemann, Alexander. 1977. The historical road of Eastern
Orthodoxy. Crestwood, NY: St Vladimir's Seminary
Press.
ISBN: 0-913836-47-8
Dewey: 281.9
Theological reflection on the history of the
Orthodox Church.
Ware, Timothy. 1986. The Orthodox Church. Harmondsworth: Penguin.
ISBN: 0-14-020592-6
A general introduction to Orthodox Church
history and teaching and the current state of
the Orthodox churches.
If you can suggest any others that you think ought to be on such a list, please add them in the comments.
