A World History of Christianity

by Adrian Hastings (editor)

Christianity is the most global of religions. However, most books on the subject fail to do justice to the history of Christianity outside Europe and North America. This prodigious work provides the first genuinely global one-volume study of the rise, development, and impact of the Christian faith.

Genres: History, Church History, Religion, Christianity, Theology, Nonfiction, Christian Non Fiction

608 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 1, 1999

Reviews

[[Name Redacted] · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick Survey: Were you aware that Christianity once flourished throughout Africa, supplanted only after the conquest by Islam when people were offered the options of either converting, dying or living as second-class citizens? Were you aware that Christianity once flourished in China, disappearing for centuries only because Buddhists and Confucianists saw them as a threat and initiated a series of violent anti-Christian pogroms? Were you aware that Persian Christians were the victims of similar persecution by the Zoroastrian emperors, motivating many of them to head for China in the first place? Were you aware that Christian communities, tracing their origins from alleged visits by the Apostle Thomas in the first century CE and incorporating elements of the Hindu caste system, have thrived in India for nearly two millennia? Were you aware that the recent rise of Christinaity in Korea began as a manifestation of post-WWII anti-Japanese sentiments? Were you aware that the Boxer Rebellion was in part a Chinese religious revival, involving violent anti-Christian attacks based on a belief that China was being punished by spirits and gods for abandoning their ancient religions? And were you aware that many people in China have recently begun publicly "coming out" as Christians, due to the slackening of Chinese anti-religious policy?

Chances are, no, you weren't aware of any of these things. The Western and Northern European academic narratives, especially in recent decades, have promulgated a view which restricts Christian history to Europe, Russia and America, and which portrays Christians as uniquely oppressive and intolerant -- an ahistorical view which relies on Western ignorance of world history. But historians are aware of the historical realities, and they have been for nearly two millennia -- this book collects many of the best scholarly articles detailing much of the real history of Christianity throughout the world. While the initial chapter on the Second Temple period and the origins of Christianity makes some specious (philosophically-motivated) claims, the rest of the book is composed of well-researched and objective articles by numerous scholars who are either experts on the history of Christianity, on the history of the regions under examination, or both.

A word of warning to readers who are either proponents or opponents of Christianity: this is a "warts-and-all" examination of Christian history throughout the world. It pulls no punches, indicting Christians and members of other religions/philosophies equally. The result is a much richer and much fuller understanding of both Christianity and the history of the world as a whole.

[Nathan Stine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a sucker for history. It’s much easier to get 5 stars from me if you tell me information I’ve never heard of and connect it to intricately things I have heard of. Each of these authors did that. I disagreed with some of their underlying religious proclivities (a bit left leaning of myself), but they weren’t that big of a deal. As always when studying the bride of Christ, I discovered more blemishes that saddened me but also discovered all the more the grace of God to use broken men and women and tainted movements to call his sheep to himself. In the midst of colonial imperialism, paternalism, poor translations, political intrigue, and mixed cultural contextualization, the Gospel went forth, and the Holy Spirit regenerated hearts as diverse as could be imagined.

[Tyler Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read 36% of this book for my Global History of Christianity course under Dr. Susangeline Patrick at Nazarene Theological Seminary.

I found this to be an absolutely fascinating history of Christianity in contexts outside of the West. I would recommend it strongly to all students of church history and all Christians who desire a fuller picture of our spiritual heritage. I will certainly return to this book to complete it!

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most pleasant edited collections I have read—each chapter on a geographic area roughly by chronology. But a good introduction to Christian history around the world and very readable. I liked the variation in “voices” though they aren’t hugely different from each other.

[John DeMuth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good for a brief history. It includes world areas aside from just the Western World. But can be dry and feels like drinking from a fire hose on full blast at times.

I’d use it as a starting point. If you read something that interests you, find another source that explores it in depth.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of essays covering the spread of Christianity historically across the globe, this volume is geared more towards use as a reference book. While my studies in international Christianity are minimal, my impression is that this volume would serve as a good jumping off point for further study.

[Rebecca Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you want billions of details, this is your ticket. It's hard to capture the story of any chapter, to say the least. What this book has going for it is that it does at least cover the world and does not give the impression that Christian activity only happened in one place or from one direction. Each chapter covers a different part of the world, so it is difficult even to develop a larger view the faith around the world over time unless you create your own timeline on which to add notes from each chapter. Very tedious and uncomfortable read, but it does include the facts. As an analogy, it might be like reading a calculus book and thinking you're going to walk away with a sense of narrative.

[Rich Stone · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a partial review as I only read ~83 of the ~540 pages specifically the portions on the disintegration of the [Western] Roman Empire, Orthodox Church in Byzantium, and the Medieval West. The reason for this is I wanted an overview of those topics in preparation for a class I'm teaching this summer. It in no way implies that I did not like the book.

The sections I read are very well done as far as providing a good overview of the periods mentioned. The book covers the history and the doctrine very well. It introduces enough names and topics to identify items for more detailed study.

Remember though this is an overview. The book covers the entire time span of (New Testament) Christianity and does so throughout the world in about 540 pages. If you want the basics this is for you. If you are interested in a particular period, location, or topic this book can get you started but it will not cover it exhaustively.

[Tyler Horton · Rating 5 out of 5]

"...the writing of Christian history needs to escape imprisonment within a Europe-centred story in order not only to serve the needs of the many hundreds of millions of Christians who live elsewhere but also to provide an objectively balanced account of a straightforwardly historical kind of something which as for long been seen in too Eurocentric a way."

This is an excellent entrance point for a broader approach to the history of Christianity. I am not a historian, so I my response is very much that of an amateur, but I have read a decent amount of church history and had a lot to learn from this volume. The chapters on Eastern Orthodoxy, India, and Latin America stand out as filling in the most blank space for me. But I also appreciated a fuller picture of the Roman Catholic Church alongside the more familiar Protestant story through the Western tradition.

Readers should know that this is a serious undertaking. It is a big book and it is produced by historians writing 'professionally'. But even with that in mind, I found the volume very readable. For those with a decent reading background, this might be the best place to start, or the 'one book' to own, for this fuller take on Christian history. The bibliographies at the end are wonderfully useful and would keep anyone busy for a decade or more.

I have written a fuller recommendation of the book here: http://toosmallathing.com/2021/02/15/...

[Grace]

Really dense. It was hard to follow the chapters for which I didn't already have some kind of frame of reference. I suspect the bibliographies would be very helpful.