The Second Church: Popular Christianity A.D. 200-400

Writings from the Greco-Roman World Supplement Series

by Ramsay MacMullen

A reassessment of the early church using the archaeological evidence

Ramsay MacMullen considers the unwritten evidence for Christianity in the centuries before and after Constantine’s conversion in order to gain a better understanding of the second church, the church of the majority of Christians, as well as that of the first church, that of the bishops who in part condemned, in part tolerated, and in part re-shaped the church of the many. MacMullen uses the excavation reports of hundreds of churches of the fourth century to reveal the religion that the majority of ordinary Christians practiced. He then uses the material remains to reassess the total number of Christians who lived during this period. MacMullen argues that by AD 400 Christians constituted a far smaller percentage of the total population than previously suggested, raising very large questions about the place of religion in the life of the times and in the social composition of both churches.

Features:
- Maps, photos, and illustrations
- Chapters on the Eastern Empire, Greece, the Balkans, North Africa, Italy, and the northwest
- Appendix lists churches built before 400

Genres: History, Ancient History

222 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

A specialist in Roman social history and the rise of Christianity in the Roman world, Ramsay MacMullen was Dunham Professor of History and Classics at Yale University, where he taught from 1967 until his retirement in 1993. Educated at Phillips Exeter and Harvard, from which he held all three of his degrees, MacMullen taught at the University of Oregon and Brandeis before moving to Yale.

Reviews

[Hailey]

THANK GOD AND ALL THAT IS HOLY I’M DONE WITH THIS

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this fairly short but dense book, Macmullen covers a wide range of archaeological evidence, almost sans-literary, to redescribe Christianity between 200 and 400 CE. He exposes a very different view of Christianity outside the establishment, which shifts the way we think of the growth of Christianity before, during and after the Edict of Milan. I found the book very insightful and in general I enjoyed Macmullen’s writing style, although it reads more like someone speaking with a lot of tone - so it is difficult to pick up one’s spot if stepping a way from the text for a bit. He’s also a bit repetitive and at times he can be unclear. But overall, this is a fascinating and significant work for any student of Christianity from Tertullian to Augustine.

[Madison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Same for you, my guy