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Religion History

Religious Rivalries in the Early Roman Empire and the Rise of Christianity

edited by Leif E. Vaage

Publisher
Wilfrid Laurier University Press, CCSR
Initial publish date
Nov 2016
Category
History, History, Rome
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9781554586042
    Publish Date
    Nov 2016
    List Price
    $48.95
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9780889204492
    Publish Date
    Apr 2006
    List Price
    $89.99
  • eBook

    ISBN
    9781554588091
    Publish Date
    Oct 2010
    List Price
    $48.95

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Description

Religious Rivalries in the Early Roman Empire and the Rise of Christianity discusses the diverse cultural destinies of early Christianity, early Judaism, and other ancient religious groups as a question of social rivalry.

The book is divided into three main sections. The first section debates the degree to which the category of rivalry adequately names the issue(s) that must be addressed when comparing and contrasting the social “success” of different religious groups in antiquity. The second is a critical assessment of the common modern category of “mission” to describe the inner dynamic of such a process; it discusses the early Christian apostle Paul, the early Jewish historian Josephus, and ancient Mithraism. The third section of the book is devoted to “the rise of Christianity,” primarily in response to the similarly titled work of the American sociologist of religion Rodney Stark.

While it is not clear that any of these groups imagined its own success necessarily entailing the elimination of others, it does seem that early Christianity had certain habits, both of speech and practice, which made it particularly apt to succeed (in) the Roman Empire.

About the author

Leif E. Vaage teaches New Testament literature and exegesis at Emmanuel College and the Toronto School of Theology, both in Toronto, Canada. He is the author of Galilean Upstarts: Jesus’ First Followers According to Q and, most recently, a book of verse, Schooled in Salt.

Leif E. Vaage's profile page