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

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

Edited by: Leif E. Vaage

Language: English

Published/Copyright: 2006

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About this book

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.

Author / Editor information

Contributor: Leif E. Vaage 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.

Reviews

``This is a fine volume that reveals the complexities of the rise of Christianity, challenges long-held positions on its expansion, and proposes new ways forward to explain Christianity's eventual emergence as a religion of empire.'' --- ``Vaage ... states that `earliest Christianity's intrinsic will to rule is most evident, albeit paradoxically, in its initial modes of resistance to this regime'.... In conclusion, this is a stimulating hypothesis at the end of a fine contribution to an ongoing discussion.'' --- ``Ultimately, the essays in the book are interesting and succeed in challenging many long held scholarly assmptions. As a corrective to the work of Stark, the final section of the book is particularly useful.''

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Front Matter
i

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Contents
v

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Acknowledgments
vii

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Preface
ix

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Abbreviations
xv

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Rivalries?
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Ancient Religious Rivalries and the Struggle for Success Christians, Jews, and Others in the Early Roman Empire
3
Leif E. Vaage
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The Declining Polis? Religious Rivalries in Ancient Civic Context
21
Philip A. Harland
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Rivalry and Defection
51
Stephen G. Wilson
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Is the Pagan Fair Fairly Dangerous? Jewish-Pagan Relations in Antiquity
73
Reena Basser
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My Rival, My Fellow Conceptual and Methodological Prolegomena to Mapping Inter-Religious Relations in 2nd- and 3rd-Century CE Levantine Society Using the Evidence of Early Rabbinic Texts
85
Jack N. Lightstone
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“The Field God Has Assigned” Geography and Mission in Paul
109
Terence L. Donaldson
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The Contra Apionem in Social and Literary Context An Invitation to Judean Philosophy
139
Steve Mason
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On Becoming a Mithraist New Evidence for the Propagation of the Mysteries
175
Roger Beck
Rise?
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Rodney Stark and “The Mission to the Jews”
197
Adele Reinhartz
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“Look How They Love One Another” Early Christian and Pagan Care for the Sick and Other Charity
213
Steven C. Muir
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The Religious Market of the Roman Empire Rodney Stark and Christianity’s Pagan Competition
233
Roger Beck
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Why Christianity Succeeded (in) the Roman Empire
253
Leif E. Vaage
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Works Cited
279
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Ancient Sources Index
305
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Ancient Names Index
318
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Modern Names Index
322
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Series Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press for the Canadian Corporation for Studies in Religion/Corporation Canadienne des Sciences Religieuses
325

Publishing information

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

eBook published on:

February 8, 2024

eBook ISBN:

9780889205369

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

Main content:

344

https://doi.org/10.51644/9780889205369

eBook ISBN: 9780889205369

Keywords for this book

Religion

Audience(s) for this book

For a non-specialist adult audience

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

About this book

Author / Editor information

Reviews

Topics

Front Matter

Contents

Acknowledgments

Preface

Abbreviations

Ancient Religious Rivalries and the Struggle for Success Christians, Jews, and Others in the Early Roman Empire

The Declining Polis? Religious Rivalries in Ancient Civic Context

Rivalry and Defection

Is the Pagan Fair Fairly Dangerous? Jewish-Pagan Relations in Antiquity

My Rival, My Fellow Conceptual and Methodological Prolegomena to Mapping Inter-Religious Relations in 2nd- and 3rd-Century CE Levantine Society Using the Evidence of Early Rabbinic Texts

“The Field God Has Assigned” Geography and Mission in Paul

The Contra Apionem in Social and Literary Context An Invitation to Judean Philosophy

On Becoming a Mithraist New Evidence for the Propagation of the Mysteries

Rodney Stark and “The Mission to the Jews”

“Look How They Love One Another” Early Christian and Pagan Care for the Sick and Other Charity

The Religious Market of the Roman Empire Rodney Stark and Christianity’s Pagan Competition

Why Christianity Succeeded (in) the Roman Empire

Works Cited

Ancient Sources Index

Ancient Names Index

Modern Names Index

Series Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press for the Canadian Corporation for Studies in Religion/Corporation Canadienne des Sciences Religieuses

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

Overview

About this book

Author / Editor information

Reviews

Topics

Table of contents

Front Matter

Contents

Acknowledgments

Preface

Abbreviations

Ancient Religious Rivalries and the Struggle for Success Christians, Jews, and Others in the Early Roman Empire

The Declining Polis? Religious Rivalries in Ancient Civic Context

Rivalry and Defection

Is the Pagan Fair Fairly Dangerous? Jewish-Pagan Relations in Antiquity

My Rival, My Fellow Conceptual and Methodological Prolegomena to Mapping Inter-Religious Relations in 2nd- and 3rd-Century CE Levantine Society Using the Evidence of Early Rabbinic Texts

“The Field God Has Assigned” Geography and Mission in Paul

The Contra Apionem in Social and Literary Context An Invitation to Judean Philosophy

On Becoming a Mithraist New Evidence for the Propagation of the Mysteries

Rodney Stark and “The Mission to the Jews”

“Look How They Love One Another” Early Christian and Pagan Care for the Sick and Other Charity

The Religious Market of the Roman Empire Rodney Stark and Christianity’s Pagan Competition

Why Christianity Succeeded (in) the Roman Empire

Works Cited

Ancient Sources Index

Ancient Names Index

Modern Names Index

Series Published by Wilfrid Laurier University Press for the Canadian Corporation for Studies in Religion/Corporation Canadienne des Sciences Religieuses

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