In Early Christian Apologetics, D.H. Williams offers a comprehensive presentation of Christian apologetic literature from the second to the fifth century, considering each writer within the intellectual context of the day. Williams argues that most apologies were not directed at a pagan readership. In most cases, he says, ancient apologetics had a double object: to instruct the Christian and to persuade weak Christians or non-Christians who were sympathetic to Christian claims. Traditionally, scholars of apologetics have focused on the context of persecution in the pre-Constantinian period. By following the links in the intellectual trajectory up though the early fifth century, Williams prompts deeper reflection on the process of Christian self-definition in late antiquity. Taken cumulatively, he finds, apologetic literature was in fact integral to the formation of the Christian identity in the Roman world.

All doctrinal development and debate occurs against the background of Christian practice and worship. By attending to what Christians have done in the eucharist, Kimberly Belcher provides a new perspective on the history of eucharistic doctrine and Christian divisions today. Stepping back from the metaphysical approaches that divide the churches, she focuses on a phenomenological approach to the eucharist and a retrieval of forgotten elements in Ambrose's and Augustine's work. The core of the eucharist is the act of giving thanks to the Father – for the covenant and for the world. This unitive core allows for significant diversity on questions about presence, sacrifice, ecclesiology, and ministry. Belcher shows that the key is humility about what we know and what we do not, which gives us a willingness to receive differences in Christian teachings as gifts that will allow us to move forward in a new way.

Manichaeism and Early Christianity discusses where and how Gnostic Manichaeism interfered not only with other forms of Gnosticism, but above all with a number of writings and representatives of mainstream Christianity during the early centuries of our era.

Porphyry's "Against the Christians" offers an important example of Hellenic Biblical criticism and a critique of Christianity at the close of Late Antiquity, fl. 300 C.E.

From early on, Christians passed down the account of Jesus’s agony at the prospect of his own death and his prayer that the cup should pass from him (Gethsemane). Yet, this is a troublesome aspect of Christian tradition. Jesus was committed to his death, but as it approached, he prayed for his escape, even as he submitted himself to God’s will. Ancient critics mocked Jesus and his followers for the events at Gethsemane. The ‘hero’ failed to meet the cultural standards for noble death and masculinity. As such, this story calls for further reflection and interpretation. The present book unfolds discourses from the earliest centuries of Christianity to determine what strategies were developed to come to terms with Gethsemane.

The Roman Empire at Bay is the only one volume history of the critical years 180-395 AD, which saw the transformation of the Roman Empire from a unitary state centred on Rome, into a new polity with two capitals and a new religion—Christianity. The book integrates social and intellectual history into the narrative, looking to explore the relationship between contingent events and deeper structure. It also covers an amazingly dramatic narrative from the civil wars after the death of Commodus through the conversion of Constantine to the arrival of the Goths in the Roman Empire, setting in motion the final collapse of the western empire. The new edition takes account of important new scholarship in questions of Roman identity, on economy and society as well as work on the age of Constantine, which has advanced significantly in the last decade, while recent archaeological and art historical work is more fully drawn into the narrative. At its core, the central question that drives The Roman Empire at Bay remains, what did it mean to be a Roman and how did that meaning change as the empire changed? Updated for a new generation of students, this book remains a crucial tool in the study of this period.

This book explores the construction of Christian identity in fourth and fifth centuries through inventing, fabricating and sharpening binary oppositions. Such oppositions, for example Christians - pagans; truth - falsehood; the one true god - the multitude of demons; the right religion - superstition, served to create and reinforce the Christian self-identity. The author examines how the Christian argumentation against pagans was intertwined with self-perception and self-affirmation. Discussing the relations and interaction between pagan and Christian cultures, this book aims at widening historical understanding of the cultural conflicts and the otherness in world history, thus contributing to the ongoing discussion about the historical and conceptual basis of cultural tolerance and intolerance. This book offers a valuable contribution to contemporary scholarly debate about Late Antique religious history and the relationship between Christianity and other religions.

At the outset of the period covered by this book, Rome was the greatest power in the world. By its end, it had fallen conclusively from this dominant position. David Potter's comprehensive survey of two critical and eventful centuries traces the course of imperial decline.

Porphyry of Tyre was a third-century Neoplatonic philosopher and follower of Plotinus. He edited and published ‘The Enneads’, the only collection of his teacher’s work. Porphyry also wrote original works in Greek on a wide variety of topics, including philosophy, religion, vegetarianism, philology and science, while revealing a scholarly care in citing authorities. His influential work ‘Isagoge’, an introduction to logic and philosophy, was the standard textbook on logic throughout the Middle Ages. Surviving fragments of ‘Against the Christians’, which was condemned in 448 to be burned, marked him as a fierce critic of the new religion. Delphi’s Ancient Classics series provides eReaders with the wisdom of the Classical world, with both English translations and the original Greek texts. This eBook presents Porphyry’s collected works, with illustrations, introductions and the usual Delphi bonus material. (Version 1) * Beautifully illustrated with images relating to Porphyry's life and works * Features the collected works of Porphyry, in both English translation and the original Greek * Concise introductions to the major works * Includes translations by Stephen MacKenna, Kenneth Sylvan Guthrie, Octavius Freire Owen and Thomas Taylor * Excellent formatting of the texts * Easily locate the sections you want to read with individual contents tables * Includes Porphyry's rare treatises * Provides a dual English and Greek text for four of the major works, allowing readers to compare the sections paragraph by paragraph — ideal for students * Features a bonus biography CONTENTS: The Translations Life of Plotinus Life of Pythagoras Isagoge On the Faculties of the Soul Against the Christians On the Cave of the Nymphs in the Odyssey On the Abstinence of Eating Animals Aids to the Study of the Intelligibles Letter to Marcella Letter to the Egyptian Anebo The Greek Texts List of Greek Texts The Dual Texts Dual Greek and English Texts The Biography Brief Biography: Porphyry

In the 2016 Radboud Prestige Lectures, published in this volume, Jörg Frey develops a new perspective on 2 Peter by arguing that the letter is dependent on the Apocalypse of Peter. Frey argues that reading 2 Peter against the backdrop of the Apocalypse of Peter sheds new light on many longstanding interpretative questions and offers fresh insights into the history of second-century Christianity. Frey’s lectures are followed by responses from leading scholars in the field, who discuss Frey’s proposal in ways both critical and constructive. Contributors include: Richard Bauckham, Jan Bremmer, Terrance Callan, Paul Foster, Jeremy Hultin, Tobias Nicklas, David Nienhuis and Martin Ruf.