The excellent empire: The fall of Rome and the triumph of the church (The Rauschenbusch lectures) - Hardcover

Pelikan, Jaroslav Jan

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0062546368 ISBN 13: 9780062546364

Publisher: Harper & Row, 1987

Synopsis

Organized as a series of lectures that take on Gibbon's stance by using a variety of early Christian writers such as Augustine and Jerome, Pelikan proves amiable company, if not exactly diverting. You have to be immersed in some background regarding both Catholic and Orthodox church history and Rome's rise and fall to get the subtext of his arguments, though they are less pointed than observational in tone. Pelikan admires Gibbon but finds his mindset rather limited. Christ didn't kill Rome the way Rome killed Christ, though He may have provided it with a kind of Resurrection, in the form of Christianity's role in the post-Roman world.

About this title

About the Author:

Jaroslav Pelikan (1923-2006) was Sterling Professor of History Emeritus at Yale University. He authored many books, including Whose Bible Is It? A History of the Scriptures through the Ages and Credo: Historical and Theological Guide to Creeds and Confessions of Faith in the Christian Tradition.

Review:

''Jaroslav Pelikan ranged so widely in his exploration of historic Christian traditions, and his work probed so deeply, that it is a real boon to see Wipf and Stock bringing some of his books back into print. They were excellent reading when they first appeared; they remain excellent reading today.''
--Mark A. Noll, McAnaney Professor of History, University of Notre Dame --Wipf and Stock Publishers

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper & Row
• Publication date: 1987
• ISBN 10: 0062546368
• ISBN 13: 9780062546364
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 133