Why Christianity Happened: A Sociohistorical Account of Christian Origins (26-50 CE)

Crossley, James G.

ISBN 10: 0664230946 / ISBN 13: 9780664230944

Published by Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, KY, 2006

About this Item

Stated first edition with complete number line. Not remaindered or library withdrawn. Clean, tight & bright. Lies flat. Unmarked. Shipped padded in a box with tracking number provided on domestic shipping. Seller Inventory # 000553

Bibliographic Details

Title: Why Christianity Happened: A Sociohistorical...

Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press, Louisville, KY

Publication Date: 2006

Binding: Soft cover

Condition: Fine

Dust Jacket Condition: No jacket issued

Edition: 1st Edition

About this title

Synopsis:

Looking beyond theological narratives and offering a sociological, economic, and historical examination of the spread of earliest Christianity, James Crossley presents a thoroughly secular and causal explanation for why the once law-observant movement within Judaism became the beginnings of a new religion. First analyzing the historiography of the New Testament and stressing the problematic omission of a social scientific account, Crossley applies a socioeconomic lens to the rise of the Jesus movement and the centrality of sinners to his mission. Using macrosociological approaches, he explains how Jesus' Jewish teachings sparked the shift toward a gentile religion and an international monotheistic trend. Finally, using approaches from conversion studies, he provides a sociohistorical explanation for the rise of the Pauline mission.

About the Author:

James G. Crossley lectures in the Department of Biblical Studies at the University of Sheffield. His publications include The Date of Mark's Gospel: Insight from the Law in Earliest Christianity and Writing History, Constructing Religion.