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

Crossley, James G.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0664230946 ISBN 13: 9780664230944

Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press, 2006

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 this title

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.

About this edition

• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0664230946
• ISBN 13: 9780664230944
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 248