Showing titles in History

Mary Magdalene is one of the most influential symbols in the history of Christianity - yet, if you look in the Bible, you'll find only a handful of verses that speak of her. How did she become such a compelling saint in the face of such paltry evidence? In her effort to answer that question, Cynthia Bourgeault examines the Bible, church tradition, art, legend, and newly discovered texts to see what's there.

Who was Jesus of Nazareth? Many admire his spiritual teachings; some go further and claim him as the messiah, while a few deny he ever existed at all. But everyone has an opinion about this obscure preacher who lived his brief life in one of the less significant regions of the Roman Empire; and who, in being crucified, died the traditional death for criminals and trouble-makers. Jesus lived in turbulent times. Under Roman rule, Judea was a hotbed of nationalist, political and religious interests, all vying for power.

Celebrated religious and social historian Rodney Stark traces the extraordinary rise of Christianity through its most pivotal and controversial moments to offer fresh perspective on the history of the world's largest religion. 

The cross and the lynching tree are the two most emotionally charged symbols in the history of the African American community. In this powerful work, theologian James H. Cone explores these symbols and their interconnection in the history and souls of black folk. 

In 1683, an Ottoman army that stretched from horizon to horizon set out to seize the "Golden Apple," as Turks referred to Vienna. The ensuing siege pitted battle-hardened Janissaries wielding seventeenth-century grenades against Habsburg armies, widely feared for their savagery. The walls of...

A staggeringly popular work of fiction, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code has sold in its millions. But this fast-paced mystery is unusual in that the author states up front that the historical information in the book is all factually accurate. But is this claim true? As historian Bart D Ehrman shows in this informative and witty book, The Da Vinci Code is filled with numerous historical mistakes.

From "the world's greatest tour guide," a deeply-researched, captivating journey through the rich history of Christianity and the winding paths of the French and Italian countryside that will feed mind, body, and soul (New York Times). "What a wondrous work! This beautifully written and totally...

In Jesus on Trial, New York Times bestselling author David Limbaugh applies his lifetime of legal experience to a unique new undertaking: making a case for the gospels as hard evidence of the life and work of Jesus Christ. Limbaugh, a practicing attorney and former professor of law, approaches the canonical gospels with the same level of scrutiny he would apply to any legal document and asks all the necessary questions about the story of Jesus....

Pagans explores the rise of Christianity from a surprising and unique viewpoint: that of the people who witnessed their ways of life destroyed by what seemed then a powerful religious cult. These "pagans" were actually pious Greeks, Romans, Syrians, and Gauls, who observed the traditions of their ancestors. To these devout polytheists, Christians who worshiped only one deity were immoral atheists who believed that a splash of water on the deathbed could erase a lifetime of sin.

An extraordinary account of how the Christian Revolution forged the Western imagination, from the author of Rubicon. “A galloping tour of Christianity’s influence across the last 2,000 years.” —New York Times Crucifixion, the Romans believed, was the worst fate imaginable, a punishment...

A global history of the world’s best-known and most influential book. “A marvelous work of scholarship and storytelling." —Wall Street Journal For Christians, the Bible is a book inspired by God, but its eternal words are transmitted across the world by fallible human hands. In The Bible...

Em defesa de Cristo mostra a investigação do cético Lee Strobel, jornalista ateu premiado que faz a cobertura dos tribunais de Chicago. Sua esposa Leslie decide seguir a Cristo, gerando nele uma grande inquietação: Que sentido teria uma história antiquada com jeito de lenda? Deus existe?...

This audiobook is narrated by an AI Voice. What if the path to faith passed through philosophy, discipline, and the long search for divine wisdom? In *The Writings of Clement of Alexandria, Volume 1*, Clement stands at one of the most fascinating crossroads of early Christianity: Alexandria...

¿Qué tienen en común la caída del Imperio Romano, la creación de las primeras universidades y el auge del anticlericalismo en la Europa contemporánea? La Iglesia católica ha estado en el centro de algunos de los episodios más fascinantes y desconocidos de la historia. Desde los primeros concilios hasta la controversia de la Reforma, pasando por los secretos de los monasterios medievales y los desafíos del siglo XX, estas páginas te conducirán por momentos sorprendentes de la historia de la Iglesia católica.

The New York Times bestseller and definitive history of Christianity for our time—from the award-winning author of The Reformation and Silence A product of electrifying scholarship conveyed with commanding skill, Diarmaid MacCulloch's Christianity goes back to the origins of the Hebrew Bible...

The Confessions of Saint Augustine is one of the most influential works of Christian literature, philosophy, and spiritual autobiography. Written as a direct address to God, the book follows Augustine's journey from childhood and youthful ambition through intellectual searching, moral struggle, conversion, and the discovery of faith. More than a personal memoir, the work explores memory, desire, sin, grace, truth, time, free will, and the restless search for meaning.

Since its beginnings during the Protestant Reformation, Calvinism has spread throughout Europe and America and eventually to Africa and Asia. Today it is one of the largest schools of thought in Protestantism. In this Very Short Introduction, Jon Balserak explores how Calvinist ideas and...

We were never meant to be afraid of God―but many of us are. The ancient world of the New and Old Testament was saturated with this kind of fear. And as strange as this might seem to us, today’s Christians are not so different. We agonize over the exact wording of our prayers to try and make...

A world-renowned historian of early Christianity and ancient Judaism lifts the veil on the life of Mary—revealing her revolutionary role as the matriarch of the Jesus movement “A great leap forward in understanding and contextualizing Mary’s life, after two millennia of her being dismissed...

Discover a different way of seeing and responding to the Coronavirus pandemic, an approach drawing on Scripture, Christian history, and the way of living, thinking, and praying revealed to us by Jesus. What are we supposed to think about the Coronavirus crisis? Some people think they know: "This...