Review by Booklist Review
Horsley and Silberman skillfully weave a mass of historical and archaeological data into a riveting account of the emergence of Christianity and the sociopolitical world in which it was born. Their story is concerned equally with the political dimensions of Jesus' ministry and its appropriation in the ministry of Paul. In each case, Horsley and Silberman insist that "theological" and "religious" dimensions cannot be read in isolation from their political and social contexts. Neither Jesus nor Paul was an isolated religious thinker or philosopher; both mounted direct challenges to the power of imperial Rome, and both appealed to a range of messianic traditions forged over years of occupation and resistance. This book--including its extensive bibliographic notes--is an invaluable source for readers interested in the social and political context of early Christianity, a lucid and accessible account of the background against which a revolutionary movement grounded in an ancient Hebrew tradition of a "kingless kingdom" was transformed into a world religion at home with empire. --Steve Schroeder
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
How did early Christianity develop? What was the relationship of the earliest Christian community to its surroundings? What role did the messages of Jesus and Paul have in the spread of these earliest communities? Did Jesus and Paul preach an otherworldly message emphasizing a spiritual kingdom of God or a message that applied to people's lives in the Roman Empire? These and other questions are taken up by Horsley, who teaches religion at the University of Massachusetts, Boston, and Silberman, a historian and the author of The Hidden Scrolls. Using recent archeological evidence (e.g., the funeral urn bearing the name of Joseph Caiaphas, the high priest, at Jesus' trial) and social-scientific theory about the nature and evolution of social movements, the authors trace the development of earliest Christianity as a political and social movement. According to the authors, Jesus and Paul offered powerful messages to Galileans and Judeans of the first century who found themselves marginalized by the Roman Empire. The authors conclude that the persistent quest for the Kingdom of Goda message proclaimed by Jesus, Paul and the earliest Christiansshould be understood "both as a spiritual journey and an evolving political response to the mindless acts of violence, inequality, and injustice that characterized the kingdoms of men." This history of early Christianity is a riveting page-turner that opens a new window on the origins of Christianity. (Oct.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
Horsley (religion, Univ. of Massachusetts) and Silberman (The Hidden Scrolls, LJ 10/1/94) provide a thorough discussion of the movements of Jesus and the apostles, especially Paul, within the social, political, and cultural milieu of Palestine and the Mediterranean during the first centuries of this era. While acknowledging that the "quest for the Kingdom of God...should be evaluated as both a spiritual journey and an evolving political response," they feel that the divinity of Jesus and similar doctrine are the invention of the earliest church. In this scholarly, well-written book, the authors view everything through a political filter, even religious motivation. However, their focus on political and social problems of the population living under ruthless exploitation by Rome is a valid corrective. Indeed, we "can't understand the historic development of the early Christian movement without understanding the contemporary economic and political situation of the Jews." A very stimulating book; recommended for lay readers and scholars alike.Eugene O. Bowser, Univ. of Northern Colorado, Greeley (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
An eloquent social history of first-century Palestine by Horsley (Religion/Univ. of Massachusetts) and Silberman (The Hidden Scrolls, 1994). As the authors often reiterate, they are historians, not theologians; their goal is not to bolster or debunk the claims of the New Testament, but to contextualize them. They accomplish this by setting the stage of Christian beginnings in the first century, an era of profound social changes, such as escalating tenancy, spiraling indebtedness, and overtaxation by the burgeoning Roman bureaucracy. In Galilee, an obscure outpost of the empire, it became increasingly difficult for Jews to make a decent living (even fishing was transformed in this period from a seasonal, family occupation to a year-round export business, as enthusiasts in Rome developed a taste for the piquant). The region was ripe for social protest, and the authors claim this is how Christianity, ``a movement that boldly challenged the heartlessness and arrogance of a vast governmental bureaucracy,'' began. Jesus, the heart of this movement, constantly challenged Roman rule as illegitimate; the authors persuasively argue that even the ``render unto Caesar'' remark was Jesus' cryptic way of saying that everything belonged to God. The tenor of the movement changed markedly after Jesus' death, becoming more an urban than a rural phenomenon, but even under Paul it remained a social protest. Paul's remarkable missionary success was expedited by audiences' continued discontent with the Roman government, which made the promised immediate demise of all worldly principalities an attractive option. Paul displayed his protest by insisting on equality among persons; he took collections for the poor and even advocated the immediate abolition of the Roman institution of slavery. Paul's ideology was wildly popular, but not with the Roman authorities, who imprisoned him several times and eventually beheaded him for sedition. Stylishly written and rich in memorable detail, this is a rare find that actually offers fresh insight into the overstudied New Testament. (2 maps)
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Review by Booklist Review
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Review by Library Journal Review
Review by Kirkus Book Review
