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Ancient The Cambridge History of Christianity. Volume 1: Origins to Constantine. Edited by Margaret M. Mitchell and Frances M. Young. (New York: Cambridge University Press. 2006. Pp. xlviii, 740. $180.00.)
The Cambridge "histories" often include hefty articles on religion, but this is the first time Cambridge University Press has launched a series devoted solely to the history of Christianity. The entire project will include nine volumes and extend the story from the beginnings until the nineteenth and twentieth centuries with two volumes on "world Christianities." It is an ambitious and welcome undertaking.
The aim of the series is to reap the harvest of the scholarship of the last several generations on the history of Christianity, and the first volume, "Origins to Constantine," does that well.There are, for example, articles on the "Jewish Diaspora" and "The Roman Empire," essays on Marcion and on Irenaeus, a series of chapters on the growth of Christianity in distinct geographical areas, e.g., Egypt, Syria, Gaul, chapters on Christian institutions and theology, good articles on persecution and on Constantine, and a chapter on early Christian art and architecture.
Because of...