Early Christianity Mark Humphries Examining sources and case studies, this fascinating book explores early Christianity, how it was studied, how it is studied now, and how Judaeo-Christian values came to form the ideological bedrock of modern western culture. Looking at the diverse source materials available, from the earliest New Testament texts and the complex treaties of early Christian authors such as Lactantius and Eusebius, to archaeology, epigraphy and papyrology, the book examines what is needed to study the subject, what materials are available, how useful they are, and how the study of the subject may be approached. Case Study chapters focus on important problems in the study of early Christianity including: * the book of Acts as a source for the social dynamics of cities and the tensions inherent in Hellenistic Judaism * orthodoxy and organization in early Christianity * early Christianity and the Roman Empire Also including a comprehensive guide for students that lists major collections of literary and non-literary sources, the chief journals and series, and important textbooks, Early Christianity is an excellent aid to the study of Christianity in history. Mark Humphries is senior lecturer in Classics at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth. He is the author of Communities of the Blessed (OUP, 1999) and a chapter in the Cambridge Ancient History XIV (2000). He is a general editor of the series Translated Texts for Historians