Table of Contents

List of Maps
John MacManners: Introduction
From Origins to 18001: Henry Chadwick: The Early Christian Community
2: Robert A. Markus: From Rome to the Barbarian Kingdoms (330-700)
3: Henry Mayr-Harting: The West: The Age of Conversion (700-1050)
4: Kallistos Ware: Eastern Christendom
5: Jeremy Johns: Christianity and Islam
6: Colin Morris: Christian Civilization (1050-1400)
7: Patrick Collinson: The Late Medieval Church and its Reformation (1400-1600)
8: John McManners: Enlightenment: Secular and Christian (1600-1800)
9: John McManners: The Expansion of Christianity (1500-1800)
Christianity Since 180010: Owen Chadwick: Great Britain and Europe
11: Martin Marty: North America
12: Fredrick Pike: Latin America
13: Peter Hinchliff: Africa
14: Kenneth and Helen Ballhatchet: Asia
15: Sergei Hackel: The Orthodox Churches of Eastern Europe
Christianity Today and Tomorrow16: Maurice Wiles: What Christians Believe
17: Bryan Wilson: New Images of Christian Community
18: Basil Mitchell: The Christian Conscience
19: John Taylor: The Future of Christianity
Further Reading
Chronology
Index

About the Author

John MacManners is Fellow of All Souls, and Professor Emeritus of Ecclesiastical History, University of Oxford. He has written extensively on French and European history. His fifth book Death and the Enlightenment (OUP 1981) was awarded the Wolfson Literary Prize for History, and was one of The Times' ten best non fiction titles of the year.

Reviews

`an enormous work full of wise insights, balance of information, reliable scholarship and precision of writing the illustrations are splendid.'
Edward Norman, TLS

`an enormous work full of wise insights, balance of information, reliable scholarship and precision of writing the illustrations are splendid.' Edward Norman, TLS

Extending from the earliest Christian communities, marked by a strong sense of being ``called out'' from the surrounding society, to the 20th century, a ``reversion to an age of persecution of Christianity,'' this superb, authoritative chronicle recreates the sense of the sacred as it was experienced by Christians in particular times and settings. Led by McManners, professor of ecclesiastical history at Oxford, a team of 19 historians explores the decisive role of Christianity in shaping the Germanic West, the intricate tapestry of Eastern Christendom, the historic failure of Christians to accommodate Jews and Muslims in their midst. Chapters deal with the Reformation and the new lay spirituality of the Enlightenment, missionary expansionism (1500-1800) and modern developments in Asia, Africa, Latin America, the U.S. and Europe. Hundreds of illustrations range from paintings by El Greco, Botticelli and Edward Hicks to an Ethiopian miniature, a drawing from a ninth-century psalter and photographs of key figures. 35,000 first printing; $50,000 ad/promo; History Book Club and Reader's Subscription main selections. (Nov.)

In 19 chapters by as many scholars, this latest volume in the ``Oxford Illustrated History'' series traces the development of Christianity from its turbulent beginning to the present ferment in Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Eastern Europe. The last four chapters assess the current state of Christianity and its direction as it faces the challenges of the 21st century. A major emphasis of all the writers is the interaction between church and society. They do not present an isolated view of Christianity's development but show how it has grown in relation and in reaction to changes in its world and how it has helped shape that world. The wealth of illustrations--averaging one every other page--and the readable (though by no means elementary) style should give this volume wide appeal. Highly recommended for public and academic collections.-- Craig W. Beard, Harding Univ. Lib., Searcy, Ark.