Table of Contents

List of Maps and Illustrations xiii

How to Use This Book xv

1. The Early Church, 100–500 1

2. The Middle Ages and Renaissance, c. 500–c. 1500 71

3. Competing Visions of Reform, c. 1500–c. 1650 150

4. The Modern Age, c. 1650–1914 214

5. The Twentieth Century, 1914 to the Present 285

Where Next? 349

A Glossary of Christian Terms 351

Index 361

About the Author

Alister E. McGrath is Professor of Theology, Ministry and Education at King’s College London, UK, and head of its Centre for Theology, Religion, and Culture. Prior to his current post, he was Professor of Historical Theology at Oxford University, UK. One of the world’s leading theologians, he is the author of some of the most widely used textbooks on theology, including the bestselling Christian Theology: An Introduction (Wiley-Blackwell, 2010), now in its fifth edition, and Historical Theology, second edition (Wiley-Blackwell, 2012). He is much in demand as a speaker at conferences around the world.

Reviews

“As a work giving an introductory overview of historical theology and lived Christianity in a wider social and intellectual context, the work is excellent —useful for introductory orientation to specific topics (with a meticulously subdivided table of contents and subheads throughout)—and helpful for seeing longer through-lines and deeper continuities than one would see in more narrowly focused works.”  (Journal of Religious History, 6 December 2015) “This book, ideal for seminarians but also for the non-professional Christian, is an incredible resource for helping Christians understand where our faith comes from, how it has developed and spread and survived as long as it has. Ultimately, this book is a great picture of the story of God working to advance his kingdom in the midst of broken humanity."   (Tom-farr.blogspot.com, 1 August 2013)