The Triumph of Christianity: How the Jesus Movement Became the World's Largest Religion

Over 40% of people today are Christians. Their number grows more rapidly than that of any other major faith. In The Triumph of Christianity, religious & social historian Stark explains how an obscure Jewish sect became the largest, most thriving religion in the world. In his The Rise of Christianity, he examined the early success of Christianity & how it conquered Rome. Now he tells a more extensive story, beginning with the religious & social situation prior to Jesus' birth & continuing to the present. As it moves thru six historical eras, The Triumph of Christianity gets right to Christianity's most pivotal & controversial moments—often turning them on their heads:
-Christmas Eve surveys the religious situation within which Christianity began.
-Christianizing the Empire looks at Jesus' life & the formative days of the movement he inspired, explaining why Christianity was a reprieve from the miseries of daily life for many.
-Consolidating Christian Europe argues that Constantine's conversion did the church great harm, examines the gradual demise of paganism & clarifies the motives behind the Crusades.
-Medieval Currents sheds light on the misleadingly named "Dark Ages" & the vital role faith played in the scientific revolution.
-Christianity Divided examines two Roman Catholic "Churches"—a Church of Piety & a Church of Power—as they respond to heretical challenges, Luther's Reformation & the Spanish Inquisition.
-New Worlds & Christian Growth considers the development of religious pluralism in the USA & the continuing vigor of Christianity worldwide, disproving the popular notion that religion must disappear to make room for modernity.
With his knack for making bold, original scholarship accessible to all, Stark presents the story behind the tragedies & triumphs that have shaped the trajectory of the Christian faith & much of global history. For scholars & laity alike, this is a journey thru events we think we know & need to reconsider.
Introduction
The religious context
Many Judaisms
Jesus & the Jesus movement
Missionizing the Jews & the Gentiles
Christianity & privilege
Misery & mercy
Appeals to women
Persecution & commitment
Assessing Christian growth
Constantine's very mixed blessings
The demise of paganism
Islam & the destruction of Eastern & North African Christianity
Europe responds: the case for the Crusades
The "Dark Ages" & other mythical eras
The people's religion
Faith & the scientific "Revolution"
Two "churches" & the challenge of heresy
Luther's reformation
The shocking truth about the Spanish Inquisition
Pluralism & American piety
Secularization: facts & fantasies
Globalization
Conclusion
Bibliography
Notes
Index

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