Christianity in Late Antiquity
The rise of Christianity stands as arguably the most far-reaching social, cultural, political, intellectual, and spiritual shift in human history. During the period known as Late Antiquity, between the third and seventh centuries, the Christian movement was grounded in fundamental ways – most of the major Church Fathers lived, wrote, and taught during this era; six of the seven ecumenical councils met to affirm basics of Christian orthodoxy; and a variety of Christian practices, such as asceticism and pilgrimage, emerged to shape various branches of Christianity. At the same time, the movement was growing exponentially in numbers and reach, spreading out from its Mediterranean and Near Eastern home to stretch from the British Isles to China and from northern Europe to Nubia and Yemen. During this era, the “One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church” worshiped in languages and cultural expressions ranging from Latin and Greek to Syriac, Armenian, Axumite, Arabic, and even Mandarin Chinese. This course explores the backdrop and context as well as key figures, major historical moments, and central practices of Christianity during this watershed period of history.
The rise of Christianity stands as arguably the most far-reaching social, cultural, political, intellectual, and spiritual shift in human history. During the period known as Late Antiquity, between the third and seventh centuries, the Christian movement was grounded in fundamental ways – most of the major Church Fathers lived, wrote, and taught during this era; six of the seven ecumenical councils met to affirm basics of Christian orthodoxy; and a variety of Christian practices, such as asceticism and pilgrimage, emerged to shape various branches of Christianity. At the same time, the movement was growing exponentially in numbers and reach, spreading out from its Mediterranean and Near Eastern home to stretch from the British Isles to China and from northern Europe to Nubia and Yemen. During this era, the “One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church” worshiped in languages and cultural expressions ranging from Latin and Greek to Syriac, Armenian, Axumite, Arabic, and even Mandarin Chinese. This course explores the backdrop and context as well as key figures, major historical moments, and central practices of Christianity during this watershed period of history.
The rise of Christianity stands as arguably the most far-reaching social, cultural, political, intellectual, and spiritual shift in human history. During the period known as Late Antiquity, between the third and seventh centuries, the Christian movement was grounded in fundamental ways – most of the major Church Fathers lived, wrote, and taught during this era; six of the seven ecumenical councils met to affirm basics of Christian orthodoxy; and a variety of Christian practices, such as asceticism and pilgrimage, emerged to shape various branches of Christianity. At the same time, the movement was growing exponentially in numbers and reach, spreading out from its Mediterranean and Near Eastern home to stretch from the British Isles to China and from northern Europe to Nubia and Yemen. During this era, the “One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church” worshiped in languages and cultural expressions ranging from Latin and Greek to Syriac, Armenian, Axumite, Arabic, and even Mandarin Chinese. This course explores the backdrop and context as well as key figures, major historical moments, and central practices of Christianity during this watershed period of history.