The Germanization of Early Medieval Christianity: A Sociohistorical Approach to Religious Transformation - Rilegato

Russell, James C.

Rilegato

ISBN 10: 0195076966 ISBN 13: 9780195076967

Casa editrice: OUP Oxford, 1994

Riassunto

European Christians think of their religion as the "normal" expression of Christianity, in contrast to such ethnic offshoots as the Maronite, Coptic, or Russian Orthodox faiths. In fact, however, as James Russell here shows, Europeanized Christianity is highly adapted, arising from the early interaction of Mediterranean Christianity with Northern European culture.

This book takes a close look at the ways in which Christianity changed in order to win the allegiance of the Germanic and Anglo-Saxon peoples. Russell argues that the Northern peoples were far more resistant to conversion than the disaffected, urban populace of the Roman Empire had been. Unlike their Mediterranean counterparts, the Northerners displayed a high level of social solidarity. As a result, Russell contends, considerable cultural accommodation was necessary for Christianity to take hold in the Germanic context. In the process of exploring the nature of these changes, Russell develops a suggestive new model of the ways in which religious change occurs in any culture.

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Recensione:

`In my opinion the book is very good ... it truly stimulates thought and deserves publication. It throws the clear light of carefully done history on a subject that is both troublesome and dimly understood.'G. Ronald Murphy, German, Georgetown University

Insightfully treating the confrontation between Roman Christianity and Germanic paganism and its resolution, James C. Russell gets to the nub of the matter and probides a basis for a better understanding of what transpired. He thus provides his readers with conceptual tools that will assist them toward understanding othe confrontations between Christianity and non-Christian cultures. It is an excellent contribution to early medieval and church history studies....stimulating and provocative... Russell has carefully charted some difficult waters. (The Historian)

There is much food for thought in this book. (Modern Language Studies, 56 (1994) 1996)

L'autore:

Ph.D. Fordham University, 1990

Su questa edizione

• Editore: OUP Oxford
• Data di pubblicazione: 1994
• ISBN 10: 0195076966
• ISBN 13: 9780195076967
• Rilegatura: Copertina rigida
• Numero di pagine: 272