Eusebius History of the Christian Church

Description

The History of the Christian Church by Eusebius of Caesarea makes a very interesting read and not only for scholars, but for anyone interested in the early history of Christianity – small wonder it has been so much studied by historians and so popular among laymen interested in history as well.

Eusebius of Caesarea, also referred to simply as Eusebius, was a Roman historian at the end of the 3rd century, the beginning of the 4th century AD. He was born and spent most of his life in Caesarea Maritima, a harbor town in the Syria-Phoenician region of the Roman Empire. He became a presbyter in the town and he produced most of his writings there, too. The majority of his works have been lost, with only a few texts surviving, The History of the Christian Church being one of them.

The book is the very first known history of the Christian Church. It is very thoroughly documented, frequently citing the earlier sources used as reference (many of which are lost as well) and the events presented are ordered chronologically, making the account easy to follow and logically structured. Eusebius discusses not only facts, but social and other aspects as well. He speaks about the life of the early Christian teachers and bishops, about the relationship between Christianity and Judaism, about heretics and Christian martyrs from the beginnings up to his time in 324 AD. He also gives an account of the history of heresies as viewed by a Christian priest, therefore the book reflects the official views on the subject, but also the point of view of the individual.

The ancient text is surprisingly well-written and easy to read. Eusebius gives the reader much more than a list of events and facts. He presents anecdotes taken from the life of the characters he writes about and he tries to bring them closer to the reader.
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