Lost Christianities
The Battles of Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew
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Lost Christianities
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Narrated by:
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Matthew Kugler
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By:
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Bart D. Ehrman
About this listen
The early Christian Church was a chaos of contending beliefs. Some groups of Christians claimed that there was not one God but two or twelve or thirty. Some believed that the world had not been created by God but by a lesser, ignorant deity. Certain sects maintained that Jesus was human but not divine, while others said he was divine but not human. In Lost Christianities, Bart D. Ehrman offers a fascinating look at these early forms of Christianity and shows how they came to be suppressed, reformed, or forgotten. All of these groups insisted that they upheld the teachings of Jesus and his apostles, and they all possessed writings that bore out their claims, books reputedly produced by Jesus's own followers. Modern archaeological work has recovered a number of key texts, and as Ehrman shows, these spectacular discoveries reveal religious diversity that says much about the ways in which history gets written by the winners.
Ehrman's discussion ranges from considerations of various "lost scriptures" - including forged gospels supposedly written by Simon Peter, Jesus's closest disciple, and Judas Thomas, Jesus's alleged twin brother - to the disparate beliefs of such groups as the Jewish-Christian Ebionites, the anti-Jewish Marcionites, and various "Gnostic" sects. Ehrman examines in depth the battles that raged between "proto-orthodox Christians" - those who eventually compiled the canonical books of the New Testament and standardized Christian belief - and the groups they denounced as heretics and ultimately overcame. Scrupulously researched and lucidly written, Lost Christianities is an eye-opening account of politics, power, and the clash of ideas among Christians in the decades before one group came to see its views prevail.
©2003 Oxford University Press (P)2013 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about Lost Christianities
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- Wael
- 19-11-20
Thoroughly enjoyable
Entertaining, erudite, patient and conscientious. The depth of thought, motives and temperament of the ancients, and the scholarly means of waging their battles, forgeries, slander and all, is masterfully elucidated. The many citations, the stories and works of authorities in the field, with the commentary of modern scholarship and the reflection of the author on their conclusions are smoothly inserted and steady the narrative. The total effect I got was the satisfaction of both a good story and an enlarged perspective.
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- Lou
- 08-03-21
fascinating
The book created lots of questions in my mind but it is a fascinating exploration of the subject
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1 person found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 13-04-19
Great book
Enjoyed this very much.
I may need to relisten to it over a longer period of time and do my own studying along the way.
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- VPapachR
- 11-08-19
amazing book with facts
Anyone with real interest in searching for an inner understanding of the religions, especial in christianity, this is the book with facts. This book doesn't tell you what you should believe nor to change your mind on your beliefs. It is simple a book that you have to read as to see what might be happening behind your back for ages...
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- Adrian Chan-Wyles Ph.D
- 31-08-20
Superb and Engaging Scholarship!
This outstanding academic reseacher provides a lucid and highly convincing foundation in the study of the historical development (and functionality) of Judeo-Christian religion within society. As an objective study, the reality of the history of Early Christianity is clearly defined and explained. Christianity was diverse and consisted of many schools, all of which were eventually destroyed by the Roman Catholic variant which had developed in Rome, and which was chosen by the Roman State as its specially empowered State Religion. Although all these schools had an equal claim to orthodoxy, the Roman Catholics possessed the political and military power to declare them 'heretical' and physically destroy their communities and suppress their scriptures. An excellent and important work!
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- Amazon Customer
- 25-05-24
Excellent book, very well read. A good starting point for those interested in the development of Christianity as history.
The narrator, Matthew Kugler, did an excellent job in speaking clearly and intelligently, which certainly helped this listener/reader navigate the complexities of early Christianity. Bart Ehrman’s book, given his academic background, is excellently written for the those, like me, keen to understand how Christianity developed in the first few centuries of the Roman Empire, without having to plod through interminable academic papers.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- dr_biomorph
- 11-03-17
fascinating stuff
minor quible: the reader does not seem to pronounce some of the names in the standard way, no fault of the author though
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- JonF
- 23-09-23
Superb
This book offers a delightful blend of in-depth knowledge and reader-friendly prose. It's the kind of read you'd want to revisit, discovering little nuances with each pass. I've listened to it twice and found something new each time. Perfect for a cozy Sunday afternoon, it's a title that promises more insights with every read. Recommended for those who appreciate both substance and style.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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- L. McCulloch
- 27-05-22
Academic but fascinating
Quite a difficult read with all the ancient names and sects but very interesting and worth staying with it.
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