24
Lectures
30
minutes/lecture
1.
The Diversity of Early Christianity
Modern Christianity is widely diverse in its social structures, beliefs and practices, but this diversity is mild compared to the first three centuries A.D., when Christians disagreed on such basic issues as how many gods there were, or whether Jesus was human, divine, both, or neither.
1.
The Diversity of Early Christianity
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13.
The Acts of John
To some extent, the noncanonical Acts are modeled on the Book of Acts in the New Testament. They differ, however, in that each is about only one of the major apostles in early Christendom: John, Peter, Paul, Andrew, and Thomas.
13.
The Acts of John
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2.
Christians Who Would Be Jews
This begins by considering key terms used in the course, such as orthodoxy and heresy, followed by an introduction to the Ebionites, who maintained Jewish practices while believing that Jesus was the messiah.
2.
Christians Who Would Be Jews
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14.
The Acts of Thomas
The Apocryphal Acts resembled the ancient romances (novels). While the Christian Acts use many of these conventions, their goal is to counteract the views that the romances embraced.
14.
The Acts of Thomas
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3.
Christians Who Refuse To Be Jews
This lecture examines the Marcionites, a group of heretics diametrically opposed to the Ebionites. Using the apostle Paul as his source, their leader, Marcion, insisted that true Christianity had nothing to do with Judaism.
3.
Christians Who Refuse To Be Jews
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15.
The Acts of Paul and Thecla
One of the most popular apocryphal accounts from Christian antiquity involved the conversion and exploits of Thecla of Asia Minor, an aristocratic woman who converts to the Christian faith through the preaching of Paul.
15.
The Acts of Paul and Thecla
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4.
Early Gnostic Christianity—Our Sources
The Gnostics believed that special knowledge brought salvation to souls trapped in the evil, material world. Before 1945 and the discovery of the Nag Hammadi library, information about this widespread group of Christian sects came almost solely from the writings of Irenaeus, Tertullian, and other church fathers who opposed them.
4.
Early Gnostic Christianity—Our Sources
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16.
Forgeries in the Name of Paul
A number of letters survive that are credited to the apostle Paul, but which were clearly fabricated. This lecture considers two sets of such correspondence. Evidently forged in the fourth century, these letters were meant to portray Paul as equal to the greatest minds of his day.
16.
Forgeries in the Name of Paul
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5.
Early Christian Gnosticism—An Overview
This lecture provides an overview of the Gnostic religions. It considers their possible origins within a Judeo-Christian tradition that maintained that God had created the world and controlled it. This was hard for some Jews and/or Christians to accept.
5.
Early Christian Gnosticism—An Overview
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17.
The Epistle of Barnabas
The Epistle of Barnabas is not considered forged. Although later attributed to Paul's traveling companion Barnabas, it is actually anonymous. This is one of the most virulently anti-Jewish treatises of Christian antiquity.
17.
The Epistle of Barnabas
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6.
The Gnostic Gospel of Truth
One of the most intriguing documents from the Nag Hammadi library is the Gnostic Gospel of Truth. It does not relate stories about the life of Jesus, but instead celebrates the "good news" that Jesus brought. The views of God, the world, Christ, and salvation here stand in stark contrast with those that became orthodox within Christianity.
6.
The Gnostic Gospel of Truth
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18.
The Apocalypse of Peter
This lecture examines an Apocalypse of Peter completely unrelated to the one previously discussed. This is a proto-orthodox composition that represents the first surviving narrative of a guided tour of heaven and hell, a forerunner of Dante's Divine Comedy.
18.
The Apocalypse of Peter
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7.
Gnostics Explain Themselves
This lecture considers two writings that attempted to explain the Gnostic system to outsiders. Ptolemy tries to show that neither the one true God nor the Devil could have inspired the Old Testament. In the Treatise on the Resurrection, the anonymous author insists that, contrary to the claims of proto-orthodox Christians, the resurrection is of the spirit, not the flesh.
7.
Gnostics Explain Themselves
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19.
The Rise of Early Christian Orthodoxy
The standard definition of orthodoxy was proffered by the 4th-century church father Eusebius. He maintained that orthodoxy was the view taught by Jesus and his apostles.
19.
The Rise of Early Christian Orthodoxy
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8.
The Coptic Gospel of Thomas
The Gospel of Thomas is the most significant Nag Hammadi document. It consists of 114 sayings attributed to Jesus, with no reference to his miracles, death, or resurrection.
8.
The Coptic Gospel of Thomas
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20.
Beginnings of the Canon
Christianity was unique among religions of the Greco-Roman world in emphasizing the importance of belief instead of cultic practice, and in its insistence that it was the only true religion. The formation of the New Testament canon can be seen as a development among Christians to root their beliefs in the teachings of Jesus and his apostles.
20.
Beginnings of the Canon
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9.
Thomas' Gnostic Teachings
Understanding the Gnostic story can help explain the teachings in the Coptic Gospel of Thomas. Rather than the savior who dies for the sins of the world, Jesus is portrayed as the divine teacher who reveals the truth necessary for salvation.
9.
Thomas' Gnostic Teachings
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21.
Formation of the New Testament Canon
Contrary to popular belief, the canon of the New Testament's 27 books did not emerge at the very beginning of the Christian movement. Although written during the 1st century, or soon thereafter, it took 300 years before these books were declared to be canonical.
21.
Formation of the New Testament Canon
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10.
Infancy Gospels
The Gospels of the New Testament say very little about Jesus' life as an infant and young boy. This "lost period" is the subject of several early Gospels, however, including the Proto-Gospel of James, and the Infancy Gospel of Thomas.
10.
Infancy Gospels
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22.
Interpretation of Scripture
Deciding which books to include in the canon was not enough to ensure the proto-orthodox understanding of the Christian faith. There were numerous ways to interpret the books of Scripture, and the early Christian centuries saw numerous debates over interpretation.
22.
Interpretation of Scripture
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11.
The Gospel of Peter
A fragment is all that remains of the Gospel allegedly written by Jesus' disciple Peter. Early writings proclaim it a forgery. This description of Jesus' trial, crucifixion, and resurrection is both similar to, and strikingly different from, canonical accounts.
11.
The Gospel of Peter
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23.
Orthodox Corruption of Scripture
Of the nearly 5,400 copies of New Testament writings that survive today (in the original Greek), no two are exactly alike. All of the available texts were copied by hand. Some of the discrepancies appear to have been intentional.
23.
Orthodox Corruption of Scripture
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12.
The Secret Gospel of Mark
In 1958 at the Mar Saba library near Jerusalem, scholar Morton Smith found a fragment of a letter supposedly written by the 2nd-century church father Clement. It indicated that a second edition of Mark's Gospel existed, and was intended only for the spiritually elite. Is this letter authentic or a modern forgery?
12.
The Secret Gospel of Mark
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24.
Early Christian Creeds
The final lecture considers the formation of the Christian creeds: statements of faith to determine what was true (orthodox) and what was false (heretical). The well-known creeds of the 4th century, such as the Nicene Creed, developed from earlier formulations known as the "Rule of Faith," and from confessions by converts before baptism.
24.
Early Christian Creeds
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24
Lectures
30
minutes/lecture
1.
Christianity as a Religion
Among world religions, Christianity is both the best and least known. Its political and cultural importance in Western civilization is obvious. Its institutional arrangements, theological disputes, and moral teachings are familiar. Less clear is the reason that the Christian religion—despised by many and declared dead many times—continues to draw adherents from every nation. The study of Christianity precisely as a religion offers clues.
1.
Christianity as a Religion
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13.
Movement Meets World—Five Key Transitions
Christianity's rapid spread across the Mediterranean world in the first generation of its existence is even more remarkable given that it had to accomplish five transitions immediately: geographical, linguistic, cultural, sociological, and demographic. The Acts of the Apostles provides a narrative framework for Christianity's emergence, and shows the role played by such religious phenomena as baptism, fellowship meals, healings, speaking in tongues, visions, and prayer.
13.
Movement Meets World—Five Key Transitions
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2.
What Is a Religion?
Definitions of religion disagree even on basic points. Still, they can point us toward some true elements. A look at inadequate definitions that emphasize membership, ritual, belief, and morals serves to construct a more adequate definition based on a way of life organized around the perception of ultimate power.
2.
What Is a Religion?
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14.
Ritual Imprinting and Politics of Perfection
Baptism, early Christianity's ritual of initiation, can usefully be compared to such rituals in ancient Greco-Roman and other cultural systems. Such comparison provides perspective on the conflict reported in two of Paul's letters—Galatians and Colossians—between the apostle and members of communities who sought circumcision in addition to baptism.
14.
Ritual Imprinting and Politics of Perfection
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3.
The Role of Religious Experience
The topic of religious experience is problematic. Science has trouble with human experience as evidence, and the more religious studies tries to be scientific—using etic methods—the less attractive claims to religious experience—using emic discourse—seem. However, an analysis of Joachim Wach's definition of religious experience suggests how both etic and emic evidence can enrich such study.
3.
The Role of Religious Experience
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15.
Glossolalia and the Embarrassments of Experience
Forms of ecstatic speech were part of Hebrew and Greco-Roman tradition. It is not shocking, then, to find glossolalia, or speaking in tongues, as a manifestation of spiritual possession in earliest Christianity. More difficult to answer is why such a powerful expression of the Holy Spirit's presence should be so quickly marginalized in Christianity.
15.
Glossolalia and the Embarrassments of Experience
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4.
Sourcing Christianity
Christianity drew from religious patterns in both Greco-Roman and Jewish cultures. Access to all ancient religious traditions is limited because of the nature of those traditions, the origin and nature of the sources, and the accidents of their preservation. A phenomenological approach that uses every available source and means of analysis enables the richest sense of Christianity as a religious experience and movement.
4.
Sourcing Christianity
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16.
Meals Are Where the Magic Is
Evidence from Greco-Roman and Jewish cultures testifies to the peculiar power experienced by participants in meals. The cultural contexts, however, offer a number of possible antecedents to Christian practice. What, then, was the precise meaning of the Christian meal? What is the appropriate way to interpret archaeological and literary evidence?
16.
Meals Are Where the Magic Is
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5.
The Imperial Context
Christianity was born in the Mediterranean world of the 1st century C.E., whose several layers of culture—including ancient patterns resistant to fundamental change—affected the development of this new religion. Politically, the world was ruled by Rome; culturally, by Greek ideals. The ancient Hebrew national religion, Judaism, had spread across the Greco-Roman world and was the context from which Christianity emerged.
5.
The Imperial Context
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17.
Healing and Salvation
Physical healing and exorcism are major components of Jesus' ministry in the Gospels and play a large role in the Acts of the Apostles—both canonical and apocryphal. In early Christianity, healing is associated with five distinct motifs. They are a sign of divine presence, of the healer's compassion, of stages of spiritual transformation, of restoration to community, and of faith.
17.
Healing and Salvation
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6.
Greco-Roman Polytheism
Greco-Roman culture was polytheistic, and was permeated by religiosity of every sort. Religious behavior both reflected and reinforced the cultural system called patronage. The early empire saw a proliferation of such religious phenomena as prophecy, healing, and initiation into mystery cults. Even some forms of philosophy took on a religious character.
6.
Greco-Roman Polytheism
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18.
Access to Power—Visions and Prayer
In all ancient religions, visions and prayer represent the two-way traffic between humans and the divine. The prayer of Jesus and his followers offers clues to their perception of that larger reality. The reported visions of Jesus, Stephen, Peter, Paul, and John provide glimpses of what they experienced.
18.
Access to Power—Visions and Prayer
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7.
Greco-Roman Religious Experience
Extant evidence is slender, but indicates that people in Greco-Roman culture seemed to demonstrate the same range of attitudes toward ultimate power as people do today. Three examples give us a sense of genuine religious experience in antiquity.
7.
Greco-Roman Religious Experience
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19.
The Holy Community
From the beginning, Christianity took the form of an organized community called the church (ekklesia). A major challenge to the new religion was establishing its boundaries. It needed to signal its distinctive character in contrast both to Greco-Roman clubs and Jewish synagogues. Metaphors for the church—God's Temple, Body of Christ—indicate some dimensions of early Christian self-understanding.
19.
The Holy Community
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8.
The Symbolic World of Torah
Judaism in the 1st century was a vibrant and complex phenomenon. Diaspora and Palestinian Judaism show distinct characteristics, but even Palestinian Judaism was internally divided. All Jews, however, shared the same basic story, convictions, symbols, and practices, which can be called the symbolic world of Torah. The religious life of Jews in Palestine was polytheistic and revolved around three main loci: the Temple, the synagogue, and the home.
8.
The Symbolic World of Torah
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20.
The Community’s Worship
One of the most important ways in which religion organizes existence is through ritual. In the New Testament, we catch glimpses of baptism, Eucharist, kinship language, foot washing, and the holy kiss. In the 4th century, Christian worship begins to create the elaborate sanctification of time known as the liturgical year and the sacramental system.
20.
The Community’s Worship
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9.
Palestinian Judaism in the Greco-Roman World
The competing sects of Judaism in Palestine expressed Jewish identity in response to Roman rule and Hellenistic culture through patterns of passive or active resistance. Sometimes these conflicts are so highlighted that the deep religious character of Palestinian Judaism is obscured. Four examples provide evidence for the consistency and variety of Jewish piety in Palestine.
9.
Palestinian Judaism in the Greco-Roman World
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21.
The Transforming Word of Scripture
Christianity's relationship to Scripture has always involved a tension-filled dialectic. Its first "Scripture" was the Torah shared with Judaism, which Christians reinterpreted in light of the paradoxical experience of the crucified and raised Messiah, Jesus. The decisive moment in forming the Christian canon came in the mid-2nd century, when Gnostics promulgated an alternative version of Christianity.
21.
The Transforming Word of Scripture
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10.
Judaism in the Hellenistic Diaspora
Life in the Diaspora enabled Judaism to develop in distinctive ways. Most notably, it enabled an engagement with Greek culture that was more positive and pervasive. Alexandrian Judaism provides a glimpse of Jewish life in the Hellenistic Diaspora, with an increased importance of the synagogue, and a literature based on the Greek translation of Torah.
10.
Judaism in the Hellenistic Diaspora
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22.
Teachers and Creeds
As religious communities expand, they tend to develop structured patterns of belief. Earliest Christianity was characteristically simple with respect to structure and creed. The Gnostic crisis of the 2nd century—together with the prophetic movement called Montanism—forced the issue of belief and structure. Orthodox Christianity located authority in the teaching office of the bishop, and developed the "rule of faith," which eventually became the creed.
22.
Teachers and Creeds
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11.
Jesus and the Gospels
The Christian Gospels offer at best a second-hand look at the religious experience of Jesus. We cannot recover the "historical Jesus," but we can draw some broad inferences concerning the Jesus of the Gospels from the judicious use of the deeds, sayings, and traits ascribed to him by those narratives.
11.
Jesus and the Gospels
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23.
The Power of the Saints
Christianity has retained its original power and a radical—and sometimes subversive—edge in the saints, who remind Christians of the priority of religious experience. The term "saint"—meaning "holy one"—was applied in the New Testament to all members of the community. Over time, the term began to denote Christians of extraordinary charisma, virtue, wonderworking, or transformed life, who revealed the power of the Resurrection and the humanity of Christ.
23.
The Power of the Saints
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12.
The Resurrection Experience
A comparison to the founders of Buddhism and Islam sharpens the distinctiveness of Christian origins. It is not so much "Jesus' experience" that begins Christianity as his followers' claim to "experience of Jesus" after his death. The character of this experience can be approached through the claims the first Christians made about themselves, which involve the experience of a personal, transforming power.
12.
The Resurrection Experience
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24.
Christianities Popular and Real
There is an enduring tension in Christianity between official religion—which is all about controlled power—and popular religion—in which power eludes official channels. Official religion claims to be real religion, tending to despise the popular. Academic study of religion tends to follow the same path. Only recently has scholarship paid due attention to popular forms of Christianity.
24.
Christianities Popular and Real
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