Introduction
Christendom by Peter Heather
Book: Christendom: The Triumph of A Religion, AD 300-1300
Author: Peter Heather
Page Count: 704 pages
Why I chose this title: I know very little about religion, especially my own, and its hard to find books by religion scholars.
From the early fourth century to the 13th century, Christianity has changed.
Peter Heather is a historian with a background and Greek and Latin and hopes to take a long-term view of the history of early and medieval Christianity, not necessarily to provide a scholarly synthesis rather and exploratory view.
Latin Christendom is a central subject matter of this book and it begins with emperor Constantine in A.D.300 . He was the first ruler of the European landscape who accepted Christianity. It remained the minority religion within the Roman world, and the vast majority of the empire Christians lived in Asia Minor, the Middle East, Egypt, and North Africa.
By A.D.1300 the European landscape was primarily Christian and much of the southern Mediterranean world had turned to Islam.
Since Constantine‘s conversion, Christianity had no central authority structure. It was basically a series of urban congregations who elected their own leaders and ran their affairs independently.
The researchers purpose is to explore Christianity, particular Christianity in Europe, and the cultural impact. Researcher also explores Christianity continuous reinvention as well as frequently political grabs at Christianity when Politicians look for something distinct that unites the people. He anticipates we will begin to see the intersection of church, politics, social, and cultural history.