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Medieval Christianity
- A New History
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 21 hrs and 20 mins
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Publisher's summary
For many, the medieval world seems dark and foreign - a miraculous, brutal, and irrational time of superstition and strange relics. The pursuit of heretics, the Inquisition, the Crusades, and the domination of the "Holy Land" come to mind. Yet the medieval world produced much that is part of our world today, including universities, the passion for Roman architecture and the emergence of the Gothic style, pilgrimage, the emergence of capitalism, and female saints. This new narrative history of medieval Christianity combines what is familiar and unfamiliar to modern audiences.
Elements of novelty in the book include a steady focus on the role of women in Christianity; the relationships among Christians, Jews, and Muslims; the experience of ordinary parishioners; the adventure of asceticism, devotion, and worship; and instruction through drama, architecture, and art. Kevin Madigan expertly integrates these areas of focus with more traditional themes, such as the evolution and decline of papal power, the nature and repression of heresy, sanctity and pilgrimage, the conciliar movement, and the break between the old Western church and its reformers.
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In A.D. 381, Theodosius, emperor of the eastern Roman empire, issued a decree in which all his subjects were required to subscribe to a belief in the Trinity of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This edict defined Christian orthodoxy and brought to an end a lively and wide-ranging debate about the nature of God; all other interpretations were now declared heretical.
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Dont pass it up
- By brett on 01-21-11
By: Charles Freeman
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Church History 101
- The Highlights of Twenty Centuries
- By: Sinclair B. Ferguson, Joel R. Beeke, Michael A. G. Haykin
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 1 hr and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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Church history is important because it shows us how God's faithful dealings with his people in the Bible continue in the ongoing life and work of Christ in our world. If you have ever wished for a short book highlighting church history's most important events that will enlighten your mind and pique your interest, this is the one you've been waiting for. Three prolific church historians collaborate their efforts in Church History 101 to present you with a quick listen of church history's high points.
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Knowledge of the Church's History: Essential
- By Caleb on 03-26-20
By: Sinclair B. Ferguson, and others
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Strange Gods
- A Secular History of Conversion
- By: Susan Jacoby
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Wiley
- Length: 19 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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In this original and riveting exploration, Susan Jacoby argues that conversion - especially in the free American "religious marketplace" - is too often viewed only within the conventional and simplistic narrative of personal reinvention and divine grace. Instead, the author places conversions within a secular social context that has, at various times, included the force of a unified church and state, desire for upward economic mobility, and interreligious marriage.
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Our own fabrications
- By David E. Felker on 01-03-17
By: Susan Jacoby
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The Reformation for Armchair Theologians
- By: Glen Sunshine
- Narrated by: Kate Reading
- Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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This listenable, accessible narrative story of the Protestant Reformation provides a solid grounding in the history of the Reformation and its leading ideas. The and the inclusion of "Questions for Discussion" and "Suggestions for Further Reading" make this book excellent for study groups, or as a refresher "course" for students - and even as a good starting point for those interested in the larger discipline of church history.
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Sunshine Shines Brightly!
- By LP on 03-14-16
By: Glen Sunshine
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Heretics and Believers
- A History of the English Reformation
- By: Peter Marshall
- Narrated by: Napoleon Ryan
- Length: 35 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Centuries on, what the Reformation was and what it accomplished remain deeply contentious. Peter Marshall's sweeping new history argues that 16th-century England was a society neither desperate for nor allergic to change, but one open to ideas of "reform" in various competing guises. This engaging history reveals what was really at stake in the overthrow of Catholic culture and the reshaping of the English Church.
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A heavy read but well worth it.
- By chemtrooper on 12-02-18
By: Peter Marshall
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Tried by Fire
- The Story of Christianity's First Thousand Years
- By: William J. Bennett
- Narrated by: Wayne Campbell
- Length: 15 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Full of larger-than-life characters, stunning acts of bravery, and heart-rending sacrifice, Tried by Fire narrates the rise and expansion of Christianity from an obscure regional sect to the established faith of the world's greatest empire with influence extending from India to Ireland, Scandinavia to Ethiopia, and all points in between.
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Best history of Christianity I've read
- By JOHN F KANARY on 05-05-16
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The Civilization of the Middle Ages
- By: Norman F. Cantor
- Narrated by: Frederick Davidson
- Length: 28 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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The Civilization of the Middle Ages incorporates current research, recent trends in interpretation, and novel perspectives, especially on the foundations of the Middle Ages and the Later Middle Ages of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. A sharper focus on social history, Jewish history, women’s roles in society, and popular religion and heresy distinguish the book.
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Recommended for students
- By Delano on 12-18-11
By: Norman F. Cantor
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Charlemagne
- By: Johannes Fried, Peter Lewis
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 30 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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When the legendary Frankish king and emperor Charlemagne died in 814 he left behind a dominion and a legacy unlike anything seen in Western Europe since the fall of Rome. Johannes Fried paints a compelling portrait of a devout ruler, a violent time, and a unified kingdom that deepens our understanding of the man often called the father of Europe.
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I really wanted to enjoy this -
- By Doris on 01-19-18
By: Johannes Fried, and others
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The Reformation
- History in an Hour
- By: Edward A. Gosselin
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 1 hr and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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The Reformation was a long struggle of ideas between the established Catholic Church and the questioning of faith brought about by the Renaissance in Western Europe. Started by Martin Luther in 1517, religious dissidence spread across Europe throughout the sixteenth century, causing wars, migration and disunity.
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Very easy to understand and follow
- By N on 04-06-18
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Excellent Summary!
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A heavy read but well worth it.
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Carlos Eire, popular professor and gifted writer, chronicles the 200-year era of the Renaissance and Reformation with particular attention to issues that persist as concerns in the present day. Eire connects the Protestant and Catholic Reformations in new and profound ways, and he demonstrates convincingly that this crucial turning point in history not only affected people long gone but continues to shape our world and define who we are today.
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Once in a generation, a historian will redefine his field, producing a book that demands to be read or heard - a product of electrifying scholarship conveyed with commanding skill. Diarmaid MacCulloch's Christianity is such a book. Breathtaking in ambition, it ranges back to the origins of the Hebrew Bible and covers the world, following the three main strands of the Christian faith.
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Bias
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Church history is important because it shows us how God's faithful dealings with his people in the Bible continue in the ongoing life and work of Christ in our world. If you have ever wished for a short book highlighting church history's most important events that will enlighten your mind and pique your interest, this is the one you've been waiting for. Three prolific church historians collaborate their efforts in Church History 101 to present you with a quick listen of church history's high points.
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Knowledge of the Church's History: Essential
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At a time when men and women were prepared to kill - and be killed - for their faith, the Protestant Reformation tore the Western world apart. Acclaimed as the definitive account of these epochal events, Diarmaid MacCulloch's award-winning history brilliantly recreates the religious battles of priests, monarchs, scholars, and politicians - from the zealous Martin Luther and his 95 Theses to the polemical John Calvin to the radical Igantius Loyola, from the tortured Thomas Cranmer to the ambitious Philip II.
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Excellent
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Excellent Summary!
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A heavy read but well worth it.
- By chemtrooper on 12-02-18
By: Peter Marshall
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Church history is important because it shows us how God's faithful dealings with his people in the Bible continue in the ongoing life and work of Christ in our world. If you have ever wished for a short book highlighting church history's most important events that will enlighten your mind and pique your interest, this is the one you've been waiting for. Three prolific church historians collaborate their efforts in Church History 101 to present you with a quick listen of church history's high points.
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Excellent
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How did the preaching of a peasant carpenter from Galilee spark a movement that would grow to include over two billion followers? Who listened to this "good news," and who ignored it? Where did Christianity spread, and how? Based on quantitative data and the latest scholarship, preeminent scholar and journalist Rodney Stark presents new and startling information about the rise of the early church, overturning many prevailing views of how Christianity grew through time to become the largest religion in the world.
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Often called the "Father of Church History", Eusebius was the first to trace the rise of Christianity during its crucial first three centuries from Christ to Constantine. Our principal resource for earliest Chrisitianity, The Church History presents a panorama of apostles, church fathers, emperors, bishops, heroes, heretics, confessors, and martyrs. This audiobook edition includes Paul L. Maier's clear and precise translation, historical commentary on each book in The Church History, and numerous maps, illustrations, and photographs.
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Pagans explores the rise of Christianity from a surprising and unique viewpoint: that of the people who witnessed their ways of life destroyed by what seemed then a powerful religious cult. These "pagans" were actually pious Greeks, Romans, Syrians, and Gauls, who observed the traditions of their ancestors. To these devout polytheists, Christians who worshiped only one deity were immoral atheists who believed that a splash of water on the deathbed could erase a lifetime of sin.
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19th Century Scholarship
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To an extraordinary extent we continue to live in the shadow of the classical world. At every level, from languages to calendars to political systems, we are the descendants of a “classical Europe,” using frames of reference created by ancient Mediterranean cultures. As this consistently fresh and surprising new audio book makes clear, however, this was no less true for the inhabitants of those classical civilizations themselves, whose myths, history, and buildings were an elaborate engagement with an already old and revered past - one filled with great leaders and writers....
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Excellent overview of the Classical World
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What listeners say about Medieval Christianity
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Bill Martin
- 10-22-16
New Standard Text for This Period
I'm probably duplicating other reviews (haven't read them), but I would give Madigan's 2015 "New History" 4.5 stars. I'm amazed at how concisely the author has organized such vast material, yet without density which would normally rob a text like this of narrative interest. Conversely, "Medieval Christianity" flows as a well-told story.
Madigan's unique contribution to Medieval history is to capture for his readers not just important geopolitical movements, rulers, theologians, cultural and social paradigms, but also everyday spirituality, dynamic tensions and the overlooked contributions of Medieval women. This approach brings the reader closer to a past rarely understood or appreciated. In my estimation, he balances sectarian concerns (Catholic/Protestant) and provides richly informative material for students of history, sacred and secular.
Two personal examples are the discussion of Christianization in the Middle Ages (conversion and discipleship in contemporary equivalence) and the fascinating, uneven development (and periodic devolution) of preaching throughout. Either subject could easily furnish a prompt for a master's thesis. Though both examples are religious, other discussions of subjects like marriage, art and culture, and church-state relations will benefit readers with other interests. Moreover, as one reviewer noted most people aren't aware of how much Medieval church history is equivalent to more general conceptions of the MIddle Ages.
The half-star deduction goes to my own convictions against the in-vogue revisionist reading of the development of the canon of Scripture and orthodoxy, contours of which Madigan assumes in the early chapters, and my similar dislike of post-structuralist hermeneutics by which the stories of marginalized people groups are not only told, but privileged. I believe Dr. Madigan is fair in discussing Christian relations with Islam and Judaism, but I don't believe the story is quite balanced. For a counterbalance, read Rodney Stark's "God's Battalions." (But don't read Stark exclusively.)
Finally, the audible version is excellent, with one adjustment. The narrator is relaxed, articulate and very comfortable with the technicalities of this subject, including theological terms and names without forcing native pronunciations! But the narration flows best at 1.25 speed.
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15 people found this helpful
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- Giancarlo
- 08-28-23
A Primer on the History of medieval Church
It’s a primer, so don’t look for deep insight. Anyway it’s very interesting. Not a book to listen to if you can’t concentrate. Lots of strange names and dates, lots of philosophical concept you have to think about. I didn’t like the lecturer. It’s not a novel or fiction, time is needed to think about the concepts. When reading such a a book you should speak slow and clear, with as little accent as possible. It didn’t happen in this case. GCP
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- Troy
- 08-20-15
Christendom as a Complete World View
When studying the Middle Ages, Christianity isn't just so wound up with it as to be inseparable. Christendom is the world view of the age for most of Europe and for others in different parts of the known world at the time. Most overviews of this era will hopscotch around certain topics and tie it in to world events, and most histories of Christianity will simply be come across as "history from the perspective of the Church." This book is a bit different, and it fills a niche.
This book's focus is all about how Christianity spread and evolved during this time, and to that end it touches upon a little bit of everything. Practitioners in secular life? Check. Monastic orders and life within those walls? It's in there. How the faith interacted with other beliefs? Yes. Crusades? Of course! The movers and shakers that redefined the various sects are covered, as well as everything from scholastic preservation to inquisition. There's just enough of nearly every topic of discussion without venturing into the depths of true scholastic oblivion. If you're looking to go there, this book will certainly give you plenty of launching points to do so. At the same time, what it does offer has plenty of depth that a person unfamiliar with this era could walk away with a considerable understanding.
As narrator for the audio, Pete Larkin has a perfect radio announcer voice and delivery. He does stumble with pronunciation from time to time, but it's not nearly often enough to derail the book.
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7 people found this helpful
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- JThomso
- 10-26-16
Disappointed
I wanted to like this, but it left me flat. I would hope that a scholarly treatment of a religious history like this doesn't have to be so dry, even lifeless. I contrast this with any number of Karen Armstrong's books, and would choose hers without question.
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2 people found this helpful