Eusebius: The Church History - Softcover

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Eusebius, the Bishop of Caesarea in Roman Palestine, has well been called "The Father of Church History." As the first Christian historian, he recorded the colorful events and personalities that characterized Christianity in its crucial first three centuries from Christ to Constantine.

Paul L. Maier is the Russell H. Seibert Professor of Ancient History at Western Michigan University. In 1984 he was named "Professor of the Year" as one of America's twenty-five finest educators. His other works include the award-winning Josephus: The Essential Works, Eusebius: The Church History; In the Fullness of Time; Pontius Pilate; and The Flames of Rome.

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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 Christianity, The Church History presents a panorama of apostles, church fathers, emperors, bishops, heroes, heretics, confessors, and martyrs.

This paperback 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. Coupled with helpful indexes and the Loeb numbering system, these features promise to liberate Eusebius from previous outdated and stilted works, creating a new standard primary resource for readers interested in the early history of Christianity.

Reviews of the hardcover edition:

“The publication of a new translation of Eusebius’s The Church History is an important event. This translation, along with the helpful introductions and commentary by Paul L. Maier, makes early history come alive.”

—Mark A. Noll, Francis A. McAnaney Professor of History, University of Notre Dame

“There is no book more important to understanding the early church than Eusebius’s The Church History. And there is no edition more readable and engaging than this one.”

—Mark Galli, Managing Editor, Christianity Today

Paul L. Maier is the Russell H. Seibert Professor of Ancient History at Western Michigan University. He received his Ph.D. summa cum laude from the University of Basel, the first American ever to do so. Frequently interviewed for national radio, television, and newspapers, Maier is the author of numerous articles and books, both fiction and nonfiction, with several million books in print in sixteen languages. His publications include the award-winning translation, Josephus: The Essential Works.

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If Herodotus is the father of history, then Eusebius of Caesarea (c. A.D. 260-339) is certainly the father of church history. He was the first to undertake the task of tracing the rise of Christianity during its crucial first three centuries from Christ to Constantine. Since no other ancient author tried to cover the same period, Eusebius is our principal primary source for earliest Christianity, and his Church History is the cornerstone chronicle on which later historians would build. The Jewish historian Flavius Josephus provides fascinating addenda to our information about the people, places, and events of the biblical world, and Eusebius does the same for the period up to A.D. 324.

What happened to Jesus' apostles later in life? Did Simon Peter ever to go Rome? Where did John spend the rest of his days? Did Paul survive his trial before Nero? When were the Gospels written? Who wrote them, and where? How did the New Testament canon develop? Why and how were the early Christians persecuted? These questions and many more involve an era no longer covered by the New Testament and could hardly be answered were it not for Eusebius.