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Eusebius' Ecclesiastical History | 
 enlarge | Authors: Eusebius Pamphilus, C. F. Cruse
Publisher: Hendrickson Publishers
Category: Book
List Price: $14.97
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Rating:  10 reviews
Sales Rank: 73399
Media: Hardcover
Edition: Updated
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 528
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2
Dimensions (in): 9.6 x 6.3 x 1.7
ISBN: 1565633717
Dewey Decimal Number: 200
EAN: 9781565633711
ASIN: 1565633717
Publication Date: October 1, 1998
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Product Description
EusebiusA' Ecclesiastical History is one of the classics of early Christianity and of equal stature with the works of Flavius Josephus. Eusebius chronicles the events of the first three centuries of the Christian church in such a way as to record a vast number of vital facts about early Christianity that can be learned from no other ancient source. When Eusebius wrote his Ecclesiastical History, his vital concern was to record facts before they disappeared, and before eye-witnesses were killed and libraries were burned and destroyed in persecutions by Rome. He faithfully transcribed the most important existing documents of his day so that future generations would have a collection of factual data to interpret. Thus Eusebius (c. A.D. 260-340) richly deserves the title A“father of Church history.A”More readable. This is the only full edition of Eusebius' Ecclesiastical History that has been retypeset in modern, easy-to-read type. Archaic words have been modernized and the punctuation has been updated according to contemporary standards. Easier to use. The Loeb numbering system (now the standard way to cite Eusebius' Ecclesiastical History) has been added to make it easier to locate passages referred to in other reference works. Also, all citations and cross-references have been updated from Roman numerals to the modern form of citation. More complete. The complete text of all ten books of Eusebius is included. Also included is "Historical View of the Council of Nicea" as well as translations of related documents.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
 Christian History March 30, 2008
This book should be considered a must read for all Christians. There is too much ignorance among Christians and part of this ignorance is a lack of understanding of the early history of our religion. While Eusebius should not be considered the "end all be all" of that early history, he does provide some of the only accounts regarding documents that have been lost to history. He also shows that many heretical beliefs that have crept in to Christian belief already appeared in the first centuries of the Church.
A good research book October 19, 2007
If you are looking for research reference for yourr thesis or dessertation about Bible early writings I can recommend this one.
Eusebius Ecclesiastical History July 16, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
This book is a wonderful account of the history that took place in the era of christ.
Eusebius History July 22, 2006
2 out of 5 found this review helpful
It is a very important book for those who intresting on some of the basic problems of history at the beginning of the firts milenium,and It is one of the main book that was writen on the beginning of christianity.
I had to ignore the deep antijudaism of the writer, and to foxus my atention on the important description of a lot of lost sources that Eusebius use for writing his book . His interpetation of this sources and espesialy josefus Plavius - is a religious and a christian interpetation, and he try to take Josefus for example as an aid or assistent to prove his
narrative concerning the gospels and the fate of the Jews .
Eusebius died in 340 A.D. so if you Want to learn on the first
3 centuries - it is Mandatory !
Against the Grain July 17, 2006
22 out of 27 found this review helpful
I do not find that Eusebius of Ceasarea's Ecclesiastical History is a useful general history of the Early Church. Any credible Early Church history from Schaff onward is far more accurate, balanced, and inclusive. If what you are looking for is a history of the Early Christian Church, please look elsewhere. That being said, what does one get in this nearly five hundred page package? The reader gets a mass of useful data on events and personages in the history of the Early Church as well as quote after quote from the Early Church Fathers available nowhere else. In addition to the works of Eusebius in this volume, there is appended to them a short and and interesting "... Historical View of the Council of Nicea," written by a British divine somewhere in the late Nineteenth Century, and lastly, a valuable group of documents pertaining to the Nicene Council including the Cannons of the Council.
Readers should ponder Eusebius's purposes and intentions in writing these ten volumes of "history" and his "Book of Martyrs" which deals with the Diocletian persecutions in Palestine. This is not in any sense modern objective history. Eusebius first attempts to illustrate that Christianity was a fulfillment of the Old Testament in every way possible. It is how Eusebius understood the justification of Christianity both spiritually and temporally. In the Roman world, old and venerable made a religion legal. New and innovative made a religion a superstition. After its eviction from the synagogues, Christianity was treated by the Romans as a superstition which made it illegal and it's adherents subject to persecution and death. Therefore, his first concerns were apologetic as well as historical. Second, he provides the reader with renditions of martyrdom after martyrdom during the persecutions from Domitian through those of Diocletian. This material is mixed in with other historical and theological data and writings of the Fathers that are timely. Here he purposely exaggerates the influence and pervasiveness of Christianity during the first three centuries of its existence. This leads him to declare the coming religious domination of the Roman Empire by Christianity under Constantine the Great. Here his purposes appear polemic in addition to historical.
Also, the book can be used as a resource to research a multitude of specific topics. For example, the Revelation of John is dealt with on at least on six different occasions. Looking at these as a unit, the reader may conclude that Eusebius and the Church accepted the Revelation as canonical by 300 CE. However, his arrangement and presentation of the material tends to lead to the conclusion that Eusebius does not ascribe authorship to the apostle John. Emphasis on certain persons or points should also be noted. Eusebius writes what amounts to a glowing biography of Origen within the pages of the book. As he does this for no other Early Church Father, one is lead to the conclusion that Eusebius considered Origen to be the greatest of the Fathers before his time.
Beyond this, there are valuable nuggets of information and insight throughout. The "Book of Palestinian Martyrs" refers to less than two hundred martyrs over the many years of the Diocletian persecutions. This may call into question the pervasiveness of Christianity at the time, or in the alternative, it might indicate a lack of systematic persecution by the Romans or both for that matter. Heresies and heretics are regularly abused by Eusebius, but their heresies are not explained. There is also much of interest in the Nicene materials. The 19th century history wrongly accuses the Melitians of abandoning Christianity in the face of persecution when just the opposite was true. In the documents section, Eusebius's letter back to his bishopric after Nicea is a remarkable document that attempts to minimize his prior Arian leanings in a most obviously dissembling fashion . These leanings are amply illustrated by Eusebius's earlier letter to Bishop Eusebius of Nicomedia which is also included.
That Eusebius of Caesarea's "Ecclesiastical History" is invaluable to the serious student and scholar of the Early Church is beyond question. It is our major source regarding the first three centuries of the Church and the Church fathers. Read it whole if you feel you can gain something from it. If not, and you are a more casual reader in the area, you may wish to own it as resource and reference that is easily checked against other more contemporary writings. In and of itself, it can tell you a great deal, however, this in large measure may depend on what you bring to the task. And yes, reading this book is a task. This is by no means an easy read.
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