The Cross before Constantine
The Early Life of a Christian Symbol
Published on 1. August 2015
Book
Paperback/Softback
244 pages
978-1-4514-9030-5 (ISBN)
Description
Upending a longstanding consensus, Bruce W. Longenecker presents a wide variety of material artifacts to illustrate that Christians made use of the cross as a visual symbol of their faith long before Constantine appropriated it to consolidate his power in the fourth century. Constantine did not invent the cross as a symbol of Christian faith; for an impressive number of Christians before Constantines reign, the cross served as a visual symbol of commitment to a living deity in a dangerous world.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Publishing group
Augsburg Fortress Publishers
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 154 mm
Thickness: 20 mm
Weight
400 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4514-9030-5 (9781451490305)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
08/2015
Fortress Press
€31.99
Available for download
Person
Bruce W. Longenecker is professor of early Christianity and W. W. Melton Chair of Religion at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, having formerly taught in Britain at St. Andrews, Cambridge, and Durham Universities. Some of his recent books include The Lost Letters of Pergamum (2002); Rhetoric at the Boundaries (2005); and Remember the Poor: Paul, Poverty, and the Greco-Roman World (2010).