Jesus Wars : How Four Patriarchs, Three Queens, and Two Emperors Decided What Christians Would Believe for the Next 1,500 Years

The Fifth-Century Political Battles That Forever Changed the Church In this fascinating account of the surprisingly violent fifth-century church, PhilipJenkins describes how political maneuvers by a handful of powerful charactersshaped Christian doctrine. Were it not for these battles, today’s church could beteaching something very different about the nature of Jesus, and the papacy as weknow it would never have come into existence. Jesus Wars reveals the profoundimplications of what amounts to an accident of history: that one faction ofRoman emperors and militia-wielding bishops defeated another. Jesus Wars reveals how official, orthodox teaching about Jesus was the product of political maneuvers by a handful of key characters in the fifth century. Jenkins argues that were it not for these controversies, the papacy as we know it would never have come into existence and that today's church could be teaching some-thing very different about Jesus. It is only an accident of history that one group of Roman emperors and militia-wielding bishops defeated another faction.Christianity claims that Jesus was, somehow, both human and divine. But the Bible is anything but clear about Jesus's true identity. In fact, a wide range of opinions and beliefs about Jesus circulated in the church for four hundred years until allied factions of Roman royalty and church leaders burned cities and killed thousands of people in an unprecedented effort to stamp out heresy.Jenkins recounts the fascinating, violent story of the church's fifth-century battles over "right belief" that had a far greater impact on the future of Christianity and the world than the much-touted Council of Nicea convened by Constantine a century before. Philip Jenkins......Page 2 Contents......Page 3 Acknowledgments......Page 5 Introduction......Page 6 Terms and Definitions......Page 16 Maps......Page 19 The Heart of the Matter......Page 24 Appendix to Chapter One: The Church’s General Councils......Page 59 God and Caesar......Page 63 The War of Two Natures......Page 64 Appendix to Chapter Two: Some Early Interpretations of Christ......Page 94 Four Horsemen: The Church’s Patriarchs......Page 98 Queens, Generals, and Emperors......Page 127 Councils of Chaos......Page 154 Not the Mother of God?......Page 155 Appendix to Chapter Five: The Twelve Anathemas, Proposed by Cyril and Accepted by the Council of Ephesus (431)......Page 191 The Death of God......Page 194 Chalcedon......Page 224 A World to Lose......Page 254 How the Church Lost Half the World......Page 255 What Was Saved......Page 296 Appendix: The Main Figures in the Story......Page 309 Notes......Page 320 Searchable Terms......Page 368 About the Author......Page 389 Credits......Page 390 Copyright......Page 391 About the Publisher......Page 392 The Fifth-Century Political Battles That Forever Changed the Church In this fascinating account of the surprisingly violent fifth-century church, Philip Jenkins describes how political maneuvers by a handful of powerful characters shaped Christian doctrine. Were it not for these battles, today's church could be teaching something very different about the nature of Jesus, and the papacy as we know it would never have come into existence. Jesus Wars reveals the profound implications of what amounts to an accident of history: that one faction of Roman emperors and militia-wielding bishops defeated another. Jesus Wars reveals how official, orthodox teaching about Jesus was the product of political maneuvers by a handful of key characters in the fifth century. Jenkins argues that were it not for these controversies, the papacy as we know it would never have come into existence and that today's church could be teaching some-thing very different about Jesus. It is only an accident of history that one group of Roman emperors and militia-wielding bishops defeated another faction. --from publisher description