Christianity at the Crossroads: How the Second Century Shaped the Future of the Church

About the Book

It is the second century. Everyone who knew Jesus is now dead. Christianity has begun to spread, but there are serious threats to its survival.

Christianity at the Crossroads examines the crucial issues that faced the second-century Church - a period often neglected or overlooked in other studies. It was during this period that the fledgling Church struggled to work out its identity and stay true to the vision of Christ and the apostles. Threatened by divisive controversies from within and fierce persecution from without, the Church's response to these and other issues not only determined its survival; it was to shape the beliefs, values and lives of millions of Christians throughout the world over the next two millennia.

About the Author :
Michael J. Kruger is President and Professor of New Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, North Carolina. His recent publications include The Question of Canon (IVP Academic, 2013) and The Early Text of the New Testament, co-edited with Charles E. Hill (Oxford University Press, 2012).

Review :
In this well-written study, Michael J. Kruger makes accessible the overlooked, yet fascinating, world of second-century Christians. He not only introduces readers to the key texts, figures and modern scholars in the discussion, but also the social circumstances in which second-century Christians made their distinct identity claims. Kruger treats complex topics, such as the relationship between Judaism and Christianity, pagan criticisms of Christians or the textual culture of early Christians, with nuance. Christianity at the Crossroads is a fantastic introduction to second-century Christianity. If you've ever wondered what happened to the church after the apostles, how the church began to expand and grow, and why it developed its particular beliefs, then Michael Kruger has written the book for you. In this learned volume, Kruger takes readers into the mysterious second century, where he lucidly explains things like the formation of a distinctive Christian identity, pagan responses to Christianity, the rise of certain heresies, and the canonization of the New Testament. This book will open a whole new world that you never knew existed! Kruger takes us into a world in which 'Christianity' is still very much at risk and up for grabs, struggling to find its identity in the midst of forces within and without seeking to define its identity or suppress its existence. His book invites us into the tensions and trajectories that would eventually give shape to what we, in distant retrospect, take for granted as Christian faith, practice, and polity. I recommend it highly. If readers are wondering whether a case can still be made from the primary sources for more traditional positions on 2nd-century Christianity, then this is a good place to look. It would serve well as an overview text in an introductory class on early Christianity, paired with primary sources-and with key secondary works arguing for opposing positions. A fine resource for readers so that the crossroads of the past can be seen in their historical settings and their relevance discerned for directions today's Christians may take.