John Anthony McGuckin has taught at Union Theological Seminary, Columbia University, and Oxford University. His fields include Late Antique Christian History and Byzantine Christian Studies. He has also served in Orthodox churches.
This book is 1157 pages of writing. Each chapter discusses a time period or a topic and is followed by excerpts from primary sources. Part I of the book is organized chronologically, as it goes from the second century C.E. to the eleventh century C.E. Part II is more topical, as it includes chapters on ancient Christian stances towards various issues. These issues include biblical interpretation, war, hymnography, prayer, women, healing and philanthropy, church authority, magic, wealth, slavery, sexuality, and art (particularly iconoclastic controversies). After these chapters are appendices that summarize church councils and list Roman popes, patriarchs of Constantinople, and Roman emperors until 1453.
Part I is excellent in that it lays out the stories of key figures throughout church history, in terms of their personalities, their arguments, their beliefs, and what happened to them. It also lucidly describes the beliefs of Marcion, Origen (specifically his view on pre-existent souls and the human attempt to re-unite with God), and the Manicheans. The Christological controversies are described, along with what different perspectives believed was at stake. The theological, ecclesiastical, and political differences and tensions between Western and Eastern Christianity are also highlighted.
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