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A review by dkevanstoronto
The History of the Church: From Christ to Constantine by Eusebius
5.0
Eusebius paints a picture of an early Christianity coming to terms with its fractured community and the prospect of universal power as the state religion of the Roman Empire around 313 CE.
It's easy to criticize Eusebius in his History of the Church as an apologist for Empire and one who buries so much of the Christian tradition to justify its alteration into a state religion. The situation though was not easy one, and the unity of the church mirrored the unity of the Empire itself. It was also an Empire that desperately needed unity.
Just looking at the extremes of interpretation of the life of Christ you get a sense of how different that reality was. In this Eusebius adequately shows the development and the confusion in Church history. With the interpretation of Marcion of Sinope Christ is purely divine and not human at all. With the earliest and most popular heresey of the Ebionites Christ is a man who followed the Judaic law so well God asked him to sacrifice himself to save mankind. To these extremes and many more the Empire and Eusebius in this work attempts to strike a balance. With this theological settlement Christ is both man and God, and the mysterious Trinity becomes a miracle that all Christians must agree to.
This is a remarkable text. For both believer and non-believer the history of the Christian Church gives a picture of faith, bravery and doubt. This history was not a straight path. The story given here is a testament to the indomitable spirit of man as well as a profoundly beautiful vision of the early Church.
It's easy to criticize Eusebius in his History of the Church as an apologist for Empire and one who buries so much of the Christian tradition to justify its alteration into a state religion. The situation though was not easy one, and the unity of the church mirrored the unity of the Empire itself. It was also an Empire that desperately needed unity.
Just looking at the extremes of interpretation of the life of Christ you get a sense of how different that reality was. In this Eusebius adequately shows the development and the confusion in Church history. With the interpretation of Marcion of Sinope Christ is purely divine and not human at all. With the earliest and most popular heresey of the Ebionites Christ is a man who followed the Judaic law so well God asked him to sacrifice himself to save mankind. To these extremes and many more the Empire and Eusebius in this work attempts to strike a balance. With this theological settlement Christ is both man and God, and the mysterious Trinity becomes a miracle that all Christians must agree to.
This is a remarkable text. For both believer and non-believer the history of the Christian Church gives a picture of faith, bravery and doubt. This history was not a straight path. The story given here is a testament to the indomitable spirit of man as well as a profoundly beautiful vision of the early Church.