From Paul to Valentinus: Christians at Rome in the First Two Centuries

by Peter Lampe, Michael Steinhauser

In this pathbreaking study of the rise and shape of the earliest churches in Rome, Lampe integrates history, archaeology, theology, and social analysis. He also takes a close look at inscriptional evidence to complement the reading of the great literary from Paul's Letter to the Romans to the writings of Clement of Rome, Justin Martyr, Montanus, and Valentinus. Thoroughly reworked and updated by the author for this English-language edition, this study is a groundbreaking work, broad in scope and closely detailed. Lampe deals with the shape of leadership and the Christians' relation to the Judeans living in Rome. In six parts, comprised of fifty-one chapters and four appendices, Lampe greatly advances our knowledge of the shape of leadership and the Christians' relation to the Judeans living in Rome.

Genres: History, Church History, Religion, Nonfiction, Reference, Theology

544 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2003

Reviews

[jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peter Lampe builds a case from all the available evidence (archaeological, topographical, extant literature) in order to describe the Christian church in the city of Rome across the first two centuries or from Paul to Valentinus. Lampe is a first rate detective and I was enthralled from beginning to end. A reader will learn a great deal about the early church in the city of Rome and just as much about sound historical method and sober and strict assessment of the evidence.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lampe systematically explores the evidence for Christians and Christianity in Rome from the mid-First century through the end of the Second. Being knowledgeable of some (but certainly not all) the documents used he generally seems very measured in his conclusions, though I must say I don't find all his arguments fully compelling. It was also a great intro for me to other evidences for the social setting in which the early church lived and witnessed.

[Mu-tien Chiou · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent scholarship. This book is highly technical and rigorous. It cannot be read in one breath, but I keep referencing t for my research on various topics concerning historical Christianity in its early Greco-Roman context.