Christians and the Roman Army: Lessons for Today

by Andrew Garnett

Many people today live in a polarized societies, struggling to find common ground in a time of deep division. But there is good news—the first Christians faced this challenge too. Christians & the Roman Army tells the forgotten story of the early church’s relationship with the army of imperial Rome. Over six well-researched and thoughtprovoking chapters, Garnett explores the ways that some early Christians embraced the army and the reasons that other Christians did not want to welcome soldiers into the church. Andrew Garnett offers lessons for our outreach to military servicemembers

today, and discussion questions at the end of each chapter help readers apply the story to contemporary contexts. Anyone interested in ministry with the military, the history of the early churches, or finding common ground on contentious issues has a valuable resource in Christians & the Roman Army.



Andrew Garnett is the pastor of Hampton Baptist Church in the Hampton Roads region of Virginia, which has the largest concentration of military bases of any metropolitan area in the world. His doctoral study focused on the relationship of the early Christians to the Roman army. He has traveled extensively throughout the former Roman Empire and has led groups to Rome to explore early Christianity. He and his wife, Jessie, are the parents of two daughters.

169 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 22, 2024

Reviews

[Jessie Garnett · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I was to write a list of my interests, the Roman army likely wouldn’t even make it into the top thousand. 😂 What WOULD make it a whole lot closer to the top of that list would be the political polarization of the modern American church. And that is exactly what made this book such a treasure to read. Because yes, it is about the Roman army (and about our modern US Military) but it is also about how the earliest followers of Jesus navigated opposing ideologies with integrity and humility.

So, that’s my way of saying that it’s worth the read, even if you don’t think about the Roman Empire once a week 😉.

[Skyler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome survey of early Christianity and the military. Andrew is a truly exceptional writer. I mean exceptional in the truest sense of the word. I almost never read someone so equipped to make incredibly smart things so profoundly simple and plain spoken.
Very thought provoking and applicable.

[Haley Tucker · Rating 5 out of 5]

It never ceases to amaze me how some authors have a way of presenting material as if you were sitting around the table together, having a conversation. Andrew Garnett is one of those gifted authors.