This article examines the origins of episcopal adjudication before the reign of Constantine. Rather than treating imperial legislation as the beginning of Christian judicial authority, it argues that bishops were already resolving disputes within Christian communities during the second and third centuries. Beginning…
This research article examines the discreet theological language of early Christian epigraphy before Constantine. It focuses on funerary inscriptions, graffiti, symbolic vocabulary, Roman burial conventions, and the Abercius Inscription. The article argues that early Christian inscriptions should not be understood as evidence of…
The Forgotten World of Christianity Before Power, Privilege, and Empire When many people imagine Christian history, they think of grand cathedrals, powerful bishops, theological councils, and the Christian Roman Empire. The image of Christianity that often comes to mind is one associated with…