Rating: 
Summary: Good intro to a lively era
Review: Chadwick has written an engaging, readable introduction to an era that is difficult to distill. There are many cross-cutting trends (from a chronological point of view) and Chadwick does a nice job of maintaining narrative coherence. If you are interested enough to be looking at this page, you will probably find the book captivating. And the coverage is very good, focusing both on theological developments and socio-political developments surrounding the milieu of the early Christian church. So this stands as a very profitable introduction.One specific drawback is that the "filioque" controversy, whether the Spirit proceeds from the Father alone or from the Father and the Son, is glossed over without the attention it deserves. This is one of the major doctrinal disputes to this day between the Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches, and was critically important at the time covered in this book (especially since the subtitle claims the book will take you down to the parting of ways between East and West). One general drawback is that the internecine theological squabbles aren't really placed in their proper context with respect to everday church life. They wind up seeming much more important to the laity than they probably really were. Two caveats, not necessarily drawbacks: it's best to know a little something about the Roman empire, like the broad outlines of its history. Chadwick doesn't assume that you are an expert, but this book comes in at just under 300 pages -- an achievement -- and the sacrifice is that the whole historical environment can't be treated in depth. Also, it's important to have some working knowledge, like one gets from living in the West, of the culture of the church. This book may be hard to read (though still not unprofitable) for a Muslim or Buddhist who has never been to a Catholic mass -- some of the context will be missing. But again, Chadwick can't treat everything in 300 pages so it's not so much a fault as something to keep in mind.
Rating: 
Summary: A Church History Classic
Review: Chadwick provides his readers with a thorough historical account of the early Christian church. He begins with the Jewish context into which the church was born, tells how the church grew and developed in the ensuing centuries, and takes the reader all the way to the Germanic invasions and their aftermath. The book is written in Chadwick's usual scholarly style, and has gained a wide reputation as an excellent source for the student or the layman who wishes to find out more about the early church. His unromantic approach is one of Chadwick's strongest points, and is quite clear from the way he deals with, for instance, the conversion of Constantine and the Council of Nicaea in chapter 8. Constantine's conversion is not portrayed as spectacular and immediate as we find in certain history books. Rather, we see a military strategist who initially did not quite know the difference between Christianity and the 'Unconquered Sun', the deity to whom the Roman senate attributed Constantine's legendary victory over the troops of Maxentius at the Milvian bridge in 312, but one who nevertheless gravitated from solar monotheism to Christianity. In my view Chadwick has done the church an immense favour by writing this book. The book has been reprinted many times, and it is widely used and referred to as a reliable source on the early church. The book does not read quite as easy as some modern works on church history, and this might be due to the fact that it was written in 1967, before the concept of 'user-friendliness' were popularised. The paragraphs are sometimes long (a single paragraph would often be longer than an entire page), and one wonders if the time has not perhaps arrived for a newer and easier to read version, edited to compensate for the collective attention deficiency disorder of the culture we live in. By doing so the book might be accessible to a much wider audience.
Rating:
Summary: Chadwick's style makes the early church come to life.
Review: Chadwick's style is the perfect read for those wishing to have a deeper understanding of the early church. His clear writing on this subject conveys a great amount of insight.
Rating:
Summary: Chadwick's style makes the early church come to life.
Review: Chadwick's style is the perfect read for those wishing to have a deeper understanding of the early church. His clear writing on this subject conveys a great amount of insight.
Rating:
Summary: Incredible Beginner's Course in Church History
Review: Condensing the history of the Church from its inception to the great schism of 1054 into just under 300 pages might seem impossible, but Henry Chadwick has done just that. And he has done so quite admirably. He manages to pack a treasure trove of information into this little tome without leaving much out. This is a great beginner's course for those interested in Church history; it's very readable and, as an earlier reviewer commented, almost exciting. My only complaint is that he does seem a bit rushed at times, and he does occasionally betray his Protestant bias. Still, this is a wonderful summary for those with a passing interest in Church history, and a great starting point for those interested in more profound study. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: An almost exciting read
Review: Henry Chadwick is one of the foremost scholars of Church History. His style is clear and his presentation solid. This book concisely covers the beginnings of the Church from the time of the apostles to around 600 AD, covering the "Patristic" or Church Father period. Basically Henry covers one of the most interesting and fruitful periods in Church history. He covers both historical details and the theology and philosophies of various church fathers. The controversies of the early Church, from the Proto-Charismatic Montanism to the later Arian-Nicene struggle over the doctrine of the Trinity, are represented accurately. The struggles are almost exciting. Overall this book will give the reader a basic introduction into the history of the early Christian Church. For the more advanced student, this particular work by Chadwick might seem too basic, but that is its purpose. This book will be a new experience for some, as it was for me when I first read it. Certain issues considered "fundamentals" to many Christians today, such as biblical inerrancy, were not even really discussed in the early Church. Although, certain Biblical issues such as Canonization (choosing which texts would be a part of the Bible) were hot issues. As a scholar of Church history and a Christian, I use this book often and recommend its use to others.
Rating:
Summary: Chadwick makes Church history a delight to read
Review: Henry Chadwick scores a direct hit with his concise and objective view of the Early Church from the Resurrection to the beginning of the Dark Ages. His text is easy to read and understand without talking down to the average layperson. This book is excellent for those wanting to beef up their religious library. It has also become a requirement for many Christian History courses in seminaries nationwide, including Yale Divinity School. Undoubtedly, one of the finest books on early church history available
Rating:
Summary: Perfect
Review: I found Chadwick's work to be a masterpiece and highly enjoybale. Every area of his scholarship (both from what I know and what others have written concerning his works) is as near perfect as can be. This is a standard work in most seminaries and is a must read for any Christian serious about their Faith. What he explains is neither Roman Catholic or Protestant, he explains the Church like it was and still is in the Orthodox Church which is really shocking for RCs and Protestants that it wasn't either way but rather just how it is, if they know about it, in the Orthodox Church. That there was no Sola Scriptora and that the sacraments and lituragy were an integral part of Christian worship from the time of Christ on is odd for most Protestants of a non-traditional background. For the Roman Catholics it is shocking to find out there was no Filioque or the theology which goes with it and that it was actually condemned by the Church at the city of Rome from the beginning of its introduction. Nor was there anything like the modern day papacy. That in fact, the Pope was just a bishop among bishops, all he could do was rule over the city of Rome just as any other bishop and could give a judgement to two bishops if they both decided to appeal to him to solve a minor problem of jurisdiction (a primus interpares), there was no Papal infallibility, cardinals, madatory celibacy for the priesthood, purgatory, etc. and how the "Rock" Christ says he will build His Church on, when read in Greek, is not refering to Peter, but is refering to his proclamation which all Church Fathers, even Augustine agreed on. As a convert to Orthodox Christianity I was not at all surprised to read what I read, even though it's from an Anglican who still manages to surport Orthodoxy simply through telling it how it is. I highly recommend it, short read, full of important and integral history to Christianity, a must read.
Rating:
Summary: The Early Church: Neither Roman Catholic nor Protestant.
Review: I have noticed that Henry Chadwick's _The Early Church_ has been offered on many different websites selling books associated with Eastern Orthodox Churches. It appears to have a wide audience among the Orthodox Christians despite the fact that it was written by an Anglican scholar from Oxford and Cambridge. Appropriately enough, its cover features an enamel of St. Paul in a none-too friendly dispute (notice the severe frowns and pointing fingers) with a pagan and Jewish philosopher. It is the first volume of Penguin's expansive history of the Christian faith and churches from its origins as a small Jewish messianic sect until its trials and tribulations during the Cold War. Chadwick's book covers roughly the first 800 years or so of the Church's history concluding with the iconoclast controversy in the Greek Church and the divergence between the Greek East and Latin West and a brief mention of the controversial filioque clause in the Creed. _The Early Church_ begins by discussing the form, structure and worship of the apostolic and post-apostolic Church in its context of a continuing tradition from the ancient Hebrew liturgy and worship of Israel. The Church was beset immediately in its first couple of generations by official Roman state persecution, conflicts with the empire's widespread Jewish communities, pagan philosophical critiques and competition from various sects such as the Gnostics, which claimed to be Christian but in fact were condemned by the Orthodox as heretical and corrupting the message of Christ. Since the expanse of history is so wide and the geographic areas so vast (the entire Mediterranean basin, the Middle East, Northern Europe), not to mention the theological issues and controversies involved, Chadwick's work is somewhat cursory in places. This does not, however, take away from this book's value as an introduction to Church history. It is readily apparent where Orthodox readers would find Chadwick's book to be of value in spite of Chadwick's somewhat pro-Western bias (or at least what I personally detect to be a pro-Western bias). The Church Chadwick describes is hierarchical, liturgical, and collegial, presided over by bishops assisted by presbyters ("priests"). The only "pope" that was acknowledged as having special authority was in the Latin speaking western regions of the Roman Empire while the Greek speaking eastern empire had the three major (and sometimes conflicting) sees of Alexandria, Antioch and Constantinople. The Bible also was not the sole means of governing the Church as the canon of New Testament scriptures was not officially decided upon until the fourth century and not as widely read as it is today. Art in Churches was very popular amongst the masses, especially icons in the Greek east. The early Church was neither "Protestant" nor "Roman Catholic" in the sense that these two branches exist and define themselves according to the teachings of men, separated from Orthodox Christianity today. I recommend Chadwick's book to anyone looking for an objective history of early Christianity, the form it took, its cantankerous relationship with the Roman and Byzantine state, its basic doctrines and teachings and the ecclesiastic, political and theological power struggles that shaped it during its early centuries.
Rating:
Summary: Great Early Church Introduction
Review: If you want to find a place to start reading up on early church history, then this is the place to start. He starts out with the basic post-resurrection time of the 12 Apostle's and turns and weaves through basic orthodox church teaching, until the dawn of the dark ages. I love the way the book is written, it only took me a week to finish it. If you are a Christian looking to learn about church history, or simply interested in Christianity's early church period, you will love this book.
| 
