We have class readings for every level of interest or time available. For basic and general entry, for everyone in class, there are the short articles that give good thumbnail sketches of a subject or review a significant book of interest. For those with more time or interest, there are two recommended books. First and most basic is by Alvin J. Schmidt entitled, How Christianity Changed the World (Zondervan Press, 2004). The second book strengthens and sharpens the point of the first. It is shorter but more demanding, and is enjoyable literature while being serious history. It is by David Bentley Hart and is entitled, Atheist Delusions: The Christian Revolution and its Fashionable Enemies (Yale University Press, 2009). Don’t let the title mislead, for the book is not so much a polemic against the New Atheists as it is an injection of oft-missing historical insight into the discussion by one with academic credentials in the area. It is a well-reasoned history of The Christian Revolution. For one wanting to be updated with the current historical research, in for instance, the history of Christianity from A.D. 200 to A.D. 1000, please enjoy Peter Brown’s The Rise of Western Christendom: Triumph and Diversity A.D. 200 -1000 (Wiley-Blackwell, 2003) Second Edition!
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