Book Report: Review the Book "Story of Christianity"

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Book Report: Story of Christianity
Introduction
The Story of Christianity by Justo Gonzalez offers the ultimate sneak peek into the past events surrounding the Christian faith and their influence to the general practices today. The author delves into history and narrates the events surrounding the beginning of Christianity, the persecutions that the early Christians underwent, the bottlenecks that plagued the spread of the Gospel, the indulgence of political figures in matters surrounding Christianity, the hostility encountered by missionaries, and the influence of Islam towards spread of Christianity among others. The author highlights how this information is important for the Christian today as the understanding of our history helps us into substantiating the reasons behind our beliefs.
The author has divided the information within the book into four domains; each giving the historical account that happened within a timeframe, the major events that occurred within these periods, and the figures that influenced them. In the book, the author highlights how the belief in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ forms the foundation of the Christian faith. In fact, the author portrays Christianity as an advanced form of Judaism, which acknowledges the coming of the Messiah and tries to live according to his teachings. The author narrates how Roman emperors and leaders such as Nero, Septimius Severus, and Decius tried to quash the advancement of Christianity and its threat to pagan religions by persecuting Christians.
Additionally, the author gives accounts of people who stuck to their faith despite the persecutions, controversies, or crackdown imposed against them. The influence that the colonial Europeans had on the spread of Christianity is highly appreciated.
What the book is all about
The book accounts for historical events that happened within the Christian faith from 27 BCE up to the 20th century. The author states that having the knowledge of the past events in the Christian history will enable Christians appreciate and understand the background of their beliefs and the people who contributed to it. The author does justice by sticking according to this throughout the book. In the book, the author shows how Christian values and culture developed in different circumstances. For example, the Greek philosophers Socrates and Plato taught that there is one supreme-being and that the soul was immortal. This resonated well with the Christians who took the opportunity to preach about the living God and the coming judgment to a Helenistic culture.
In the book, the author posits that the early Christians did not see Christianity as a new religion but a fulfillment of the Messianic quest they had been waiting for all those years (Acts 20:28). This explains why they continued observing the Sabbath and going to the temple for prayers. The disciples also took to prayers and fasting twice in a week, on Wednesday and Fridays to commemorate the betrayal and crucifixion. During the time persecutions broke against the church in the Roman Empire, some Christians bravely confronted death with the aim of being witnesses of the cross of Christ. Of notable character is Bishop Ignatius, who refused freedom or assistance from fellow Christians against escape so that he may see God and become a martyr and witness of the cross of Christ.
Several other characters in the book portray positive character that can encourage the modern believer to attest to the value of his faith by standing firm. The author uses notable biblical character to prove his points. The book is resourceful to Christians who want to question their beliefs and know a lot about the reasons behind many other practices in Christianity.
The Purpose for Writing the Book
The writer refers to the book as an autobiography since it is a written record of deeds done by our predecessor that are meant to enable us be better in our daily life. The author posits that history is important in understanding the Biblical message and the revelations of God etched in the life and history of His people. For example, the Bible notes that Jesus was born when Augustus Caesar ruled the Roman empire and Herod was king of Judea (Luke 1:2, 2:2). The book of Mathew opens with an account of the genealogy of Jesus, while the book of John affirms that He was from the beginning. Through these historical accounts, we are able to understand the plan of God concerning humanity from the beginning.
According to the contents of this book, it becomes easy for Christians to understand their faith through the history of Christianity depicted in this book. The book is useful to historians who may want to tap into ancient knowledge and retain relevant information for their practice. Muslims can also find this book useful since it addresses the fallacy behind their religion. History students can also find this book useful, together with their theology brothers who want to master the teachings of Christianity.
The book is successful in meeting its purpose in several ways and fulfils the requirements of its audience sufficiently. For example, the author showed how the Crusaders in the middle ages led succes...