This collection of essays examines the urban context of early Christian churches in the first-century Roman world. A city-by-city investigation of the early churches in the New Testament clarifies the challenges, threats, and opportunities that urban living provided for early Christians. Scholars focus on the ancient urban evidence of the inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography and discuss what is a responsible use of these differing types of evidence in reconstructing the past. The book outlines what constitutes a proper methodological use of such evidence in...

This collection of essays examines the urban context of early Christian churches in the first-century Roman world. A city-by-city investigation of the early churches in the New Testament clarifies the challenges, threats, and opportunities that urban living provided for early Christians. Scholars focus on the ancient urban evidence of the inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography and discuss what is a responsible use of these differing types of evidence in reconstructing the past. The book outlines what constitutes a proper methodological use of such evidence in...