Pagans and Christians in the City
by Steven D. Smith | Book Summary
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Author: Steven D. Smith
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"Just under a century later, the why question was raised again…by a fiesty Christian lawyer living in Carthage." (p. 3, emphasis in original) Tertullian authored a treatise titled Apology in which he spoke against the unjust punishment of Christians simply for the fact that they were Christians. These ancient questions are important because just like in the early days of church history, the world once again finds itself divided between Christianity and a form of paganism. In ancient Rome, the conflict was between a dominant paganism and an upstart Christianity. Today, the conflict is between a waning Christinity and a resurgent "modern paganism" (p. 8). Like all historical analyses, understanding how we got to where we are today is a first step in understanding where we might be headed tomorrow.
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Steven D. Smith works at the University of San Diego where he is the Warren Distinguished Professor of Law, the Co-Executive Director of the Institute for Law & Religion, and the Co-Executive Director of the Institute for Law and Philosophy. Previously he taught at the University of Notre Dame, the University of Colorado School of Law, and the University of Idaho.
Smith graduated from Brigham Young University (BA) in 1976 and from Yale University (JD) in 1979. His areas of expertise include constitutional interpretation, jurisprudence and legal theory, law and religion, freedom of religion, and the separation of church and state. He is the author of The Rise and Decline of American Religious Freedom, Getting Over Equality, and Law's Quandary, as well as numerous journal articles.
Pagans and Christians in the City
by Steven D. Smith
[ Book Summary ]
| Author | Steven D. Smith |
| Publisher | Eerdmans |
| Date | 2018 |
| Pages | 386 |
Overview:
"In the early second century, a literate and genial…Roman gentleman named Pliny…wrote to his boss, the emperor Trajan, asking for legal advice." (p. 1) At the time, being a Christian was a capital offense, and Pliny wanted to know why "Christians were being subjected to legal sanctions" (p. 2).
"Just under a century later, the why question was raised again…by a fiesty Christian lawyer living in Carthage." (p. 3, emphasis in original) Tertullian authored a treatise titled Apology in which he spoke against the unjust punishment of Christians simply for the fact that they were Christians.
These ancient questions are important because just like in the early days of church history, the world once again finds itself divided between Christianity and a form of paganism. In ancient Rome, the conflict was between a dominant paganism and an upstart Christianity. Today, the conflict is between a waning Christinity and a resurgent "modern paganism" (p. 8).
Like all historical analyses, understanding how we got to where we are today is a first step in understanding where we might be headed tomorrow.
Steven D. Smith works at the University of San Diego where he is the Warren Distinguished Professor of Law, the Co-Executive Director of the Institute for Law & Religion, and the Co-Executive Director of the Institute for Law and Philosophy. Previously he taught at the University of Notre Dame, the University of Colorado School of Law, and the University of Idaho.
Smith graduated from Brigham Young University (BA) in 1976 and from Yale University (JD) in 1979. His areas of expertise include constitutional interpretation, jurisprudence and legal theory, law and religion, freedom of religion, and the separation of church and state. He is the author of The Rise and Decline of American Religious Freedom, Getting Over Equality, and Law's Quandary, as well as numerous journal articles.