Tradition and Diversity: Christianity in a World Context to 1500

Karen Jolly's book of primary sources for Christian history from Paul through the middle ages is a well-rounded collection well suited for undergraduate, graduate, and seminary classrooms. She includes not only the standard political and theological texts from the early church through the late middle ages (which one can easily find in a number of collections, like Bettenson's), but a number of obscure and fascinating cultural texts, such as The Leechbook, an early medieval monastic book of religious medical cures, sources for Chinese Nestorian Christianity, medieval women's writings, and medieval Byzantine, Islamic, and Jewish texts. In particular, the early medieval period (500-1000) which generally gets short shrift in textbooks and collections like this due to the relative lack of source material and people who study it, is richly detailed, reflecting the author's training as an historian of Saxon England. Each short (1-10 page) excerpt is preceded by a useful introduction and three questions which help to guide students' readings. The questions become more difficult and analytical as the book progresses, reflecting students' growth in historical skills and knowledge. There is too much here to cover in one semester, but the text is divided into chronological and thematic sections, allowing instructors to pick the texts most suited to their courses. Highly recommended for anyone seeking to know more about Christian and/or European history as well as college instructors. If only she would do one for the period 1500-present!