The Blackwell Companion to Eastern Christianity

Recent political events in the Middle East and Eastern Europe have brought eastern Christianity to global attention. The Blackwell Companion to Eastern Christianity provides an unparalleled account of the history and development of these vital Christian traditions, at the same time placing contemporary events in their full context. The companion provides authoritative and lively essays on the main Eastern Orthodox traditions, such as the Greek, Russian, and Georgian churches, as well as the Oriental Orthodox traditions, including the Armenian, Coptic, and Syrian churches.

The in–depth articles of the companion, which are written by an international team of experts, offer a comprehensive survey of the history, theology, doctrine, worship, art, culture, and politics that make up the churches of Eastern Christianity. The companion can also be used alongside the respected The Blackwell Dictionary of Eastern Christianity (1999), providing detailed discussions and assessments to complement the Dictionary s shorter entries.

List of Illustrations.

Notes on Contributors.

Preface.

1 Arab Christianity (David Thomas).

2 Armenian Christianity (Vrej Nerses Nersessian).

3 Bulgarian Christianity (Ivan Zhelev Dimitrov).

4 Byzantine Christianity (Hannah Hunt).

5 Coptic Christianity (Janet A. Timbie).

6 Ethiopian Christianity (David Appleyard).

7 Georgian Christianity (Stephen H. Rapp, Jr.).

8 Greek Christianity after 1453 (Vrasidas Karalis).

9 Romanian Christianity (Mircea Pacurariu).

10 Russian Christianity (Basil Lourié)

11 Serbian Christianity (Radmila Radic).

12 Syriac Christianity (Heleen Murre–van den Berg).

13 Eastern Christianity in the United States (Thomas FitzGerald).

14 Eastern Christianity in China (Jeremias Norman).

15 Eastern Catholic Christianity (Peter Galadza).

16 Eastern Christian Liturgical Traditions: Eastern Orthodox (Graham Woolfenden).

17 Eastern Christian Liturgical Traditions: Oriental Orthodox (Bryan D. Spinks).

18 Eastern Christian Iconographic and Architectural Traditions: Eastern Orthodox (Alexander Grishin).

19 Eastern Christian Iconographic and Architectural Traditions: Oriental Orthodox (Lucy–Anne Hunt).

20 Eastern Christian Hagiographical Traditions: Eastern Orthodox (Dimitri Brady).

21 Eastern Christian Hagiographical Traditions: Oriental Orthodox: Syriac Hagiography (Eva Synek).

22 Eastern Christian Hagiographical Traditions: Oriental Orthodox: Coptic Hagiography (Youhanna Nessim Youssef).

23 Eastern Christian Hagiographical Traditions: Oriental Orthodox: Armenian Hagiography (Vrej Nerses Nersessian).

24 Sociology and Eastern Orthodoxy (Peter McMylor and Maria Vorozhishcheva).

Index.

Ken Parry is Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Ancient History at Macquarie University, Australia. He is the editor–in–chief of The Blackwell Dictionary of Eastern Christianity (Wiley–Blackwell, 1999) and has contributed to numerous other books and journals on Byzantine Christianity and the Christian East.

"Consistently highly readable and engrossing. This is an excellent overview of Eastern Christianity." ( Expository Times)

"A masterful description of the major living traditions of Eastern Christianity. Its 24 chapters, each written by an accomplished scholar in the field, address the dominant ethnic and cultural categories of Eastern Christianity (Arab, Byzantine, etc.) along with their most characteristic features (liturgy, iconography, and hagiography). Each offers a concise, well–organized, and highly readable overview of the tradition in question, along with a representative bibliography ... Highly recommended." (CHOICE)

"Christian emigration, not least from the Middle East, means that there are growing communities of Eastern Christians in the West ... Eastern Christians are now companions to Western; and the latter will learn much about the former from this Blackwell Companion." (Church Times)

"A distinctive addition to the companion series and to its chosen sphere of knowledge." (Reference Reviews)

"A worthwhile collection, and one that should prove useful." (Ecclesiastical History)