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Church History in Plain Language, Fifth Edition

Church History in Plain Language, Fifth Edition

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-08-25 06:51:41
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Bruce L. Shelley
  • ISBN：0310115965
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Summary

Over 330，000 copies sold。 This is the story of the church for today's readers。

Bruce Shelley's classic history of the church brings the story of global Christianity into the twenty-first century。 Like a skilled screenwriter， Shelley begins each chapter with three elements: characters， setting， plot。 Taking readers from the early centuries of the church up through the modern era he tells his readers a story of actual people， in a particular situation， taking action or being acted upon， provides a window into the circumstances and historical context， and from there develops the story of a major period or theme of Christian history。 Covering recent events， this book also:


Details the rapid growth of evangelical and Pentecostal Christianity in the southern hemisphere
Addresses the decline in traditional mainline denominations
Examines the influence of technology on the spread of the gospel
Discusses how Christianity intersects with other religions in countries all over the world
For this fifth edition， Marshall Shelley brought together a team of historians， historical theologians， and editors to revise and update this father's classic text。 The new edition adds important stories of the development of Christianity in Asia， India， and Africa， both in the early church as well as in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries。 It also highlights the stories of women and non-Europeans who significantly influenced the development of Christianity but whose contributions are often overlooked in previous overviews of church history。

This concise book provides an easy-to-read guide to church history with intellectual substance。 The new edition of Church History in Plain Language promises to set a new standard for readable church history。

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Reviews

Jake Brinkman ，

Easy to read survey of church history from the time of Jesus into the 21st century。

Jerry ，

Dr。 Shelley has succinctly described much of Christianity's history in this easy to read and follow book。 Obviously， it can not cover every single person， event， and story in Christianity's history。 It would take multiple volumes to cover everything。 Dr。 Shelley's work is immensely helpful to any who read it。 Anyone who views this book or its author poorly probably does so out of spite。 Saying that it is wrong thatDr。 Shelley puts too much of his own opinions in this book。 If you had read pretty Dr。 Shelley has succinctly described much of Christianity's history in this easy to read and follow book。 Obviously， it can not cover every single person， event， and story in Christianity's history。 It would take multiple volumes to cover everything。 Dr。 Shelley's work is immensely helpful to any who read it。 Anyone who views this book or its author poorly probably does so out of spite。 Saying that it is wrong thatDr。 Shelley puts too much of his own opinions in this book。 If you had read pretty much any other history book， you would notice that almost every other author does the same thing。 I enjoyed reading this book for my two Church History classes。 。。。more

Kyndra Lemke ，

Very educational， written in an easy to understand manner。 I considered the topics addressed thoroughly enough， but each chapter also had further reading suggestions to dig more。 Definitely a book I will pick up more than once。 At some points the author had a bias or said something I didn’t exactly agree with， but it is church history after all; everyone has a slant here。

Suzanne Noakes ，

"Those who fail to study church history are really saying that the Holy Spirit has had nothing to say for the last 2000 years。" And this is why I set myself to read church history。I loved the accessibility of the information presented by Shelley。 Early in the book I determined that this would be one that I would recommend， if for that reason alone。 "。。。in Plain Language" is very accurate。 I also loved the way the narrative of church history swept all the way up to the contemporary church at the "Those who fail to study church history are really saying that the Holy Spirit has had nothing to say for the last 2000 years。" And this is why I set myself to read church history。I loved the accessibility of the information presented by Shelley。 Early in the book I determined that this would be one that I would recommend， if for that reason alone。 "。。。in Plain Language" is very accurate。 I also loved the way the narrative of church history swept all the way up to the contemporary church at the time of printing。 Too often we today do not see ourselves as part of the formational arc of the history of the church。Which is why it made me all the more sad that women and people of color were absent from the narrative。 The Clapham Movement was discussed without even a passing mention of Olaudah Equiano or Hannah Moore。 The colonial missions work of Great Britain was examined without the inclusion of Amy Carmichael。 Even the early church era sped past without bringing up Lydia's role。 （Edited to add that according to Amazon。com's description， the 5th edition will include more women's stories and， with the assistance of other historians， strive for a more complete picture！）I'm looking forward to the release of the Fifth Edition， which hopefully will have addressed these omissions， as well as covered the territory that Rushdoony opened for sections of evangelicalism and where that has led us。 。。。more

J。R。 Coltaine ，

An accessible medium length church history written by an evangelical for evangelicals。 As such， it focuses on what is of most interest to evangelicals。 I did not find it overly biased or apologetic and was surprised at the sympathetic attention given to the Roman Catholic Church。 I was looking for a stepping stone between David Bentley Hart's slim and breezy history （which is not at all ashamed of its Eastern Orthodox biases） and the 1200 page volumes by scholars like Latourette， Macullough， and An accessible medium length church history written by an evangelical for evangelicals。 As such， it focuses on what is of most interest to evangelicals。 I did not find it overly biased or apologetic and was surprised at the sympathetic attention given to the Roman Catholic Church。 I was looking for a stepping stone between David Bentley Hart's slim and breezy history （which is not at all ashamed of its Eastern Orthodox biases） and the 1200 page volumes by scholars like Latourette， Macullough， and Needham--this was a fine choice。 。。。more

Chelsea Meisinger ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I have always known two things:1。 I love history。2。 I have a major gap in my knowledge between Jesus and Gregorian Chant that needed fixing。This book met me where I was and took me from point to on the timeline between Jesus and the present。 I felt like I was traveling with a linear （modern conservative） Doctor in a Tardis of liturgy and historical anecdotes。 It was pretty great and I felt a human connection to many of the people we met along the way。 Along the journey， there were odd moments wh I have always known two things:1。 I love history。2。 I have a major gap in my knowledge between Jesus and Gregorian Chant that needed fixing。This book met me where I was and took me from point to on the timeline between Jesus and the present。 I felt like I was traveling with a linear （modern conservative） Doctor in a Tardis of liturgy and historical anecdotes。 It was pretty great and I felt a human connection to many of the people we met along the way。 Along the journey， there were odd moments when the author's disdain for/superiority over particular movements and sects appeared and， even though they were slight and small they were distracting and unnecessary， in my opinion。 It actually made me question my trust in the content Shelley was presenting due by the end of the book。 Then again， I should probably approach all books that way anyways。 Overall， this book filled in my gaps and opened my eyes to important distinctions among various sects of the Christian faith and， for that， I am very grateful and do recommend this work for an historical overview of Christian history。 。。。more

Emma Hinkle ，

Great primer on church history that is interesting and keeps your attention！

Jacob O'connor ，

This was my first book on church history and still the best。  My physical copy was destroyed in a tragic loaner calamity， so when I found it on sale on Audible， I grabbed it right away。  Shelley keeps his promise。  This is as accessible and colorful an overview on church history as you could hope for。  Every Christian should own this book。 

Gregory Strong ，

A good one-volume history of Christianity。

Taylor Jackson ，

Great overview of church history， definitely looking to try a later edition。

Max D'onofrio ，

A fascinating， expansive history of Christianity。 A somewhat academic text that kept my attention by the way it tells the history of the Church with some flare and good clarity。 I enjoyed the references to history and literature that they weave into each chapter。 The book is broken up in a very logical manner and always seems to stop at just the right spot before it dives too deep in detail for the layman reader。

Joshua ，

Shelley does a great job of making Church history an easily accessible endeavour。Each progression through the 2000 years of Church's victories and dysfunctions is written well and presented reasonably fairly。 We are never fully free from bias's as people， especially when looking at the history of things close to our hearts， but even in light of this， I think he approaches some sensitive moments with a decent measure of grace and informed perspective。 His personal opinions pop their heads up more Shelley does a great job of making Church history an easily accessible endeavour。Each progression through the 2000 years of Church's victories and dysfunctions is written well and presented reasonably fairly。 We are never fully free from bias's as people， especially when looking at the history of things close to our hearts， but even in light of this， I think he approaches some sensitive moments with a decent measure of grace and informed perspective。 His personal opinions pop their heads up more obviously from time to time， but often he steps into the narrative and acknowledges these。The drawback of this book is acknowledged by the writer himself near the end， but it still needs to be noted here: this really is a history of protestant Christianity in the west - especially focused on that which lead to the formation of Christianity in North America。 Little is written about much Gospel expansion。 The rich history of the Orthodox Church， except for as it relates to the west in its early years， is barely touched on。 Also not explored is the rich history of the Church of the East。 A final chapter is dedicated to the current state of the global south， and I would have loved to have heard more about its history and development。 Admittedly， after 2 millennia， there is more history than could ever be covered in a 500-page tome， but I felt in the above manner the title was somewhat misleading。To summarise - a great book， well worth the read， and a great starting point for narrowing down further study as he has resources for further reading listed at the end of each chapter。 。。。more

Phil Butcher ，

I've read this over the last 15 months。 Does exactly what the title says。 Was reminded of lots I had learnt before but discovered much I never knew。 I've read this over the last 15 months。 Does exactly what the title says。 Was reminded of lots I had learnt before but discovered much I never knew。 。。。more

Gabriela ，

Livro denso e profundo。 Contem muitas paginas de conhecimento incrível sobre a igreja de Cristo。 O autor fala desde atos até os tempos atuais。 Tudo de um olhar histórico e com muito embasamento。 Recomendo！

Cecily Bader ，

This book would be better marketed as Western Church History。 I appreciated the brevity of the chapters， but apart from that， there were few redeemable things about the book。 I found it to be incredibly bias。 There was a glaring lack of history that wasn't related to western， white men。 In the chapter about Protestant missions， there wasn't one reference to female missionaries， except for as wives to the men。。。 nothing about Gladys Alward or Lottie Moon or the countless other single women who ch This book would be better marketed as Western Church History。 I appreciated the brevity of the chapters， but apart from that， there were few redeemable things about the book。 I found it to be incredibly bias。 There was a glaring lack of history that wasn't related to western， white men。 In the chapter about Protestant missions， there wasn't one reference to female missionaries， except for as wives to the men。。。 nothing about Gladys Alward or Lottie Moon or the countless other single women who changed the face of missions。 In the chapter about American Christianity， the pioneer spirit was praised without mention of the mass murder of native people， while the topic of slavery and racism was dealt with in a very dismissive way that I thought minimized the experience of slaves （while also exclusively using the term 'negro'）。 There was a whole chapter devoted to the evils of liberalism （and scientific thought） that was incredibly one sided and gave the impression that conservativism is the only acceptable ideology in scripture。 I grew increasingly frustrated with the book as it went on， but I did learn a good deal about church history as well， hence the two stars。 。。。more

Ryan Michaud ，

This is a great introduction to the grand scope of 2000 years of Church history。 That's just what it is， an introduction。 The author alludes to that in the beginning and specifically notes this book is for the lay reader （hence plain language）。 So yes the narritve moves fast and it some parts too fast but this is a good place to start！ This is a great introduction to the grand scope of 2000 years of Church history。 That's just what it is， an introduction。 The author alludes to that in the beginning and specifically notes this book is for the lay reader （hence plain language）。 So yes the narritve moves fast and it some parts too fast but this is a good place to start！ 。。。more

Sydni ，

Easy to read overview of all the major happenings throughout church history， from the apostles until the present day （2013）。 Wish some topics had been given more time， but didn’t feel like there were any totally worthless chapters。 It’s more centered around people than ideologies， and I really wish he gave more insight into the reasoning behind why people were motivated to do things， or what people thought of the outcome。 He very much leaves the analysis up to you。 Also some things about the str Easy to read overview of all the major happenings throughout church history， from the apostles until the present day （2013）。 Wish some topics had been given more time， but didn’t feel like there were any totally worthless chapters。 It’s more centered around people than ideologies， and I really wish he gave more insight into the reasoning behind why people were motivated to do things， or what people thought of the outcome。 He very much leaves the analysis up to you。 Also some things about the structure of the Catholic church are never explained。 My biggest complaint is the complete focus on the west （esp America）， especially towards the later centuries - there’s only one chapter at the end that tries to include China， Korea， and East Africa - huge miss。 Would recommend for a not-too-deep textbook overview if you’re looking to learn the basic events and changes of church history！ 。。。more

Patrick ，

A fantastic place to start if you want to read church history and think it will be too difficult or too boring。 As soon as I finished reading it I wanted to start over！

Kathryn ，

Learned a lot from this book。 Not exactly what I was searching for but many areas of the church I never knew existed。 A few slow places but interesting enough to keep on。。。

Reeve Klatt ，

A good overview of the church growth and how different denominations came to be and why breakoffs happened。 I learned a lot and the chapters are short and very easy to understand - it's not too academic or textbooky。 My only complaints are that sometimes it was hard to tell if certain sentences were the author's opinion or the opinion of whatever people group/person he was talking about。 I also didn't care for the last few chapters about the modern church and the author's random view that the we A good overview of the church growth and how different denominations came to be and why breakoffs happened。 I learned a lot and the chapters are short and very easy to understand - it's not too academic or textbooky。 My only complaints are that sometimes it was hard to tell if certain sentences were the author's opinion or the opinion of whatever people group/person he was talking about。 I also didn't care for the last few chapters about the modern church and the author's random view that the western church is being persecuted。 It didn't fit with the rest of the book and didn't feel academic but more personal。 。。。more

Stan Shelley ，

My favorite historian is Paul Johnson， who wrote A History of Christianity。 Seminaries often us Latourette's two volume history - I have read part of it。 But this Christian history book is better than either of the above。 It is marvelous - starting with Jesus and the disciples and coming into modern times， Shelley （no relation） is careful not to dwell too long on any one subject or period。 This is a great and informative book。 My favorite historian is Paul Johnson， who wrote A History of Christianity。 Seminaries often us Latourette's two volume history - I have read part of it。 But this Christian history book is better than either of the above。 It is marvelous - starting with Jesus and the disciples and coming into modern times， Shelley （no relation） is careful not to dwell too long on any one subject or period。 This is a great and informative book。 。。。more

Michael ，

Bad History and Bad Theology

Lukas Widann ，

Einfach zu lesen/hören und eine gute gehaltvolle Lektüre für Zwischendurch。 Auch für jeden geeignet der zum ersten mal eine Kirchengeschichte mit protestantischem Fokus lesen möchte

Chuck Barber ，

It’s hard to judge a book that attempts to cover 2000 years of history in 500 pages。 Things are going to be left out or summarized。 Most of the chapters could be （and likely are） books in and of themselves。 But if the question is， how did we get to the current state of Christianity， with all of its denominations， divisions and categories， this book does a good job。 The book is clearly written from an American/Western European perspective - Orthodox traditions sort of disappear from the story aft It’s hard to judge a book that attempts to cover 2000 years of history in 500 pages。 Things are going to be left out or summarized。 Most of the chapters could be （and likely are） books in and of themselves。 But if the question is， how did we get to the current state of Christianity， with all of its denominations， divisions and categories， this book does a good job。 The book is clearly written from an American/Western European perspective - Orthodox traditions sort of disappear from the story after the Great Schism and reappear in segments， e。g。 the church and Communism， later。 Nevertheless， this is well worth a read， and will inspire further reading on specific topics later。 。。。more

Brooke ，

Great overview of church history for Evangelical Christians。 Would definitely recommend to church members seeking to know about the history of Christianity！

Kelle Craft ，

“Generalizations are always wrong and usually helpful” （p。507）。 There certainly are some generalizations in this account of church history， but what volume encompassing over 500 pages of over 2000 years of church history could do without a few generalizations？ Overall， I found this an easy， delightful read。 Some sections are better than others and I was surprised by many major church figures which were left untouched， but I’m not sure what more could be asked for in such a volume as this。 Many “ “Generalizations are always wrong and usually helpful” （p。507）。 There certainly are some generalizations in this account of church history， but what volume encompassing over 500 pages of over 2000 years of church history could do without a few generalizations？ Overall， I found this an easy， delightful read。 Some sections are better than others and I was surprised by many major church figures which were left untouched， but I’m not sure what more could be asked for in such a volume as this。 Many “major” persons in church history are accounted for and the many important events， church councils， crusades， wars， splits， etc。 are accounted for， though in some places just barely。 For a one-stop-shop: this is a good place to start。 But for anyone seeking more coverage in a specific age or location of the church would do well to use this as a primer and then quickly move on to volumes devoted to that subject。 。。。more

Russ Adcox ，

Just as advertised。 Church history in layman's terms。 I was hoping for more inclusion of the American Restoration Movement （Barton Stone/Alexander Campbell）， but I'm a little biased there and they couldn't include everything。 Sometimes the history got overshadowed by theology （i。e。 there was a lot of history of doctrinal debates within the church）。 Overall， a good read for someone wanting to learn more about the messy， chaotic， inspiring history of one of the world's more influential religions。 Just as advertised。 Church history in layman's terms。 I was hoping for more inclusion of the American Restoration Movement （Barton Stone/Alexander Campbell）， but I'm a little biased there and they couldn't include everything。 Sometimes the history got overshadowed by theology （i。e。 there was a lot of history of doctrinal debates within the church）。 Overall， a good read for someone wanting to learn more about the messy， chaotic， inspiring history of one of the world's more influential religions。 。。。more

Esther Nevener ，

I love this book！ It has really shaped my faith in ways I didn’t even know were possible。 The panoramic view of the church throughout history has given me so much perspective。 I would highly recommend this to all millennial believers。

Jeffrey ，

Bruce left our world too early， but left us this wonderful， albeit brief tomb of church history。 Evangelical in its approach， yet not ignorant of the fact that the Catholic church has made contributions to the overall invisible church， as well as others within Christendom （Eastern Orthodox， Russian Orthodox， Coptic， etc。）。 Not overly detailed， but whets the appetite just enough to give you a solid basis to explore a particular something in a time period interests you， all the while peppering in Bruce left our world too early， but left us this wonderful， albeit brief tomb of church history。 Evangelical in its approach， yet not ignorant of the fact that the Catholic church has made contributions to the overall invisible church， as well as others within Christendom （Eastern Orthodox， Russian Orthodox， Coptic， etc。）。 Not overly detailed， but whets the appetite just enough to give you a solid basis to explore a particular something in a time period interests you， all the while peppering in some brief commentary on what's going on。 。。。more

Daniel Walter ，

Meu primeiro contato com a história da igreja foi neste livro。 Quão edificante foi！ Penso que todo cristão deve conhecer a história do hoje e recomendo logo esse livro！

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Church History in Plain Language, Fifth Edition

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Church History in Plain Language, Fifth Edition&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Church History in Plain Language, Fifth Edition&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0