Christian Teachers in Second-Century Rome

Christian Teachers in Second-Century Rome situates second-century Christian teachers such as Marcion, Justin, Valentinus and others in the social and intellectual context of the Roman urban environment, placing their teaching and textual activity in the midst of physicians, philosophers, and other religious experts.

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Essays in Christian Teachers in Second-Century Rome situate Christian teachers in the social and intellectual context of the Roman urban environment. The teaching and textual work of well-known figures such as Marcion, Justin, Valentinus, and Tatian are discussed, as well as lesser-known and appreciated figures such as Theodotus the Cobbler. Authors probe material and visual evidence on teachers and teaching activity, adopting different theoretical perspectives that go beyond the traditional “church – school” dichotomy: comparative looks at physicians, philosophers and other textual experts; at synagogues, shops and other sites where students gathered around religious entrepreneurs. Taken as a whole, the volume makes a strong case for the sheer diversity of Christian teaching activity in second-century Rome.