As a fan and a reader of several of this author's previous books, I eagerly anticipated Mr. Hutchinson's latest book, The Dawn of Christianity. From the first pages, I was mesmerized. I felt transported back 2000 years to the very places the author describes. His vivid descriptions portray Jesus as so very human; yet very much the Son of God.

Those of us raised as Christians are taught to accept much of the foundation of our beliefs on faith. Through meticulous research and a true page-turner of a book, the author presents us with newly discovered archeological and scientific facts that prove so much of what we have previously accepted on faith.

I appreciated the timeline of events; especially for the last week in the life of Christ. The surprise here is how so much happened in so little time that changed the world forever.

Lent is an ideal time to read this wonderfully written book. As we approach Easter, it has given me a better understanding of the events, the people involved, and most especially Jesus; who started it all.

The Dawn of Christianity: How God Used Simple Fishermen, Soldiers, and Prostitutes to Transform the World by Robert J. Hutchinson gives a detailed history of the early Jesus Movement, starting just before Jesus' death and ending with the apostles.

The book went very in depth and informative, yet was written simply enough so it was very easy to understand. It was filled with pictures of the places and things that were being discussed. Everything was explained so clearly, and events in the Bible made a lot more sense to me after. Surprisingly, it did not read at all like a textbook, and I found myself immersed and unable to put the book down.

This book was so interested, I really loved it. I have it 5/5 stars and I'd definitely recommend it.

*I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via BookLook Bloggers in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

THE DAWN OF CHRISTIANITY

How God Used Simple Fishermen, Soldiers, and Prostitutes to Transform the World

By Robert J. Hutchinson

This book answers questions about the early church and how it came to be. The author has divided the book into four parts. Part one, the road to Jerusalem, is about the entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem and what took place up to the crucifixion. The second part, Alive, is the story of what took place from the resurrection to coming of the Holy Spirit. Part three, the beginning of persecution, the ministry of Peter to the stoning of Stephen. and the conversion of Saul. Part four, the expansion of the Jesus movement, covers the ministry of Paul to the Gentles to spreading the word around the world.

The author shares information about what took place using other historical writings as well as the Bible. Written in an easy to understand story style. A time line chart is included showing when things took place with scripture references. A list of whos who in the early Jesus movement is also included.

The book should give a better understanding of what took place from the start of Jesuss ministry to the start of the church. This would be an asset for working with new believers. A great addition to any library.

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggersbook review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255

If youre interested in developing an understanding of how the church and this Way of following Jesus began, you may want to check out Robert J. Hutchinsons new book, The Dawn of Christianity (published by Nelson Books).

This book focuses narrowly on the telling of how the early Jesus movement cobbled together assorted fishermen, soldiers, prostitutes and others into a movement that world transform the world.

Promoted as using up-to-the-minute scholarship with the latest in archeological, linguistic, and historical research, the book is more of a survey of the birth of Christianity that, at times moves so quickly the author is revealing nothing new or unknown from the biblical narrative, and at other times provides a flurry of details that provide deeper insight and understanding.

The first third or almost half of the book really is just unfolding the biblical narrative of the Jesus movement in a more chronological fashion, so much so I began to wonder were all this up-to-the-minute and latest insights were. But then they came, and sometimes in ways you would not expect. Take, for example, a very different twist Hutchinson has regarding Jesus view and relationship with the Pharisees of His day:

At some point, the debate escalated, Hutchinson writes. It appears that Jesus teaching on the kingdom aroused the ire of the Pharisees the self-appointed guardians of Jewish law. In some ways, this is surprising. Jesus had good relations with many Pharisees and shared common ground with them. In the gospel of Luke, Jesus dined with Pharisees three times (7:36, 11:37, 14:1). The book of Acts mentions Pharisees who actually became believers in Jesus and the Way.

Throughout the remainder of the book, Hutchinson quickly attempts to address various elements of skepticism and, I believe, is inconsistent in prevailing in his take of the story. At times, he can back up his surmising with data such as recent archeological discoveries, but at other times I think he just misses the boat. For example, on the question of whether Jesus ever really raised someone from the dead or were the people just sleeping, I wondered if the author didnt lean on the side of the just sleeping skeptics I dont think Hutchinson made clear whatever his position is.

Throughout the book, Hutchinson does do a fair amount of surmising as he attempts to weave the Jesus movement narrative together in a chronological story that helps the reader understand how it all started, and how we have wound up where we are today. Overall, I think Hutchinsons surmizing adds depth and insight to the story of the dawn of Christianity.

The book is written in a simple enough style that anyone can track with the author from cover-to-cover without having to be a theologian or historian. Youll likely find some places of disagreement on a few biblical points, but the book is an interesting compilation of scripture, scholarship, history, and archeology that presents a coherent, heavily researched story worth exploring in depth.

I received this book free from the publisher in exchange for this review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

"The Dawn of Christianity" is a "narrative retelling" of the last week of Jesus' life and of the first few years after his death and resurrection. The author used direct quotes from the Bible, summarized what happened, or created a fictional narrative of what might have happened. However, this is a commentary rather than pure narrative.

While talking about events, the author provided information about the political situation of the time and archeological discoveries. For example, he described what the temple looked like and the likely location of the crucifixion along with details about crucifixion. The author also talked about what skeptics of the Bible have thought and now think about various passages.

While he usually said "some skeptics doubted" or similar phrases, a few times he said "scholars doubted"--like anyone who believed the accuracy of the Bible couldn't be counted as a scholar. He also tried to explain away the supernatural elements. If Jesus raised someone from the dead, that person wasn't really dead but asleep and Jesus just revived them. According to the author, Jesus just assumed that anyone criticizing the system would end up dead--yet he held out hope he'd avoid death and considered running away to a foreign country. He also had Jesus secretly arranging things like the use of the donkey and the Upper Room and keeping this information from his closest followers for security reasons.

The part about the first few years of the early church was brief and mostly a summary of events described in Acts. The focus was really on events right before and after the crucifixion. There are plenty of books that cover that material and do so in a way that's easier to read (as this had a more academic tone).

I received a review copy of this book from the publisher through BookLook.