Through the Eye of a Needle: Wealth, the Fall of Rome, and the Making of Christianity in the West, 350-550 AD PDF
Preview Through the Eye of a Needle: Wealth, the Fall of Rome, and the Making of Christianity in the West, 350-550 AD
THROUGH THE EYE OF A NEEDLE OTHER TITLES BY PETER BROWN Augustine of Hippo: A Biography (1967; 2d ed. 2000) Religion and Society in the Age of Saint Augustine (1971) The World of Late Antiquity (1971; 2d ed. 1989) The Making of Late Antiquity (1978) The Cult of the Saints (1982) Society and the Holy in Late Antiquity (1983) The Body and Society: Men, Women and Sexual Renunciation in Early Christianity (1988) Power and Persuasion in Late Antiquity: Towards a Christian Empire (1992) Authority and the Sacred: Aspects of the Christianization of the Roman World (1995) The Rise of Western Christendom: Triumph and Diversity, A.D. 200–1000 (1996; 2d ed. 2003) Poverty and Leadership in the Later Roman Empire (2002) THROUGH THE EYE OF A NEEDLE Wealth, the Fall of Rome, and the Making of Christianity in the West, 350–550 AD PETER BROWN PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS Princeton and Oxford Copyright © 2012 by Princeton University Press Published by Princeton University Press, 41 William Street, Princeton, New Jersey 08540 In the United Kingdom: Princeton University Press, 6 Oxford Street, Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1TW press.princeton.edu Jacket photograph: A hoard of gold and silver coins buried in a wooden chest, along with precious ornaments and tableware, at Hoxne in East Anglia (Britain). Copyright © The Trustees of The British Museum; photo credit: Art Resource, NY All Rights Reserved Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Brown, Peter, 1935– Through the eye of a needle : wealth, the fall of Rome, and the making of Christianity in the West, 350–550 AD / Peter Brown. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-691-15290-5 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Church history—Primitive and early church, ca. 30– 600. 2. Wealth—Religious aspects—Christianity—History. 3. Rome—History—Empire, 284–476. I. Title. BR162.3.B77 2012 270.2—dc23 2011045697 British Library Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available This book has been composed in Garamond Premier Pro Printed on acid-free paper. Printed in the United States of America 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2 For Betsy Jesus said to him: “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” When the young man heard this he went away sorrowful; for he had great possessions. And Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, I say to you, it will be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Again, I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” When the disciples heard this they were greatly astonished, saying: “Who then can be saved?” But Jesus looked at them and said to them, “With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” —Matthew 19:21–26 (Revised Standard Version) CONTENTS LIST OF MAPS LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS PREFACE PART I Wealth, Christianity, and Giving at the End of an Ancient World CHAPTER 1 Aurea aetas Wealth in an Age of Gold CHAPTER 2 Mediocritas THE SOCIAL PROFILE OF THE LATIN CHURCH, 312–CA. 370 CHAPTER 3 Amor civicus Love of the city WEALTH AND ITS USES IN AN ANCIENT WORLD CHAPTER 4 “Treasure in Heaven” WEALTH IN THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH PART II An Age of Affluence
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